8 ms·
Ecologically speaking maybe Steve Jobs/Star Trek respectively were onto something. A high quality minimal personal style that involves orders of magnitude less
by evolve2k 7y ago
Ecologically speaking maybe Steve Jobs/Star Trek respectively were onto something. A high quality minimal personal style that involves orders of magnitude less garment churn and waste with the added benefit of just not having to spend time on what to wear each day (insert pithy Jobs quote).
But seriously if I was to explore finding a personal style that I could wear as my day to day work/life “uniform”, where to look, where to source from. Are there any companies focussed around this?
- TeMPOraL 7y agoI'd happily wear a DS9 or First Contact era Starfleet uniform all day. They look great! :). Regarding your serious point, I'd like to know too. I'd pay for a service that would help me find a style that looks good on me, with associated supply of quality clothes in this style. My current clothing choice pattern is "random, with a pre-filtering done by my wife".
- Swizec 7y agoI learned a most important trick watching America’s Next Top Model with my sister: Buy oufits, not clothes. You make the decision on what goes together and looks good at the store. You try stuff until you find what works. When it works, you buy the whole outfit. Possibly in multiples. No more decisions when getting dressed. You have predetermined outfits for whatever activity you’re doing that day. Refresh every few months or years as your life and personality evolves.
- TeMPOraL 7y agoThanks! I'll try that the next season.
- grenoire 7y agoI like a combination approach much better. Buy multiple shirts, tees, sweaters, and pants which can match with each other. Oftentimes these are less saturated earthy colours with white and black mixed in. It'll be timeless and easy to maintain—not to mention very suitable for ones who have analysis paralysis with clothes. You can't mess up!
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- telesilla 7y agoYes, I also try to be a conscious shopper and try to be able to maximise my wardrobe for multiple outfits. This is out of necessity too: I travel a lot, so having many outfits from a few items of clothes means a smaller suitcase. I used to have a rule that I would buy something only from a store where there was no more than 2 of but as the years pass, I admit that it's easy to slip into Zara when I'm in an airport with time to kill and suddenly "need" a new skirt or something. The ease of access is quite scary. I'm glad I didn't grow up with fashion available like this.
- ahartmetz 7y agoIME analysis paralysis is worse when almost everything is crap. For me, shopping is reasonably fun when I go to a store that has mostly good stuff. Picking a good item from 5 good / 3 bad ones is much better than picking a good item from 2 good / 20 bad ones.
- DoreenMichele 7y agoA wardrobing approach is the next step up from that.
- ahartmetz 7y agoIf you don't want to buy everything at once, go shopping wearing something the new piece should go together with. Is that not common sense knowledge?
- ISL 7y agoDo those uniforms have pockets?
- TeMPOraL 7y agoUnfortunately not; Star Trek uniforms generally don't have pockets (with an exception of Beverly Crusher's lab coat (TNG) and the jacket B'Elanna Torres wore at some point (VOY)). Enterprise-era uniforms are full of pockets, and they look kind of nice too! However, I don't think a DS9/First Contact era uniform with pockets in trousers would look too much unlike the original, and it's enough to store a smartphone (and a thin wallet without much cash).
- tolien 7y ago> the jacket B'Elanna Torres wore at some point (VOY) That was added to hide Roxanne Dawson's pregnancy, which I guess sort-of addresses the point about the standard jumpsuit uniforms not being the most flattering.
- northwest65 7y agoWhat a geeky piece of knowledge to have on hand... bravo!
- hyperbovine 7y agoSure they look great if you're a Hollywood actor who gets paid to do three hours of abs a day. There's a reason Kirk first donned the green tunic...
- chucksmash 7y agoYou may shock yourself with what three hours a week can do for you. After years of playing the "I'm smart, I'll just figure this out myself (finally, this year)" game with my fitness goals I outsourced the planning to a trainer and have been super happy with the progress I've made. I'm definitely in better shape with three hours a week of HIIT and strength training than I was as a six day a week gym rat in high school who was making it up as I went.
- dredmorbius 7y agoAbs are made in the kitchen, not the gym.
- gumby 7y ago> I'd happily wear a DS9 or First Contact era Starfleet uniform all day. They look great! :). So what’s stopping you? Copyright law?
