Thoughts on attire from the older guys

[Omen]

I wanted to ask this here since some of us probably dress better than some younger guys (not all) but here is my question...

Do you guys dress to impress regardless of the situation, or does it not really matter to you? I would assume we all would dress to impress but here is my question...

Normally if I went out to a club, bar, or where ever I wanted to pick up women, I would dress to impress.

Sat I am going to a work party, and I know everyone there, but there could be others that show up that dont even work with us just cause so and so brings them.

So in this situation would you still dress like you own the place when you walk in, or would you wear jeans, a t-shirt, or what ever the heck you felt like?

Now this deal will have ages of people ranging from 16-30 probably, so its not like its thy type of work party where you are at the top of the food chain and the CEO is inviting you.

Personally, I am thinking about dressing to impress. Cause first off its not likely any of the female workers see you in anything else normally besides your retail attire, so this is an opportunity to impress outside of work and show them... Damn, I wasn't expecting him to show up like he owns the place. And too just in case other women happen to show up out of the blue.

There will be a lot of young people, and I assume they will be wearing jeans and a t-shirt, but I am going to be one of the older ones, and I want to go in that way.

I mean I am sure this is the better way, but I thought I would just get some opinions on how some of you would do it.

I figured some might say.. Its a work party, who cares, wear a t-shirt and jeans, and others might say... Why would you do that? So I wanted to see how opinions varied from person to person in this age bracket.

 

[Omen]

Well all i cany say is...You can NEVER make a first impression again! Always dress to impress!

This is true, and I can vouche for this in a job interview. I had applied for the police dept once and I made it to the interview board, and I was complimented on my olive green suit. Next guy that walked in had a polo and khakis. I think that first impression helped TONS. I even had that at an interview years ago. I really like that suit. First thing they mentioned. That's a whole other subject of people going into interviews in shorts and flip flops. :kick:

 

[Omen]

Whatever you wear make sure it looks new/really clean. Especially shoes. If I was invited to a work party at my work I would dress sharper than usual: new dress shirt, stylish pants, and maybe black shoes. It lets people know you have class and that jeans and t-shirts belong on the street. Its always situational. some house parties I dress comfortably and others I might dress up. Its a judgment call on the party.

I heard on the radio yesterday that 60% of women say a turn off is a guys shoes as in DIRTY shoes. That seems really high, but maybe its true.

 

[Bible_Belt]

I agree about the shoes. Good brands will go a long way in regard to clothes. A well-fitted designer brand t-shirt is going to look completely different on you as compared to a Hanes t-shirt from wal-mart.

 

[Nighthawk]

Just make sure you look sexy.

 

[Omen]

I think i'm going to go in black striped slacks with my Perry Ellis black and gray striped long sleeve shirt. It looks pretty good, and the shirt fits really well on me.

I'm not too tall, but I have wide shoulders and am pretty fit, so some clothes are hard to fit me just cause of the shoulders, but this shirt gets the job done and its not too long either.

I read about NOT tucking a shirt in, and then others say you should tuck a shirt in.

If I am wearing a nice dress shirt and slacks, I never go without tucking it in, but that's me, and im not sure what everyone else does. I'd assume the same, but many have thoughts that you dont need to tuck it in.

 

[Omen]

stripes on stripes?........aaaaaa.....ok...untucked shirt/ slob. another one of those "bumming it" type ideas. fat people don't tuck shirts in....and they also wear sweat pants(lol). jeans suck....I can't believe the lop that said jeans are more confortable than slacks. jeans are heavy, ulta stiff and very unconfortable compared to slacks. obviously he never wears anything but jeans, he doesn't have a clue, but then again, all he is doing is wandering the streets. that's equivalent to cleaning my gutters, so I guess jeans will work out great for him. but for those that are running some game, jeans aint gonna cut it, no way.

The slacks stripes are very thin pin-stripe, and the shirt well... Not thin stripes, but bigger ones. So it will be a black on black/gray, but there is a small amount of gray pin-stripe in the slacks that compliment the bigger ones in the shirt. If it doesn't look right i'll make it solid, but it has seemed to do fine before.

