Fashion Affordable fashion?

[Ross]

My fashion is pretty bland right now. I am pretty good at recognizing what looks great; the problem is, I have expensive tastes. I'm a college student without a job, so it's pretty difficult to acquire sufficient funds to buy a variety of clothing that would help to enhance my base sexiness and attractiveness. I have a few nice outfits to wear, but because I have only been working on improving my fashion for a short amount of time my collection of clothes includes a lot of normal-looking clothing, and just a couple nice-looking outfits that I can wear, and often that's only for special occasions.

As if money wasn't my only issue, I have difficulty finding clothes that fit my dimensions. This wouldn't be a problem if I had enough money to pay the extra amounts needed for a 6'3 165 pound frame, yet I can't. The good news is, Christmas is coming in, and I have some savings, so I am looking for spend this on improving my fashion from normal to edgy/sexy. I suppose an entire article on the specifics of fashion hasn't been put up, but I'd love to hear some tips on specific ways to find affordable fashion, or perhaps relate how you were able to enhance your fashion to a sexy level without spending copious amounts of money, which might also move you into boyfriend material. So anything that professes "boyfriend" is out the window as well. I'm looking for a fashion sense that says, Sexy bachelor who isn't looking for a long-term relationship. Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Eric]

I have your frame and it is indeed quite the problem. I rock climb and am low body fat so I have big arms and a tiny waist.. 6'1-6'2, 160-170 lbs. I shop at express for their jeans (GET THEIR BOOT CUTS), and their v-necks / long sleeve crew cut (get the black and heather grey.. in a small). Other stores don't fit me, I'll rip the shoulders if I move too much. They typically have some latex in their clothes so it stretches and shapes to your body. I get my shirts from shirt.woot.com, get a lot of comments from strangers when I wear these (also go small). I splurge on coats/jackets from express as well, they typically have semi-expensive ones (for students). For express.. $30 for shirts, $100 for the jeans, $200-300 for coats. They also have quite a few coupon deals, so if you spend over $100 or something you get $50 in coupons.. and a lot of the times they give out deals where if you buy 2-3 shirts you get a huge discount.

 

[Chase]

You can sometimes find some steals at used clothing stores, or secondhand stores. A lot of what they'll have will be junky Average Joe clothes, but you can occasionally find cool stuff. Vintage clothing stores are another one - you'll find some pretty unique items there, often not terribly expensive. Many times articles of clothing from the '70s or '80s have come back into fashion again, and everyone will want to know where you got that crazy shirt / tie / scarf, because they can't find anything like it.

You can search for clothing outlets around town too, where you can get stuff at clearance prices. Sometimes you can get designer clothes at 40% off or more.

Check the clearance racks at your favorite clothing stores, as well. I've always liked Guess!, and they always have a big clearance rack in the back, often with some sharp items.

Chase

 

[nino]

I have the same problem, I'm into some expensive brands myself. However, in order to be fashionable you don't need to always go for those brands, I mean just because you have a shirt with a big logo on it doesn't make you look hot (I know, expensive brands aren't always about a logo, just saying that to get my point across). I find it's much more about how the cut of the clothes fits you and about playing around with colors. In fact, one of my favorite outfits consists mainly of no name brands but the cut fits my body perfectly, the pieces' colors match each other nicely as well as my skin tone.

Only when it comes to shoes I won't be stingy at all - having my shoes basically dissolve just by running thru our wet lawn still gives me flashbacks.

Chase beat me to it, but yes, outlets are like an oasis. What I especially love about them that clearance sell doesn't mean it's old stuff! Sometimes I find stuff there I happened to see like literally less than a month ago, you just have to keep your eyes open.

 

[Franco]

I've got some advice here seeing that I graduated college about two years ago and had to deal with the same dilemma. I was not working a "real" job while getting my degree, so my funds were low.

The way I approached getting new clothing in college was setting aside a small amount of cash every week or two and forcing myself to go out and buy new articles of clothing. For the first few years of college, I wore only what I had from high school... needless to say, my tastes had changed dramatically, and I was tired of wearing outdated fashion. As long as you have a system where you can get one or two articles of clothing every week or two, you will end up with a whole new wardrobe within a couple of months!

