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Denim Blunders, Reflections and General Nonsense.


cmboland

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2 hours ago, Double 0 Soul said:

Nice to see @pomata around the forum again..

I was sending you positive vibes via the 2020 x-mas quiz.. :D

 

Haha cool quiz, I totally missed that. I’m stoked today a new pair of jeans arrived, I’ll post pics as soon as I get home

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You guys know this situation/feeling?

You are really fond of an item/piece and after you bought it you don't really know how it will fit into your usual wardrobe? I feel like I'm doing this mistake quite often, just look at the single item without matching it to the rest of my clothes. For example is the recent purchase of my Paul Sargent Veldtschoen boots: I love everything about them but then I don't know how good they really work with just jeans and a t-shirt or sweater...

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^ For me, more than any other garment, it's the Oahu Garment Co. Palaka Check Work Blouse from Sun Surf—every time it catches my eye I'm completely taken by it, but in practice it never ends up getting any wear

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happens to me sometimes when i suddenly get inspo to radically change my lewks. thus some things i never wear coz ended up not liking the new lewk: mf vest (belle epoque gangsta look by way of spaghetti western? why did i wanna cosplay that?), superheavy rdt brouge coupen boots (at once ornate bling & lumberjack heavy duty, plain stupid livin in the tropics, think i was just satisfying my curiosity re: "werk boots")... but maybe thats it in last decade or so. most of the time i stick to my standard looks and buy new stuff accordingly. 

though sometimes a single outré item can/does open up a whole new world of lewk possibilities (eg, a plain white calico butterfly shirt from tender for me). 

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Not happened to me for some years cos i wear the same shiz daily.. like Jeff Goldbloom in The Fly.. alas, Seth's were always clean :)
 
Ive never rotated jeans i just wear the same pair everyday till they fall to pieces and for the last few years ive adopted this same approach with the rest of my clothing so i've worn the same pair of cat Vans almost everyday for 3yrs, the last time i wore boots was to a funeral.. i wear the same sweatshirt everyday till it needs a wash then i'll wear a different one, by the time that needs a wash the other one is back in the wardrobe and more often than not i'll subconsciously choose it.
On the plus side i've only bought 4 items of clothing since 2017 and 2 of those were vintage.
 
"Replicore" I'm coining it!
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Happened to me many times over the years, usually when I'm trying to branch out and change things up a bit.
Most recent example I can think of are the OA Cossack jackets, I just felt like they looked weird on me no matter what I wore with them.
Trying to cut down on it now by being more selective with purchases, I've sold most of the stuff that doesn't really jive with the rest of my clothes by now.
But I'm sure it's only a matter of time until something grabs my attention. I just try and talk myself out of it now more than I did previously. :P

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I've got a few off beat pieces - mostly tops - for sure but as long as they fit I find a way to make them work once in awhile. Of course I bought them wanting to use them more but sometimes I just can't get comfortable with it - really I just have a few too many though. Some of them are my favorites really, but they're just not what I end up grabbing for day to day (which usually is just some random sweatshirt, one the jeans and some plain enough shoes).

I bought too much when lockdown happened and am back to a reasonable enough pattern but anything new is actually too much. I'm not selling anything because it fits and I like it enough and resale prices are usually a joke with a few exceptions. Usually will give away if I know I won't wear it and I find someone who fits it/likes it. 

 

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I don’t think how it fits into the wardrobe or collection, if it’s something I like I get it. That said, a chunk of my stuff I go through spells of wearing continuously … I guess though I don’t plan or consider how I am going to or want to ‘look’ - many things combine well for all sorts of different reasons.

Edited by Duke Mantee
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On 4/22/2022 at 6:47 AM, beautiful_FrEaK said:

You are really fond of an item/piece and after you bought it you don't really know how it will fit into your usual wardrobe? I feel like I'm doing this mistake quite often, just look at the single item without matching it to the rest of my clothes. For example is the recent purchase of my Paul Sargent Veldtschoen boots: I love everything about them but then I don't know how good they really work with just jeans and a t-shirt or sweater...

Been thinking the same thing for a while now, but a bit of different stuff every once in a while keeps it fun for me. Sometimes I like to dress like a slob in holey jeans, torn shoes and an old comfy sweater, sometimes I like to dress it up a bit, with a crisp shirt, new-ish jeans and nice shoes. But for the most part it's a clean pair of jeans a t-shirt, depending on the weather a random flannel or chambray shirt on top. 
So a bit of variation is key for me, but the usual wardrobe is kind off inbetween my nice and sloppy look. Doesn't hurt to experiment a bit, imo, maybe it leads to something cool. 

