Help me not dress like a slob anymore

October 20, 2012 3:59 PM

Dressing as an adult... for men. I've spent a bunch of time randomly googling and browsing through clothing regailer sites and blogs, but haven't come across quite what i'm looking for. As a man who doesn't like to shop, I would love to find a web-site that has photos of people wearing clothing that I like... along with links to where I can purchase those clothes. Seems simple, right? Well, not so fast.

Most of the sites that I have found seem to be directed a little higher than I would feel comfortable. I want to upgrade myself, but not to the point where it looks like i'm trying to fit into the pages of Esquire or GQ. I work from home in casual Seattle, so tend to just pull another t-shirt and jeans from the pile... or in the winter, add a button-down shirt and cardigan or sweatshirt. I lean towards the Banana Republic fashion-sense, but beyond that am at a loss.

I found several previous questions here, but most are either directed to women's clothing or give tips on "the basics that every man needs". While those might be helpful, I would really prefer a list of web-sites or blogs that have photos of full ensembles where I pick what I like.

thanks.

posted by jimmereeno to clothing, beauty, & fashion (20 answers total)

Put This On (run by MeFi's Own YoungAmerican) is a great video series that aims to answer this type of question (tagline: "A Web Series About Dressing Like A Grownup"); the blog is also awesome.

If you want to go deep down the rabbit hole, the Men's Clothing sub-forum at StyleForum is great w/ lots of photos.
posted by raihan_ at 4:06 PM on October 20, 2012 [1 favorite]

If you are looking for bargains, Dappered is a pretty good blog geared towards reasonably priced fashion.
posted by MegoSteve at 4:10 PM on October 20, 2012 [1 favorite]

Maybe this is too obvious, but have you looked at the Banana Republic website? If you click on the "Men's" header, it will take you to a page showing their latest favorite looks for the current season.
posted by vytae at 4:13 PM on October 20, 2012

I've been addicted to Jack Threads recently.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 4:14 PM on October 20, 2012 [2 favorites]

Nerd Boyfriend. Photos of (mostly) famous people looking (mostly) awesome, with links to where to buy similar clothes.
posted by ecab at 4:20 PM on October 20, 2012 [6 favorites]

I just got an invite to Frank and Oak. Their curators figure out looks that look good, then they send it to you for you to enjoy, and the prices are pretty reasonable (no item over $50). I haven't picked an actual box yet, but all the looks I see when I browse are exceptionally nice.
posted by Ghostride The Whip at 4:30 PM on October 20, 2012 [2 favorites]

Head down to the men's department at the Nordstrom in downtown Seattle. Ask your question there. See what they recommend for you.

From there, you can branch out to the other clothing shops in the area. In general, the staff are ready to help and genuinely enjoy talking about what looks good on you.

Clothing can be expensive and a timesink, though. When I left my first big corporate job in Seattle, I upgraded my wardrobe. I looked great, but often felt a bit out of place. Since then I've relaxed back to nice jeans (high quality material that is fairly thin and flexible) good shoes and semi-casual shirts.

I've been through several big corporate - startup iterations and find that people in sales and biotech are expected to dress up, and software people are expected to wear clothes and, ideally, shoes. So I'm not too worried about the fashion thing.
posted by b1tr0t at 4:42 PM on October 20, 2012 [2 favorites]

I like the presentation of clothing on Land's End's website. Example:Men's sweaters.

I also think it is not too pricy or upscale. I looked at a lot of websites for a while and most clothing websites seem to really suck in terms of photo sizes, navigability, info about colors and materials, etc. At the time that I did this research for myself, Land's End really stood out from the crowd for me. (I never did shop the site, though.)
posted by Michele in California at 4:57 PM on October 20, 2012

Seconding Frank & Oak. I've been a Hunt Club member for a couple months now and have really enjoyed the offerings. It's a great way to try out new things risk-free.
posted by DrJohnEvans at 5:02 PM on October 20, 2012

I didn't know about Frank and Oak, but along the same lines is Bombfell. The folks I know who use it love it.
posted by asterix at 5:22 PM on October 20, 2012