Here is one other trick I used: If you happen to have family members or friends who usually buy you gifts for your birthday or Christmas, start asking them for a nice article of clothing or two! They might be shocked when you tell them you DON'T want that XBOX 360 and the new Halo and instead you would like a nice pea coat or some savvy-looking designer shoes!

As far as places to shop, you can usually find great clearances on designer items at places like JCPenny, Macy's, or Nordstrom Rack.

 

[Ross]

Just came back from Christmas and found a nice sale at a store, so I got my parents to spend some money on me with some pre-black friday sales. I'll always be on the look out for clearance sales so I can slowly but surely increase the quality of my wardrobe. Thanks for the tips guys.

 

[Just_Dave]

Along with what many posters have already said. I highly suggest making friends with the salespeople at retail stores, and get on email lists/text alerts. This way you can get various retailers blowing up your inbox with deals.

 

[Thinkingenigma]

I'm also a college student, and one thing that I have done in addition to checking thrift stores and outlet stores is to try foreign retailers on ebay and amazon. It's incredible what kind of deals you can get, especially on outerwear. Besides, you also get the advantage of owning stuff that almost no one else is wearing. Many times I have found jackets and shirts that are very similar to American styles, but just different enough to stand out. One good example would be this shirt http://i839.photobucket.com/albums/zz31 ... /6084A.jpg. I bought one off ebay and while it still fits within the American expectations for a dress shirt, it fits very differently from any American dress shirt that I have found. For me, it's very tailored, and broadens my shoulders a bit (I would only recommend this to someone who is relatively thin), and the collar stands differently than American shirts. I get fantastic reactions when I wear it, and it only cost me $15. Obviously, there's plenty more out there, but don't rule out the internet as a source of great deals.

 

[A Life Loquacious]

^ yup, ebay can be awesome for this sort of thing. I've found myself ordering quite a lot of stuff like t-shirts, hats and general accessories from Thailand, Korea, Japan - I happen to like Asian design and stuff anyway but it's really helpful when it comes to finding cool stuff that looks sharp that you're unlikely to see anyone else wearing. I tend to find jeans a bit played out so I tend to go for combats/work wear type trousers with plenty of pockets but I stick to black and make sure they fit right and don't look too worn. Clean pair of dark coloured Vans or similar shoes, a bit of wood/leather/stainless steel/silver round neck/wrists/in ears plus a well-maintained beard creates a strong look that doesn't cost a lot in terms of clothes, is smart enough not to be a problem with all but the snootiest venues (main thing is to be clean and neat-looking, even if you rock a look that is based on 'scruffy chic') women seem to like and most importantly I like too. Biggest expenses are the shoes and a decent Autumn through Spring jacket.

 

[Verisimilitude]

Have you guys ever checked out Burlington Coat Factory? Don't be fooled by the girly logo or the fact that you can't buy most stuff online (the only downside), it is a great store with designer brand clothes for cheap! I also think that express is a great store for clothes, especially on sale.

And of course, any time there is something you like on the main brands clearance site (polo and brooks brothers are the ones I check the most), go for it!

 

[Seeberman]

Honestly Chase, I can't thank you enough for recommending Guess!!! haha, I only bought like three complete outfits but they are easily some of the sharpest clothes I've ever worn, and I never really see other guys wearing stuff that looks the same or similar (which is what one often finds with a brand like Ralph Lauren, for example). I've gotten a lot of compliments that I never got before thanks to Guess (And even picked up a cute Cuban girl while checking it out the other day haha)

its a bit pricey (shirts are like 60, jeans 100 plus) but you only need like 2-3 complete outfits to cycle through or combine with other clothes and your golden.

 

[Chase]

Honestly Chase, I can't thank you enough for recommending Guess!!! haha, I only bought like three complete outfits but they are easily some of the sharpest clothes I've ever worn, and I never really see other guys wearing stuff that looks the same or similar (which is what one often finds with a brand like Ralph Lauren, for example). I've gotten a lot of compliments that I never got before thanks to Guess (And even picked up a cute Cuban girl while checking it out the other day haha)

its a bit pricey (shirts are like 60, jeans 100 plus) but you only need like 2-3 complete outfits to cycle through or combine with other clothes and your golden.