In fact I think this is the same shirt. Sorry the pic is small. In fact, that's probably how i'll look tonight. lol

http://di1.shopping.com/images/di/64/58/66/55654f723375732d4b39584838344542437267-100x100-0-0.jpg

 

[Omen]

those are some pretty bold stripes, personally I would wear solid pants. if you have a shirt that's too long take it to a dry cleaners that does alterations and have them hack off four or so inches off the bottom. personally if I was wearing that shirt I'd wear it with some solid gray trousers.

I might just do the solid black pants. And there is another shirt I like that I dont have, but it is similar, but has real eye catching blue bold stripes in it, with black, and I have blue eyes, and was even thinking that route cause it brings out my eyes too, and then lots of women notice.

Its a $70 shirt, and I get so close to buying it, but I may today if it is still there. I just dont like spending that all the time. The Perry Ellis one was $70 but it was at discount in the summer and I got it for like $17.50

 

[Omen]

I'd do the solid black then, sounds like a good shirt. are perry ellis fitted shirts?....as oppossed to like xl,l,m,s ? I know perry ellis has both. I tend to like the fitted shirts. like say, 17 x 38. the 17 is you neck amd the 38 is you arm length. if you are looking into these have them measure you up and get the right one. they fit me a lot better than the sized shirts.

This one is a Small, but it fits good, and just as good as a dress shirt. At least this one on me, and that's why I got it. Pretty much all of my other shirts are fitted.

And its hard for me cause again, I am short, but I have broad shoulders, and a thicker upper chest. The hardest part is the shoulders and traps, and making sure it fits.

That's the only disadvantage really of working out. While lean, and a 29" waist and about 8% bodyfat which is the good stuff, the bad is it is so hard to find clothes that fit.

I always have to do small or medium, but when I do small, I have to make sure that its not the REAL SKINNY guy small, cause then it looks odd with the wider upper body.

Shopping is a b*tch most of the times. Even belts and pants can become tricky. Hopefully down the road I can invest in more tailored stuff, but right now the only thing on the mind is one more semester of school, then i'll have a little more cash. Thank God for no more $150 books which could be spent on a few nice fitting shirts.

 

[Scot McKay]

Women look at your shoes. Seriously. Shoes and belt should match, always. Kenneth Cole is a good choice.

I recently had this conversation with Brent Smith for the new program, and again with David Wygant actually. Among what we agreed upon was that older guys tend to dress for work even off the clock, mostly because that's all they got. For example, they'd go on a date with a " Cisco Systems" polo shirt on that they got free from the salesguy...LOL. Either that, or guys tend to dress THE OPPOSITE on weekends as they dress for work during the week. I remember this very well. Forced to wear a suit all week, I was in a t-shirt and cargo shorts all weekend.

I've noticed that the sharpest, most successful guys wear stylish but not exactly "business casual" stuff when not working. Some stylish slacks or high-end jeans with matching shoes and belt and a killer shirt from, say, Tommy Bahama. You hit the outlet stores for the deals on this stuff, and it really doesn't cost much more. A caveat on the TB shirts and other similar, though, make sure you know how to take care of them. If washed like t-shirts and jeans you'll ruin them.

Consider your lifestyle (or even your desired lifestyle) and dress accordingly, but stylishly. If you want the surfer guy image, go to a Hurley or Billabong shop and get the button-up shirts that look cool and a pair of their jeans or two. If you are an outdoors guy, to to Eddie Bauer and/or Timberland and go nuts.

Always--ALWAYS--have some cute chick help you pick out clothes wherever you go and NEVER order from the Internet without trying stuff on. Tell her to make you look even better than you do right now, and she'll ALWAYS oblige. Great opportunity for banter too, of course.

Get a nice looking watch, too. If you get a good one with a classic style you can wear it forever. www.WorldOfWatches.com is a great site that has been around a while. I got one from there back in '98 or '99 that I am still psyched about. Like 70% off list and it checked out as genuine from a local retailer. Considering I could have gone through several "Fossil" watches during that time, this turned out to be a good decision.

If cologne comes up: Dolce & Gabanna by night, Marc Jacobs by day. Field tested.

