Urban/StreetwearI remember in 1996, if your jeans rose when you sat down; everyone pointed and laughed at your ‘high waters’. Back then everything needed to be twice your size and your jeans should never leave the heel of your shoe. Those are a few cardinal rules that have since been broken--if not altogether dismissed. Now in the age of street ware and urban gothic; fitted and sometimes muscle tight is the new grown n’ sexy.
You could see the change come about with the new millennium. Rappers’ raiments became smaller (by that I mean they didn’t look like their father’s hand-me-downs) than they were in the early 90’s. My friends wore regular cut jeans that were actually their size, and even rose when they sat! Then something crazy happened…skating penetrated the mainstream and spawned a new category of clothing we now know as street wear. Art became the basis of t-shirt designs, and Jim Jones rocked a fitted tattoo shirt in his Ballin’ video. Now in 2008, the fitted/tailored look is in full swing. It makes everything look neater, cleaner, grown, and most importantly…FLY. Most urban clothiers have reshaped their cuts to accurately reflect the size on the label. (Am I the only person that remembers when a large felt like an XL?) With the inclusion of the street ware phenomenon, you can have that urban flare with a Hollister fit. Even more amazing, it’s cool to rock Hollister and American Eagle, two brands I distinctly remember being off limits in the Urban Freshness Rule Book. These brands have always made their clothes to fit, and now the streets have caught on.
Fitted/tailored shirts open up another avenue for fashionable expression…couture denim and denim accessories. It’s hard to find a brand whose denim does not display its artistic acuteness on the back pockets of their denim to match their coordinated tops. Brands like COOGI and Gino Green Global have made this a staple in each of their season releases’ with matching jackets, shirts, and denim pockets. Even though jeans now come in more tailored fits, let them hang just a little to show off your new matching belt, another great addition to urban fashion’s repertoire from the past eight years.
So throw away those tall tees. If you are a 32x30, don’t by 36x34 unless you want to look like you been in jail for the past decade.
Dress/Casual
Unlike the above, it has always been standard to have your suits tailored. The same reasons apply but with extra emphasis given to neatness and appearance. It has been said before but I’ll reiterate; a good tailor can make a $230 suit look twice its value. Likewise, a $1000 suit will look a third of its value if not properly sized to its wearer. Here are the specifics on how the suit should fall:
Coat/jacket sleeves: 1/3in from the rim of your shirt’s sleeve. The coat should be snug but loose enough to pull away 1” from the body when buttoned up.
Pants: Should fall over the shoe, stopping behind (NOT UNDERNEATH) the heel. A cuff can be applied if you so choose.
Shirt: Sleeves should stop at the top of the wrist bone and the collar should be loose enough to allow you to insert one finger.
Both
I neglected the fact that no one has the exact same body type so some customization is required. Next week I will have tips for all body types whether you’re tall and skinny or short and round, I’ll have you covered. Just remember for now…Tight is Right and Baggy is Shabby.
-yetm-