- TeMPOraL 7y agoHonestly? Too much effort finding a tailor friendly enough to make it (and perhaps not charge exorbitant amounts of money). And my wife most likely wouldn't approve me walking in it daily around our small town. (And, I don't feel I meet Starfleet standards of excellence, so I don't deserve to wear one.) Some 12 years ago I got together with a group of folks, intending to shoot a fan Star Trek series. We got as far as the dialogs, some CGI work, green-screened bridge set, few props and... few uniforms. One of the folks had a friendly tailor who was willing to make them, but as a ~18 years old, I didn't have the money, and eventually drifted away from the project. I still regret that. After I left, I think they've managed to release a long trailer, and then the project died. These days, I scratch my Trekkie itch by figuring out how to make LCARS interfaces actually ergonomic for real-world uses.
- WrtCdEvrydy 7y agoHonestly, there's a company other called volante design that makes them, but they're kidna pricy.
- Doxin 7y agoI've been eyeing those designs for a while now, I really wish this sort of stuff became actual fashion. It looks cool as heck and it doesn't seem especially impractical or hard to produce. I'm still too big a whuss to actually wear anything like that though, even if it was reasonably priced.
- TeMPOraL 7y agoHuh. https://www.volantedesign.us/pages/star-trek-collection https://www.volantedesign.us/pages/star-trek-collection So from the pre-Abrams reboot series, they only have their interpretation of the TNG-era uniform. It actually does look pretty nice. $300 is a lot for a jacket, though. Thanks anyway!
- sharadov 7y agoIt depends on how much you are willing to spend. You can hire a personal shopper/designer who can make recommendations based on your personal style and needs. Or,check out stitchfix.com, try out a few styles and brands ( they carry good, high-quality brands). Once you know what brands look good, just stick to them. For example - Patagonia is big on the socially -conscious front.
- akeck 7y agoI have a friend who only wears charcoal merino wool polos, jeans, and nice shoes.
- abledon 7y agoIf your in US or Canada, consider Value Village or another similar well known second hand clothing store chain. Like sibling comment said, just shop for a 'look' , e.g. color or form of garment, don't worry about BS brands etc.. Nice thing is that if you end up not liking the 100$ worth of clothing you bought (WHICH IS ALOT OF CLOTHING!), and say, return 40% of it after 3 months... would've been same as buying 1 fancy shirt at your local department store.
- acabal 7y agoMen already had that in the past, the suit. Up until the first war clothing was expensive to make so generally men had only one or two suits and they would wear them every day, and repair them as they wore down. Shirts were, to an extent, a step above underwear. Men would spice up the same suit every day with different ties, pocket handkerchiefs, and other small accessories, all of which were generally more affordable than an entire suit. These days suits appear to be worn less often, mostly in business environments, very formal life events, and by fashion enthusiasts. But ironically, maybe one of the greenest ways to dress (for men) is to get a secondhand suit or two from a thrift store, in a natural material like wool or linen, have a tailor or dry cleaner alter it into a stylish cut that fits your body, and wear it every day. They can be altered to fit literally anybody in a flattering way, different materials can be either warm or surprisingly cool to suit your climate, and there's so much more to suits than the depressing shiny blue/black polyester business suit we all picture these days. Want to be green and look great? Drop the Patagonia fleece and cotton t-shirt swag from last week's startup, and buy a used suit in a nice natural material!
- meesles 7y agoI hate suits. Where's the equivalent for my pants/shirt/sweater combo?
- swader999 7y agoJeans, t shirt and hoodie
- toomuchtodo 7y agoI love a good hoodie, but I’d suggest a modest blazer or two in your wardrobe for rotation with dress shoes, even if you’re sporting a plain solid color T-shirt.
- thundergolfer 7y agoWearing a blazer with a T-Shirt is a fashion risk. Not easy to pull off.
- glaugh 7y agoOne day I walked into our company’s swag closet and grabbed 10 identical company shirts that are kinda subtle about the branding and just look like some band t-shirt. I’m a couple years into wearing only these to work (plus two pairs of jeans and two pairs of shorts) and it is indeed one less thing to think about. Occasionally people notice and it’s kind of a fun conversation, and that’s about the only consequence of it.