 

[Omen]

I agree about shoes.....but I'm not into kennth cole shoes. all the kennth cole I see are all rubber soles and made in china. leather soles a must for me and I tend to never get a pair of shoes made in china. I've got size 14 shoes and made in china shoes never fit me. I think its because they don't have anybody in china to build a size 14 shoe so they just kinda wing it, I try to get shoes made in either preferred italy, or spain, mexico. most of my shoes are bruno magoli or allen edmonds or johnson and murphy or mezlan or da boot. I also wax them everytime I'm done wearing them and ready to take them off. shoes should always match your belt, and you r belt buckle should always mach your watch. and if you want a watch that says sex, get a movado, its the only kind of watch I wear. more women will comment on it than you can imagine.

Well i've got all the matching down. Shoes match belt, and belt buckle matches watch. Its a fossil.

http://www.worldofwatches.com/segf/FossilAM3827.html

Obviously not huge $$$ spent on it, but it looks really good, and I have small wrists, and a medium dial watch is the only type I can get that doesn't make me look like a clown with a huge watch. It fits and thats the main thing.

It says womens watch, but Fossil had it on their mens site when they carried it. Not sure why WW has it as a womens.

 

[MrLuvr]

Don't you guys have a Zara where you live?

Forget Perry Ellis, Banana Republic and all those American brands. Americans know sh*t about fashion.

Zara is a European brand and if you are in your mid 20s and above, you can't go wrong with most of their stuff.

Oh and the prices are about half of what you would find in a Banana Republic and the quality is the same.

 

[Omen]

Don't you guys have a Zara where you live?

Forget Perry Ellis, Banana Republic and all those American brands. Americans know sh*t about fashion.

Zara is a European brand and if you are in your mid 20s and above, you can't go wrong with most of their stuff.

Oh and the prices are about half of what you would find in a Banana Republic and the quality is the same.

I heard of that store from someone in the DC area, and where I am at, we have nothing like that. Its your usual Eddie Bauer, AE, Express, GAP, Old Navy, Dillards, JC Pen, Banana, and things like that.

I'd have to drive like 300 miles to find the next level of clothing.

 

[steve38]

I think the more important thing is that YOU feel attractive. Who cares what they are looking for. I was out running errands the other night dressed like a bum and dropped into a dive bar for a quick beer. Several girls were checking me out, but I just didn't feel confident enough to talk to them. Usually, I never go anywhere jeans are not acceptable and just wear a button-up untucked. I have abandoned the cap after hearing here that girls don't like that (thanks guys). I do alright, but it really seems to be a matter of how good i feel. Confident, happy, and aloof. It works for me.

 

[Bible_Belt]

designer t shirt?.......is that a oscar de la-hanes? whatever........t-shirts=sports

Yeah, I am no fashion guru, but I have a couple of Calvin Klein shirts that look like t-shirts from a distance but are made of some stretchy material. I get a lot of compliments with those. Shirts like that are cut tight in the chest and arms, and show off your body well. Granted, that's not for everyone. And it's also more of a summer thing, to not be hot.

 

[steve38]

you guys are cracking me up....its apples and oranges...we are not all looking for the same thing, but the cool thing is that we all find what we are looking for, whether we realize it or not....self-fullfilling....i used to have a lucky shirt and it cost me $5, but jeez i loved that rayon, single-stiched piece of crap. And when I wore it, I always found what I wanted. That being, a practical woman that loved confident men. I personally cannot stand women that even know what name brands they should look for. But everyones different.

 

[Omen]

Well, for me I feel much more comfortable in better looking attire. I feel more professional (I am also a business man) and older. I stood out last night and WAS the best dressed there. I came in looking like an ad out of GQ, and this one girl I work with comes in with her boyfriend who had saggy jeans, his hurley hat turned sideways, a white hoody, and a black eye. lol

He came to see who I was (its in the main discussion section title girl is bringing boyfriend or something to that extent)

Anyway I introduced myself as she was standing next to his punk ass, and I whipped out the money clip loaded with bills and said... Here, let me cover the cost of your drink tonight. TOTALLY threw the dude for a spin. First I dont think he was expecting me to look like I came out of the GQ magazine, and second he didnt expect me to buy his drink. He thought he came to point and go... Ha ha, I have her and you dont. So it was a good night for me to say the least. I put this 20 or 21yr old dude in his place, and enjoyed my night.