Great to hear it, Seebermen. That shop's been consistently good for me over the years - they get some pretty high-end looking things that, while not cheap, are a lot less than you'd pay for them elsewhere.

Nas said it best:

When I dress, it's never nothin' less than Guess!

Chase

 

[Rationalis]

I am a college student as well and I am fortunate enough to get some nice clothes from time to time. My staples are button-down shirts, jeans, khakis, and some fly shoes. I find that Marshalls has some pretty good sales on a lot of expensive name brand clothing from time to time. I also like to do my shopping at Karmaloop because they occasionally have some nice things.

 

[A Life Loquacious]

it is a right royal PITA when stuff never fits off the peg! Who are all these freaks with short torsos and crazy long arms anyway?

 

[A Life Loquacious]

I think their stuff looks nice but like you said, tends to be quite slim fitting and doesn't really hang right off my frame.

 

[Chase]

What does everybody think about ZARA and H&M?

Both brands are affordable, stylish, and designed to be more slim/tight. I wear a lot of stuff from Zara, personally. Classic pieces with a bit of distinctiveness (extra buttons, a funky collar) to make them stand out. Makes me feel like I'm from Europe

Zara's an interesting case study from a business point of view. Largest clothing retailer in the world, and its founder is one of the richest men in the world (you might not realize it). Tons of stores all over the globe (although not as many in the U.S. as in other places).

I used to check out Zara a quite a bit and I'd see things I somewhat liked, though rarely anything I was terribly excited with. I haven't been through a Zara in a while though; the stores constantly turnover their merchandise to prompt buying decisions (i.e., instilling customers with scarcity mentalities - it probably won't be there the next time you stop through), so chances are they've got some new items. The way sales clerks and store managers take suggestions from customers about what they want and feed them back to HQ for new designs is truly impressive.

H&M I haven't been to since I lived in D.C. back in 2006. I wasn't particularly impressed with the stuff available there... to mainstream then. But, that's a long time ago, and it may be different now.

Chase

 

[Garrett]

My fashion is pretty bland right now. I am pretty good at recognizing what looks great; the problem is, I have expensive tastes. I'm a college student without a job, so it's pretty difficult to acquire sufficient funds to buy a variety of clothing that would help to enhance my base sexiness and attractiveness. I have a few nice outfits to wear, but because I have only been working on improving my fashion for a short amount of time my collection of clothes includes a lot of normal-looking clothing, and just a couple nice-looking outfits that I can wear, and often that's only for special occasions.

As if money wasn't my only issue, I have difficulty finding clothes that fit my dimensions. This wouldn't be a problem if I had enough money to pay the extra amounts needed for a 6'3 165 pound frame, yet I can't. The good news is, Christmas is coming in, and I have some savings, so I am looking for spend this on improving my fashion from normal to edgy/sexy. I suppose an entire article on the specifics of fashion hasn't been put up, but I'd love to hear some tips on specific ways to find affordable fashion, or perhaps relate how you were able to enhance your fashion to a sexy level without spending copious amounts of money, which might also move you into boyfriend material. So anything that professes "boyfriend" is out the window as well. I'm looking for a fashion sense that says, Sexy bachelor who isn't looking for a long-term relationship. Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

Hello RTB!

Before I discovered Girls Chase, I had been working on my fashion for a few years, and I really wanted to nail it down. There's a guy you should all have a look at. He's what I would describe as the Chase Amante of fashion, although not nearly as life changing/in depth as what Chase teaches, but still great! His name is Aaron Marino, you can find him on youtube if you type in Alpha M, and he's got a site called I Am Alpha M. He's got practically EVERYTHING covered on there, from hair to shoes, and it's free! Not only that, but the advice/information he provides can be applied by guys with a low budget. I totally understand where you are coming from, clothes aren't cheap!