- cgh 7y agoYes, I agree. Buy a few quality items and hang them to dry. Free-standing drying racks are cheap and can be used anywhere. Your clothes last much longer and you don't waste a lot of power.
- jfaat 7y agoCheck out Everlane. They even have a ‘Uniform’ line now, I think. They also have transparent pricing, manufacturing practices, and at least some commitment to sustainability.
- solidsnack9000 7y agoA good place to start might be companies that supply service uniforms. In the US, per the Berry Amendment, they are required to source nearly all components and perform all labor in the US; the articles they make are consequently expensive and meant to be repaired. Other countries have similar legislation and the same result: more expensive clothing that is long lasting and versatile. One token of this emphasis on repair is, oddly enough, the button fly. Buttons are much easier to repair than zippers.
- MyHypatia 7y agoI like duluthtrading.com, their whole brand is centered on clothes that last. Stitchfix.com is good if you want help with picking clothes in your style.
- Nav_Panel 7y agoSwitch from cotton to (Merino) wool, at least for shirts. It doesn't absorb sweat and then start to smell, so you can wear it many more days before washing (and you can just hand wash in the sink, easy). They also breathe well, work great as a base layer, and feel extremely soft. It'll cost you $80-100 for a t-shirt, but I've found it worth the investment. I've gone from rotating through like 15 Uniqlo tees to only wearing a couple shirts. And you can do the same with pants and even socks.
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- thrwn_frthr_awy 7y ago> if I was to explore finding a personal style that I could wear as my day to day work/life “uniform”, where to look, where to source from. Are there any companies focussed around this? Isn't this just clothes? Just buy multiple of what sparks joy, right? Is there something I'm missing that makes an outfit a "uniform"?
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- qmmmur 7y agoDepends what you can wear and like to wear. The staples are a good pair of raw denim jeans, two pairs of contrasting chino pants and a mixture of tops to layer with these (wool jumper, crew top). Footware is up to you but if you want to be ecologically friendly I'd say get one pair of leather boots to last you 20 years +. Good brands are red wing and redback for starters. If you want sneakers don't wear big brands (nike, adidas etc) and buy something ethical. Try and get leather or something durable over that mesh crap which falls apart. It all depends on weather as well. Some or all of this advice is useless if you live in Northern Canada for example.
- CapricornNoble 7y agoGoogle Image Search "Classic men's fashion" (I'm assuming you're a guy), get some ideas there. Then find a good tailor and bring the pics to him. As a lanky westerner living in Asia, it's pretty much impossible for me to buy "off the rack" clothing in any style I would want anyway. So I've settled into infrequent purchases via western companies with granular sizes/fitment, or even-less-frequent trips to a tailor. These days, a man can get made-to-measure shirts for ~$50/each. Ten of those in different colors will last you 5+ years and not go out of style. Four made-to-measure suits at $300-$400 each should be good for 10 years. I think Brooks Brothers and JoS.A.Bank have decent shirts and slacks, if you really wanna stick to store-bought stuff. For casual/outdoors wear, add some Patagonia, North Face, or basically any law enforcement supplier (5.11 Tactical, Propper, LA Police Gear). Rugged clothes that will also last a decade. A fleece pullover, a moisture-wicking Polo shirt, and a pair of khaki tactical pants is the 21st-century "Plaid shirt and bluejeans" IMO... https://www.propper.com/ https://www.propper.com/
- AndrewKemendo 7y agoIt might sound hacky but I decided that the best thing was to just wear one combination, (button up shirt and slacks), one color (Black) and dress boots. I sometimes wear a costco waterproof shell jacket when necessary. I have one or two dressier things for funerals and weddings but those rarely come out. I never have to think about what to wear. I never have to worry if it matches, it wears slower, I can buy fewer but more quality items without having to shop a ton. The only downside was being "the guy in black." However that hasn't affected work performance or any other aspect that I can find that is measurable. I could have as easily picked a different color combo but didn't want to have to do separate loads of laundry.
