Men’s Fashion: Beyond the Cargo Pants

After the publishing of my first fashion feature, I got a complaint in regards to men’s fashion. The lack of men’s fashion columns stems from their lack of interest.

“Who wants to go to the mall and shop for the latest trends” is not a popular phrase among male conversation.

While women find shopping therapeutic and consider it a popular bonding activity with close friends, most men would rather plop themselves on a couch to watch a football game. Men seem to find pride in only taking two minutes to get dressed and would rather spend more time complaining about why their female counterparts take an hour to get ready, instead of changing out of the ever-so-popular cargo pants they chose to slip on.

The biggest problem with the way men dress on this campus is not which University of New Haven t-shirt freebie they decided to put on that day, but the way their clothes fit. Rule Number One in men’s fashion is the fit. Oversized tees and baggy pants are not attractive and will never be. Nothing is more irking than when a man decides to throw on a suit and his blazer is too long and his pants aren’t fitted. As a result, instead of looking classy, he looks like a walking box.

Another issue comes up when you finally drag them to a mall; they have zero idea what to look for and end up buying the first thing that catches the eye, in order leave as soon as possible.
As the fall quickly approaches, here are three tips to think about while going shopping:

1.Look at the outfits on the mannequins: They are there for a reason. Especially in the men’s sections in stores; they are meant to show pieces that are trending and how to integrate them into an outfit. It is okay if you don’t love the whole outfit. Instead, look at the outfit pieces separately and see if any of them would go well with what you have currently in your closet, or something you already plan on buying.

2.Ask for help: Stores hire employees and train them in the types of clothing they offer and what pieces and sizes fit different body types. If you walk around a store once or twice and are still lost, ask an employee for their best-selling pieces, or ask their opinion on something you potentially would buy. If you’re too shy to ask a store employee, invite a friend with good fashion sense to come with you.

3.Try it on: Men can use the dressing room too. This is where Rule Number One comes into play and making sure the piece of clothing you buy fits is essential to any outfit you put it with. It doesn’t matter if the design and pattern is good if it doesn’t fit to your body well. Save yourself another trip to the store and try it on there.