Having looked at the Frank and Oak site now, I see that there's one major difference between it and Bombfell: Frank and Oak sell their own clothes, Bombfell sells multiple brands.
posted by asterix at 5:24 PM on October 20, 2012

This is exactly what I was hoping for. Thank you all for your input (and keep 'em coming!).
I think that "Nerd Boyfriend" is what I had in mind when I posted here... but the additional links to sites like Bombfell and Fran and Oak are very compelling.

b1tr0t has it right when he says that clothing can be a timesink. That's exactly what I'm hoping to avoid. I've spent the time strolling through Nordstrom and the like... but I'd rather be spending my time looking at some photos of outfits put-together from multiple retailers. I'm not really looking for an education in dressing. Like artwork, I think that I know what I like when I see it... but I don't really have the patience in going out to look for it.

thanks again everybody. I feel that I'm well on the right road to spending some cash.
posted by jimmereeno at 5:33 PM on October 20, 2012

I'm not really looking for an education in dressing.

Sure, but the sales guys will hook you up with an outfit that looks great on you in no time. On the rare occasion that I need to dress a bit better than usual, that's where I go. I can be in and out very quickly, and if you are standing near the discount racks when the sales dude finds you, you are unlikely to break the bank.
posted by b1tr0t at 6:04 PM on October 20, 2012

I like Uncrate's style section. They do pieces on single items, but they also do a good job of putting together differently styled looks with links to the clothes and accessories. It's good for ideas and also for shopping.
posted by quince at 7:27 PM on October 20, 2012

The folks in Nordstrom tend to be really helpful. They can work with a) What's in season and in stock, and b) What works on YOUR body. They are actually quite respectful of budgets! I know lots of well-dressed men who basically make a trip twice a year and drop a bunch of cash at once. Then they just have to buy a few things throughout the year to round out their wardrobe. And everything will work together, which is great for the budget, dressing each morning and travel. Even better if you have a vague sense (bring in images on your phone to show them) of the look you'd like to emulate. they're like a free stylist -- try it a few times, and if nothing works out, don't buy it. I guarantee you'll learn something about which clothes and trends work well for your body and budget!
posted by barnone at 7:36 PM on October 20, 2012

This might be one of those things that was actually easier before the spoils-you-for-choice internet. Maybe it'd be easiest to sign yourself up for a slew of catalogues (sometimes: "lookbooks"), chuck them next to your toilet, browse at leisure with Post-Its?
posted by kmennie at 7:47 PM on October 20, 2012

Lands End is my go-to here: assuming "adult" means the typical office job, you can usually get by with slacks (sometimes jeans, depending upon geographical location and local culture), a dress shirt, and a sweater. All are good, safe bets at LE.
posted by ellF at 5:08 AM on October 21, 2012

I did a wardrobe upgrade a few months ago before starting a new job. I took advantage of Nordstrom's free personal shopper service, and I would highly recommend it. I am a lady, but they do the same for dudes.

I was able to set it up via email; their website has a "request a personal shopper" thingy with a basic info form, and then the stylist contacted me. We exchanged a couple of emails re: what I liked/needed, my sizes, fave/least fave colors etc. I also sent her some links from the store website of things that caught my eye (ie, I like this skirt but I don't know what I would wear with it).

The day I showed up she had a changing room set up with a ton of clothes, and I just tried stuff on. She brought some more stuff based on what worked/didn't work. I did not feel pressured.

This all took a couple of hours, but I didn't have to deal with mall crowds. I will do this again.
posted by maryrussell at 8:17 AM on October 21, 2012 [6 favorites]

Uniqlo now has an online store.

They're not the best, but for the price, they're pretty darn good for simple stuff.
posted by schmod at 10:48 AM on October 24, 2012 [1 favorite]

I'm in this phase too. Dappered is awesome.

Check out Primer Magazine too - they put together "outfits" with links directly to that piece of clothing. Prices are usually pretty decent too and it makes having an entire outfit (shirts, belt, shoes, pants plus other accessories) super super easy
posted by packfan88c at 11:31 AM on October 26, 2012