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- timwaagh 7y agoYou don't need any company to sell you yet another wardrobe full of clothes because the point is to consume less clothes, not more. take care of and appreciate your existing wardrobe. Switching style type of behavior is at the root of this expanded carbon footprint. Remember 85% of production ends up in the dump in a year. Unfathomable. Honestly the level of consumption right now is impossible given anything resembling normal consumption. It has little to do with cheap fashion or uniforms and everything with some people wanting to shop every weekend. Who has time for that anyways? If you still want to dress like Jobs then buy your black turtleneck wool sweater, but not five of them in one go. Don't throw anything away for it, either. After a while your bulging wardrobe will make you space conscious enough to very carefully consider any subsequent purchase.
- esotericn 7y agoI pretty much wear a cotton dress shirt and pants every day. Formal or informal, cold or warm (more or fewer layers e.g. a blazer), sorted. Flat coloured long sleeved tops are my go-to on more casual days. Branded stuff, slogan shirts etc go out of style.
- hristov 7y agoIt is very easy. For work you have the standard business casual. From bottom up it is black shoes (but not necessarily super shiny), black socks, slacks that are either black, grey, beige, or brown and a colorful checkered or striped button down shirt. Also, a belt. The shirt should be colorful but without too bright colors or contrasts. You can find the whole thing at banana republic. The good thing about this style is that if the pants are neutral color enough, you do not have to worry about matching shirt to pants. For life outside of work, comfortable shoes and socks not necessarily black but subdued color, jeans and a button down shirt as well. Here the button down shirt may be of brighter colors or coarser materials, etc.
- coredog64 7y agoI’d add a pair of brown dress shoes to the list and increase the pants colors include a darkish blue. Regardless, the belt and shoes should match.
- Xcelerate 7y agoI wear jeans and a black T-shirt to work almost every single day. My wife makes fun of me and says I dress like a cartoon character, but for some reason it just removes a huge mental load knowing there is one less decision to make in the day.
- gnopgnip 7y agoGustin has a similar idea, focusing on making clothing with less waste, high quality materials and wholesale prices by crowdfunding the designs. This also allows them to make short runs of clothing that would not sell well in retail environments. Most of the clothing they sell is long lasting and versatile as a result, but the catch is you need to "buy" the clothes a few months ahead of time. Taylor Stitch is similar in some ways.
- velp 7y agoI've pretty much exclusively switched to Merino t-shirts. Various good brans out there (Woolly Co, Smartwool, Icebreaker, etc) and most can be found in simple, versatile colors. Can wear them with almost anything, super comfortable, and the real kicker is that they can be worn a few times without needing a wash. Makes packing for travel easy, and saves time/effort/water with freq laundry. Also, as someone who runs pretty hot, it's awesome having a quick-drying and wicking fabric. They aren't quite as durable as cotton shirts, but make up for it with everything else imo
- smartbit 7y agoGood tip, Thank You. Would like order custom fit T-shirts, but guess that won’t happen for a few decades as robots are far from being able to replace the hands of cheap labor. BTW How about animal welfare for producing Merino wool?
- peteretep 7y agoHard to factory farm a sheep
- velp 7y agoAFAIK, Merino is mostly farmed in alpine regions, a lot of it in New Zealand. There's a really interesting BlisterReview podcast[0] on technical fabrics and wool, featuring an interview with one of the buyer/sourcers for a big wool company. He explains the farming/shearing/processing of merino pretty thoroughly. [0] https://open.spotify.com/episode/3X5VBJaRvo1jjVElTjxnnP?si=BA5zr3uwS0-VXsTAPKhDfA https://open.spotify.com/episode/3X5VBJaRvo1jjVElTjxnnP?si=B...
- peteretep 7y agoIf you like this idea but aren’t really a t-shirt person, you can get wool shirts which are much more comfortable than they sound. Wool and Prince sell them. I’m very sensitive to scratchy clothes or being too warm, and I’ve been wearing these exclusively for a few years. If you keep yourself clean, the shirts only need dry cleaning every 20 days or so, where I’d normally only wear a cotton shirt once between cleans
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- on_and_off 7y agoThere are many places for this. It depends how thoughtful you want to be about your style though ? If you do consider that your style is your public API and a mean of personal expression, it needs a good amount of trial and error. The first english speaking place that comes to mind for this is the subreddit malefashionadvice . There are also companies (that actually target engineers because it is a very engineery thing to do) that will sell you a "uniform" made of 3 times the same chino, 3 times the same hoodie (maybe some color variation), some simple tshirts and undergarment and done.