Another thing, there's this site called "I Offer" where you can get great looking/unique fashion forward clothes like Gucci, Guess, Prada, Armani etc. for a fraction of the price. I've bought from there and can confirm you get great quality stuff for a fraction of the price! Just be mindful, because some of the higher priced stuff is sold from scammers in Asia who take your money. If you are buying something for like $20-30 you should be okay though, but do your research and don't buy something crazy expensive off there, because it's risky and you have to know what you're doing! I recommend you check it out though, because even if you don't buy from there, you can get an idea of what's cool/unique and that can make you look great and help with peacocking .

Aaron, the fashion consultant from youtube, has mentioned a site called Modern Tailer, where you can get custom made shirts with YOUR measurements, so they fit well/tight and aren't big, baggy, and bulky. His teachings correlate with some of the fashion advice of what Chase recommends "Wear close fitting clothing that fits well", and he tells you all kinds of things like how to dress if you are tall/small/short/fat/gym attire, the works!

Another thing about fashion I want to point out to you guys... You know how you read Chase's stuff then you have to go out and apply it? The thing with fashion is, it's a lot easier to "master" because all you have to do is just go on Aaron's videos, watch them, then apply what he says. That's all you have to do and even if you have NO CLUE what you are doing, by openly learning and applying what Aaron says, within a year or 2 you'll have an incredible fashion sense! You can also sign up for his free newsletter (similar to how Chase's site works).

*PS - Chase, when time permits, could you please send me the fundamentals newsletter? I know you were sending it to people who posted 2 quality posts, so I was hoping to take advantage of that opportunity

Cheers,
Garrett

 

[Rasta]

I'm going through my second year of college and I'm still wearing some of my high school clothes. It's ridiculous, and I gotta change that!

I have near 0 fashion sense, so I appreciate all the input in this thread. If I find anything worth mentioning I'll be sure to let everyone know.

 

[Anonymous]

The way I approached getting new clothing in college was setting aside a small amount of cash every week or two and forcing myself to go out and buy new articles of clothing. For the first few years of college, I wore only what I had from high school... needless to say, my tastes had changed dramatically, and I was tired of wearing outdated fashion. As long as you have a system where you can get one or two articles of clothing every week or two, you will end up with a whole new wardrobe within a couple of months!

I agree with Franco. Set aside money. Go slow. By setting aside money, one puts patience and saving into practice. By going slow, one allows their taste and budget to catch up with each other.

I am also a student, and I have a student job. And while I'm no fashionisto, I make fashion a practice. I've even been asked, once, to write a guest blog post about my take on fashion, which I did. I look at blogs and fashion mags to find out what is possible. I take time to just casually stop by new, vintage and used clothing stores to see what's out there. Sometimes, I buy stuff, and usually it is used. Then I take it to a tailor, and that is a practice too, instructing a tailor. It's a different lexicon and dialect. Learning it will help if you're interested in understanding the metadiscourse of fashion. But regardless, by having a tailor as an option, one can buy a bad-ass, (potentially) brand-name, piece of clothing that fits perfectly for $20-50. This works especially well with shirts. Make sure the collar fits, the shoulders fit, and it's long enough. Everything else can be inexpensively modified. My favorite shirt was, for a long time, a banana republic button down that I had tailored to fit perfectly. I think I bought it used for $8, then had it tailored for aprox. $20. Later I was in New York, cruising some vintage stores off the beaten path, I found a pretty expensive shirt for $15, and had it tailored for about that price too. By doing it this way, you can maintain a low fashion budget while getting that refined and unique flavor. Plus, when you do start making that bankroll, you're gonna know what you are doing.

Regardless of my advice, as a broke college student, it's important to think of small steps in terms of making (big) changes. Similar to what Franco said, in a few months or a year, you'll have created something solid. You may not have a wardrobe overflowing with clothes, but you will have something real and true to yourself and your current reality. And, in my opinion, that's fuggin' sexy.

 

[Whizzy]

I'm in the same boat as Rasta, however having girls to help me shop seems to have helped a ton. I just have a couple of shirts leftover from high school to get rid of but you feel like a new person when you dress better. Burlington coat factory has been pretty good to me, only problem is you're never sure what you'll find when you go there which is kind of a turn on and off at the same time.