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I don't disagree with your view on Italians and fashion however I do often find myself amused by the compliant uniformity of fashion in Italy. I vist two or thr

I don't disagree with your view on Italians and fashion however I do often find myself amused by the compliant uniformity of fashion in Italy. I vist two or three times a year and as someone old enough to not obsess so much about my own fashion anymore, but not so old as to have given up entirely, I'm invariably impressed by dapper old men holding on to youthful exhibition. However, the flipside is that 'whatever mode is in fashion that season' is draped off everyone - be it the particular type of puff jacket, or particular brand of trainer or hoodie or size and volume of scarf, there it is in consistent multiplicate, over everyone. It becomes less, to my eye, individual expression than blinkered social compliance. Not that I'm not entirely without some envy, especially where my father in law is concerned, he being very much more fash than I!

thrav 7y ago
In my opinion, that is doing fashion right. Fashion has the power to create separation and distance between 2 people, or to bring them close together. Some people want to create distance, but most people should want to be closer together. Having similar style makes that much easier, than having to constantly fight an uphill battle against bad first impressions. There’s massive utility in a bit of effort, and these days that level of dress can be achieved without a huge cash outlay.
coldtea 7y ago
>It becomes less, to my eye, individual expression than blinkered social compliance. There's no real "individual expression". The "relaxed" trainers/jeans/tshirt in the US is no less a "blinkered social compliance" than wearing a suit. It's just the norms of the country, and of a certain class. Heck, punks in the 70s dressed in safety pins and tons clothes all looking alike (and same for hippies in the 60s, which even made their "own clothes" still all looking alike). That said, the Italians have a lot of ways to personalize their fashion (sprezzatura goes a long way).
simonebrunozzi 7y ago
I am Italian (living in San Francisco though), and I pretty much agree with your observations - in general, and also specifically about Italy. On a side note, I find the brand "Uniqlo", which sounds very much like the word "unique", to be the ultimate oxymoron. You can see people wearing "unique" dresses dozens of times a day, everywhere in the US.
- detritus 7y ago
  Amusingly, for me, my partner buys each of her folks a puffer jacket every few years from Uniqlo - apparently they're just about different enough to stand out from the crowd they work so hard to confine themselves to! :) Personally, I see Uniqlo as offering fine base-elements for clothing. I long ago settled into having my own uniform - just so that I don't have to think about my daily clothing too much - so own a dozen or so exact-same long-sleeved navy blue t-shirt-things from them. No logo, no branding, no overt design - just simple, methodical soft cotton clothes that pair nicely with whatever else is in my wardrobe. . I never thought I'd write about my crap fashion on HN...

thrav 7y ago

In my opinion, that is doing fashion right. Fashion has the power to create separation and distance between 2 people, or to bring them close together. Some people want to create distance, but most people should want to be closer together. Having similar style makes that much easier, than having to constantly fight an uphill battle against bad first impressions. There’s massive utility in a bit of effort, and these days that level of dress can be achieved without a huge cash outlay.

coldtea 7y ago

>It becomes less, to my eye, individual expression than blinkered social compliance. There's no real "individual expression". The "relaxed" trainers/jeans/tshirt in the US is no less a "blinkered social compliance" than wearing a suit. It's just the norms of the country, and of a certain class. Heck, punks in the 70s dressed in safety pins and tons clothes all looking alike (and same for hippies in the 60s, which even made their "own clothes" still all looking alike). That said, the Italians have a lot of ways to personalize their fashion (sprezzatura goes a long way).

simonebrunozzi 7y ago

I am Italian (living in San Francisco though), and I pretty much agree with your observations - in general, and also specifically about Italy. On a side note, I find the brand "Uniqlo", which sounds very much like the word "unique", to be the ultimate oxymoron. You can see people wearing "unique" dresses dozens of times a day, everywhere in the US.

detritus 7y ago
Amusingly, for me, my partner buys each of her folks a puffer jacket every few years from Uniqlo - apparently they're just about different enough to stand out from the crowd they work so hard to confine themselves to! :) Personally, I see Uniqlo as offering fine base-elements for clothing. I long ago settled into having my own uniform - just so that I don't have to think about my daily clothing too much - so own a dozen or so exact-same long-sleeved navy blue t-shirt-things from them. No logo, no branding, no overt design - just simple, methodical soft cotton clothes that pair nicely with whatever else is in my wardrobe. . I never thought I'd write about my crap fashion on HN...