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I have core stuff I wear a lot
And stuff on the edge that gets less / much less wear but I still like and am glad to have
Plus stuff on the edge I question the value of (after the buzz of the buy has gone) but still wear periodically (possible future sale items)
So to b_F's original question, not that much, thankfully I have struggled to integrate   
The Lee Stormrider does spring to mind... I liked it to look at but it was never my preferred style, and was too snug and just didn't work
The danger, of course, of stuff on the edge is you swallow-the-spider-to-catch-the-fly i.e. before you know it, you've bought the braces/cap/new boots etc to make it work. And then you think what the fvck have I done now
By then, however, it's too late... it's either cosplay or ebay!!

This purchasing of superfluous stuff is so easy now though
The next bit is obvious but I'll say it anyway
I've always been into clothes a lot.  Even in school, the desire for the latest kit was there even when the funds were very limited.  But the search was still real, albeit on foot, fuelled by word of mouth
Now, online shopping and better funds have just opened up the shopping universe
More time spent perusing, greater selections across the globe, more time building temptation and those fine and dandy Sufu'ers providing inspiration.  Very easy to pull the trigger 24x7
So undoubtedly buying more.... despite needing much less... more of the core and more stuff on the edge and more spiders.  And so it iterates
Good passtime / 'hobby' though eh?

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You ask a good question b_F and MJF9 has pretty much summed up my feeling.  On-line forums and shopping have made it easy to go down rabbit holes, finding high quality stuff that I had no idea I wanted, let alone 'needed'.  I've bought a few things I like but don't wear much, including Edward Green Dovers (in dark oak), engineer boots, fedoras, a Filson Tin Cruiser.  Do I regret buying them?  Not really -- I still like them (my wife asks if I should open a museum).  Do I need to swallow the spider to catch the fly by adding a few things that will make them work better -- probably.

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I think it’s interesting to read about the different things folk have bought and don’t wear (much) … but I’d be much more interested to know why you don’t wear these items.

Although I said I don’t plan, and often for no reason wear the same things for long-ish spells, I honestly don’t think I have anything I won’t wear, or have no plans of wearing. The only real reason I don’t wear some things so much is that they probably haven’t come ‘round in the cycle yet.

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I,ve had plenty of items that weren’t me.

I still like those items, but putting them on, I don’t recognize myself . It even happens with stuff I liked before.

mister freedom shirts and jackets, whites boots, engineer boots. 
I did rediscovered my baracuta jacket that I bought maybe 15 yrs ago, never liked the size of it, wish it was a 40 instead 42, but now I’m oké with it.

 

@MJF9 stated it well

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^ That's funny smoothsailor, I can relate -- "I still like those items, but putting them on, I don’t recognize myself."

To answer Duke's question regarding why some things get less wear:

Edward Green Dovers (dark oak):  Beautiful, comfortable, well made shoes, but dressy and verging on flashy.  Not a great look with jeans, which I wear most of the time.

Engineer boots:  Great fun, but I'm slow in them (my 100m times are down), I prefer them with high socks (which are sometimes warmer than ideal), and they're kinda badass (and I'm not), which raises the question -- why do I want a Freewheelers Mulholland?

Brimmed hats:  Being bald, I get cold head, so I'm in a cap most of the time (baseball or knit).  Fedoras look and feel great, but few people wear them, so they get attention and comments, which are fine but not always.

Filson Tin Cloth (Cruiser, Packer, etc.):  A tough as nails material that looks great.  Comfortable and warm?  Not really.

 

Edited by JohnM
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Now that’s a lot more interesting than just saying I have stuff I don’t wear

In that vein I probably don’t bother about my Hipsters Reunion stuff so much because it is a wee bit slimmer cut … and I’m getting less slimmer cut …

Brimmed hats - I have one but I really want the Hornskov Redactor and for once I’m actually thinking about what others might think, usually I CGAF

Edited by Duke Mantee
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...sometimes it's due to a passing comment, which, like @Duke Mantee, I usually couldn't care less about – but the other day when I grabbed my fairly recently-purchased FW Cassady wabash cap and said "I'm just going down the shops", and my wife absently responded "Okay, grandpa" I must admit it did give me pause. However, I set my cap like a man and ventured forth.

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I was once like a lot of y'all, It culminated in a room full of clothing i didn't wear..
 
It wasn't because i was cash rich.. i worked long hrs, and went without basic essentials to fund clothing i didn't wear.

Before my kid was born i had an insane amount of garb, boxes of pumps to the ceiling.. i had 6x almost identical Gore jackets from different brands.. what the f**k for? Vintage Nike Windrunners alongside Japanese denim?.. I came across my first pair of Sugarcanes in the early 2000's and signed up to sufu around 2007 to use a forum members proxy service in the days before Rakuten shops accepted PP so by the time my kid was born in 2009 i had been collecting Japanese denim, boots ect for a good few years.

When the time came to stop this ridiculous consumerism, I decided that the collection just needed focus so i split the room in two.. shit I wore v's shit i didn't.. what i wore was denim, sweatshirts, boots, chambray shirts ect and what i didn't wear was all the 'collectable' stuff so i sold it.. i used the £££'s to expand the wearable and buy time/stop working so much so i could spend quality time with my kid, camping, fishing, bike riding and general adventuring.. alas, i started buying multiple jackets again (RMC ect).. all the while, still wearing jeans and sweatshirts/shirts, i was just repeating old habits.

