Mind Bending Monday - The lost art of being well dressed...

i don't think the art of looking sharp will ever go outta style, the thing is that good taste is relative. 

i likes a  man who looks as turned out in timbs as he does in brooks bros......and has been granted the God-given wisdom to know the difference. 

i was about to say his personal style doesn't matter much as long as it's stylish, but then i remembered the steve harvey collection (no offense to fans of the steve harvey/stacey adams look) so lemme be specific:  well appointed and dressed appropriately for the ocassion is attractive.  being a pea**** is not.  just my personal preference, don't care how much your suit cost, if it only comes in lime green, big bird yellow or eggplant purple, i'm thowin up the deuce.  payce boo-boo. 


i'm not into psychological tests, if he knew the requirement for the place we were going and wasn't appropriately dressed when he picked me up, there wouldn't be a problem, we'd just hafta reroute to the sizzler.   LOL.

 @ being a pea**** is not. 

 My response is in line with all the others. It depends on the situation. Over the weekend, I was down at the Baltimore Inner Harbor and I saw a range of brothers in everything from suits, to jeans, to the biker boys in their biker gear. It was all pretty appealing to me. Most mature black men just look good to me no matter the situation. What I absolutely will not tolerate are cornrows, and jeans that hang below the butt. I mean, seriously, they make belts to keep your pants up. Low hanging jeans on a man isn't sexy, it's a sign of laziness. It's not hot. And the cornrows, I don't know what to say. I like locks, don't like cornrows. It's a matter of personal taste. Now, if I'm going out with a man and he's dressed inappropriately for the function, I'll mention it. And if you're a black man without a suit in your closet, then we are probably not going to get past the first few dates. It's not a good look when you have to go shopping to attend a funeral or wedding. Some things should be staples in your closet, and a suit is one of them. 

Good question. It made me come out of lurk mode.

I think it's a matter of personal preference also.  There's a time and a place for everything.  Although I like going out and dressing up, I can also get with a more casual setting.  (I'm just versatile like that )  But in this case, if it was previously discussed and he was not dressed appropriately, we would either go somewhere else (unless it was planned with other people) or he would have to change clothes.
As for my preference, I'm good with whatever he feels comfortable in.  I can't see forcing someone to dress up just because I want it.  Nothing worse than being out with a guy who feels uncomfortable because more than likely he will have attitude......not for me.
If it were that big of an issue (him NOT wanting to ever dress up), then I wouldn't be going out with him in the first place. LOL

Yeah some guys think that a brand new jersey and some jeans is dressed up. 

I think a man (regardless of color) should have the three basic colors in his suit closet - black, blue, and grey. 

Labels have nothing to do with dressing well.  A label does not always equal quality or a good fit.   I think black folks used to utilize a tailor or dressmaker more in the past so clothing always looked better than straight off the rack.  I have a couple of friends who buy off the rack but they take everything to their dressmaker to have it fitted to their shape.    I always thought they had custom made stuff until let me in on the secret. 

I like a man who dresses appropriately for the occasion.  I would not want a man who only wears jeans all the time nor do I want a man who wears suits all the time. 
I'm glad you started this thread.  I recently told my husband I didn't care for the clothing he was buying for himself and I hate the clothing that his 74 year old father has given him.  My husband has started dressing like an old man and it's not a stylish old man look.  He's starting to buy like he's caught in a time warp. 

Funny you should mention the whole age appropriate dress.  I know when I hit 40 I was confused as to what I should be wearing as opposed to what looked good and felt good. 

I think that's my husband's problem.  He hit 40 and got lost when it comes to style.  He used to be picky about his clothing but when I mentioned how his style seems to be off he jumped at the opportunity for me to shop for him.  I couldn't buy him a t-shirt in the past but now he's giving me total control over his clothing.  I think he knows I'm about to go buckwild shopping the closer I get to goal weight. 

I must say it's kinda tough for us men regarded as "Tweens" (between the younger ages and the so-called over the hill ages) when it comes to style and dressing.  At work, I can rock the polo shirt and a pair of Dockers.  At home around the house, who cares.  But when it's time to go out, for example, the movies - a suit is too dressy, but then again a 40 something year old dude in a pair of Rocawear jeans, with the cuff at the bottom, a white t-shirt, and a fresh pair of Nike Air Force Ones, looks a little weird. 

Hey DA:
There is NO accounting for "taste" but there is accounting for etiquette. Unfortunately, many people these days do not know or have good etiquette. If you told many young people to come dressed semi-formal, they would not have a clue. Also, we as a society seem to chosen comfort over couture when there is no clash between the two at all...there is a time and place for everything, the key is in knowing when (given one has "taste")

It's interesting about etiquette; growing up in the South (age 44 yrs.old now), ALL 7th Graders in our school system HAD to take a course called Etiquette. At the end of the semester, we had a dance and dinner in which all of the taught skill were used>>>(how to properly cut meat, use forks and spoons, eat soup, napkin placement, what to do with that pesky non-eating hand, breaking and placement of bread, for boys-asking a girl to dance/how to lead/securing a female in her chair at the dinner table..., what makes up the different attires...)

I have a friend who is an executive in corporate, he is beginning the process of opening a Non-Profit geared towards teaching etiquette to all ages...the number of College educated people the we run across who need this help is amazing. Example: Business Casual Friday..I have often had to pull young brothers and say...do not wear those Tims and baggy jeans, YOU are being WATCHED! Many just don't know how their careers will suffer because they do not know what is appropriate (in attire and otherwise)...I guess that is why some of the better educational institutions have an "unofficial" etiquette class for their students.