Gotta love it when guys come to a party all expecting to show you up and you reverse it on them.

But people loved the outfit and go... Woah, I didnt get the memo about looking like that one girl said. Some others asked, and I said... this is how older successful guys dress, not like him over there..

None the less I felt good, and that's what matters. I didnt feel like the girl I work withs chump boyfriend like I woke up and got out of the dumpster and came to the party. And I talked to more women than I have because I felt good.

I can see how some can feel good in a t-shirt, but being older I just feel like it displays more higher value and maturity, which for me it did.

 

[Omen]

sounds like you took over, good man.
now we just need to let these other hillbilly in here that wearing a t shirt and jeans is for clowns. a couple of weeks ago I took off my carb on my classic caddillac to rebuild it and reinstalled it, this was a perfect job for jeans and a t shirt, after I finished I planned to go out, so of course, I took off my jeans and t shirt (because I was done working) and put on some evening wear, jeans were made for working in, not wearing 24/7....unless of course you are a hillbilly. good job on the nice evening. did you wear the stripes pants or solid?... nice to hear about another man paying detail to looking good. over time you will find out that people(male and female) take a well dressed person serious. women see a well dressed man that's pays attention to detail and the first thing they think about is that man paying attention to detail on her body. women compare everything to sex. did you know that how a person drives can be compared to how they are in bed? next time you see some guy wizzin in and out of traffic you can bet the last time he has sex he blew his load in like fifteen seconds. road ragers?.....they never have sex....and etc. ect.....men that take dressing serious are taken serious, think about it guys, next time you go out in your rags and designer t shirts. I also didn't even mention how grossly over priced jeans are nowadays. and if it really is a designer t shirt than you should be able to wear a blazar with it.....that style is acceptable.

yes I wore the solid black slacks. ill write the rest when I get to a computer in a bit since I'm writing from the Treo.

When I dressed like that, I noticed some of my co-workers a little shocked I guess. You see, over and over you see the same people in the same outfit, and you really dont get to see them too much outside of work. On occasion we have meetings and we wear what ever cause its at 7am in the morning, or we bowl, or people come in and shop and are in just plain clothes.

Anyway, it was a chance for them to see... hey, this is how older guys dress, or guys of high value. What ever you want to insert in there.

The way I dressed was probably even a shock to the girl who brought her boyfriend. She was probably somewhat embarrassed to even introduce her boyfriend to me. In fact I introduced myself and she really didnt even introduce him. So she's standing there in her jeans and white shirt with something written on it, he's there with saggy pants, some Vans or the like, shoes probably not tied, his white hoodie, hurley hat, and black eye, and i'm in black slacks, my black shoes, perrry shirt, black belt with silver buckle matching my fossil watch looking like I came out of a GQ shoot and it was quite awkward.

I think I finished it off when I whipped out the $$$ and gave it to him to get his drink. Oh ****.... this guy just finished me off with a money clip.

Kid had nothing on me. He probably wasn't expecting what he got. He probably left saying..Why the hell didnt you tell me he dressed like that, or a little more about him. I just had my ass handed to me on a silver platter.

Sorry, I had no idea he was going to look like that and then even buy your drink for the night. All I ever see him in is work clothes.

So it did more than just make me feel comfortable in what I was wearing. It kind of set an impression on people to show them what i'm like outside of work.

I think the guy probably feels more threatened now that i'll still his girl, and at the same time, she's thinking... wow..that was ****ty. I basically gave the tone of look... I can choose women I want, and i've dated many great women, so what would I want to do with you?

She got a dose of me outside of work she never knew before.

So a very interesting night in more than one way. And I am sure i'll hear about it at work. But in a good way.

 

[Analytic]

Omen, no offense but that sounds extremely superficial. It just clothes, you made it sound like some war stories lol. One question though, what's the difference between your work clothes and going out clothes? you obviously were slacks and button down shirts for work and going out. Is it the shoes and belt that is more stylish?

 

[Bible_Belt]

The guy who rebuilds Cadillac carburetors in his yard is the same guy calling everyone else a hillbilly