In 2016ish i sold most of the things i didn't wear.. and focussed on a more sustainable lifestyle, this international consumerism will have to end for us all eventually.
 
My criteria
1) Denim.. i still have a pile of it.
Do i like to wear nice, ethically made, accurately repro'd denim? Yes, i don't think this will ever change.
Do i like to watch it age.. Yes
Do i feel the need to have multiple pairs in rotation.. No
That's the denim sorted
 
2) Sweatshirts
Do i like to wear a nicely fitted vintage repro sweats.. Yes
Ok i have 4x in rotation
Sweatshirt sorted
 
3) Tee's
I get for foc, i have no desire for them to be a nice material, loopwheeled ect.. i've done all that and it didn't change my outlook on t-shirts, if they fit well.. criteria met.
 
4) Footwear,
One pair of boots (TMC Railman) to look smart
One pair of pumps for bike riding
One pair for running
One battered pair for daily which get replaced, only when they fall to pieces.
One pair which are clean.... I have more but i don't wear them.
 
I still have plenty of stuff in the wardrobe i don't wear.. some of which are extremely desirable items but i ask myself.. was buying them worth damaging the planet for? No! of course not it's just satisfying my vanity, if i wore them.. the answer would be yes..
 
I just don't feel the need to play dress up (no dig at those who do, it's sufu after all).. as long as the clothing on my back fits my criteria, i don't feel the need to look different on a day to day basis (ive been wearing the same cut of denim for 6yrs straight) people don't notice and i don't care, i've tried to care but in my heart of hearts don't.
 
In a similar vein, i sold a few bikes before lockdown and invested the money and much more besides in building my dream bike which i ride every weekend (i look fwd to it) it's the time spent riding which puts a smile on my face not the ownership of things i don't ride.
 
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4 minutes ago, Double 0 Soul said:
I was once like a lot of y'all, so by the time my kid was born in 2009 i had been collecting Japanese denim, boots ect for a good few years … this international consumerism will have to end for us all eventually.
 
I just don't feel the need to play dress up, people don't notice and i don't care, i've tried to care but in my heart of hearts don't.
 

Your words :)

Still importing exotic bike parts then?

You know I’m joking, but (selfishly) I’ve never thought about my collection as consumerism - although there’s clearly a case if someone wanted to make the argument. Probably one thing that’s clear now, for both of us I guess, is the decline of interest.

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:D
Nearly all of the bike parts were 90's era vintage (even the bike itself was made in Yorkshire) so my purchases were not promoting manufacture of new and the brakes which Tilmann proxied was only because i couldn't get them in the UK so bollox!
 
In other news.. my kid went camping last night with 3 of his schoolmates in a nearby field, he's the only kid there with any proper camping experience... he's just texted his mum to say "Have you got Wordle?.. I'm far too tired to figure out!"  ... B)
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Last weekend.. I was wearing these Devis while watering the house plants outside

My neighbour was out servicing his road bike and said "New Levi's?" i said "i'm just stretching them out a bit" he said "Oh i didn't know they still did STF, I've got a pair.. exactly the same of those which i bought from Debenhams 20yrs ago..." Hfff! is it worth explaining?... i just said, nice and left it at that :D

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Yes yes it is worth explaining OO as the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil jeans is for good men to do nothing... that said, rather you than me :)

Unless you invite him/her to Sufu so we can reach 21 active members

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Ditto with Duke and Mondo, general mode is CGAF  

Always remember returning from a spell overseas, wearing a Lock & Co wide-brimmed calico fedora on the estate back home... an old mister said 'alright MJF9, who the fvck d'you think you are with that hat lad?'.  I said nice isn't it Tony mate, you should get yourself one, and we laughed.  He never did though and I can't say Lock & Co ever took off there either

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53 minutes ago, Double 0 Soul said:
:D
Nearly all of the bike parts were 90's era vintage (even the bike itself was made in Yorkshire) so my purchases were not promoting manufacture of new and the brakes which Tilmann proxied was only because i couldn't get them in the UK so bollox!
 

The Scotland Yard argument - it’s all in the past so it doesn’t count …

Edited by Duke Mantee
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^^^ hahaha... and went out with an empty suitcase, returned with 10,000 "duty free" fags

8 minutes ago, Double 0 Soul said:

Bought from Isambard Cycles near Snowdonia, a husband and wife team who gave up their London lifestyle to ride bikes, grow vegetables and renovate a cottage in Wales.. i'm happy to help them realise their dreams...

Ex investment bankers in the city, by any chance, seeking redemption through a new rural organic life after cashing in on their post-financial-crash record gains...hhhmmm

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