All clothing is ugly these days

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course of your shopping at H&M etc the fashioned are cheap and trendy. But one can find classic items at places like J Crew and Ann Taylor or Brooks Brothers. Just have to spend a little more than the teeny bopper stores.

Actually, no, "one" can't. Everything at AT and J Crew and Brooks Brothers has no darting/definition in the waist, haven't you noticed? Seriously, go look at AT blouses/tops online right now. They are all boxy/loose, and have weird colors and prints, and have random tie-things at the neckline.

100%. Case in point:

shapeless + puffy 3/4 sleeves + most unflattering color ever - https://www.anntaylor.com/lantern-sleeve-double-v-top/436829?skuId=23798137&defaultColor=7390&colorExplode=false&catid=cata000010

boxy + ruffles + ties + totally see thru + dotted - https://www.anntaylor.com/dotted-ruffle-tie-neck-blouse-/440701?skuId=23737419&defaultColor=2222&colorExplode=false&catid=cata000010

boxy + ties and bows - https://www.anntaylor.com/bow-cuff-blouse/444958?skuId=23672680&defaultColor=5348&colorExplode=false&catid=cata000010

boxy + ruffle sleeve + bold pattern that goes with nothing - https://www.anntaylor.com/leaves-silk-tie-sleeve-blouse/442640?skuId=23353619&defaultColor=5095&prodId=442640

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I love Everlane. Just basic, good quality stuff. I'm a millenial and I hate all of the "funny" slogan teas ("shopping is my cardio," "target is my happy place," "messy bun and getting sh*t done" etc etc etc).

I used to love Everlane. Their stuff is too odd for me now, as a 40 yo woman. It looks very good on the skinny Asian millennial models, but it's not wearable for me. I used to like their T-shirts and stuff.

what changed? they still have the same basics.

[Anonymous]

You old, wear burka

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course of your shopping at H&M etc the fashioned are cheap and trendy. But one can find classic items at places like J Crew and Ann Taylor or Brooks Brothers. Just have to spend a little more than the teeny bopper stores.

Actually, no, "one" can't. Everything at AT and J Crew and Brooks Brothers has no darting/definition in the waist, haven't you noticed? Seriously, go look at AT blouses/tops online right now. They are all boxy/loose, and have weird colors and prints, and have random tie-things at the neckline.

100%. Case in point:

shapeless + puffy 3/4 sleeves + most unflattering color ever - https://www.anntaylor.com/lantern-sleeve-double-v-top/436829?skuId=23798137&defaultColor=7390&colorExplode=false&catid=cata000010

boxy + ruffles + ties + totally see thru + dotted - https://www.anntaylor.com/dotted-ruffle-tie-neck-blouse-/440701?skuId=23737419&defaultColor=2222&colorExplode=false&catid=cata000010

boxy + ties and bows - https://www.anntaylor.com/bow-cuff-blouse/444958?skuId=23672680&defaultColor=5348&colorExplode=false&catid=cata000010

boxy + ruffle sleeve + bold pattern that goes with nothing - https://www.anntaylor.com/leaves-silk-tie-sleeve-blouse/442640?skuId=23353619&defaultColor=5095&prodId=442640

This, this, this-ity this-this-this

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 60-something year old aunt has started sewing dresses for herself. The woman makes 300k and is sewing her own work dresses like it's 1892 because everything in the stores is such garbage.

I want to read about your aunt. Can you start a thread dedicated to her adventures in dress making?

This! She's sounds great. Can she teach us to sew?

Back on topic, I wandered into Talbots the other day and it was PACKED. I mean, women everywhere. And I realized that it's bc they have decent basics and lots of women are willing to pay their prices to not have zippered cold shoulder tops.

talbots is not free of the madness

https://www.talbots.com/online/blouses-and-shirts/flounce-sleeve-painted-houndstooth-blouse-prdi43331/N-10157?selectedConcept=

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 60-something year old aunt has started sewing dresses for herself. The woman makes 300k and is sewing her own work dresses like it's 1892 because everything in the stores is such garbage.

I want to read about your aunt. Can you start a thread dedicated to her adventures in dress making?

This! She's sounds great. Can she teach us to sew?

Back on topic, I wandered into Talbots the other day and it was PACKED. I mean, women everywhere. And I realized that it's bc they have decent basics and lots of women are willing to pay their prices to not have zippered cold shoulder tops.

talbots is not free of the madness

https://www.talbots.com/online/blouses-and-shirts/flounce-sleeve-painted-houndstooth-blouse-prdi43331/N-10157?selectedConcept=

THAT IS SO AWFUL! My eyes are hurting, I'm getting a headache, and I fell dizzy from looking at it. I cannot imagine seeing an actual person wearing this garbage.

[Anonymous]

OP, ITA. Thanks for the great description of the pure style awfulness going on right now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 60-something year old aunt has started sewing dresses for herself. The woman makes 300k and is sewing her own work dresses like it's 1892 because everything in the stores is such garbage.

I want to read about your aunt. Can you start a thread dedicated to her adventures in dress making?

This! She's sounds great. Can she teach us to sew?

Back on topic, I wandered into Talbots the other day and it was PACKED. I mean, women everywhere. And I realized that it's bc they have decent basics and lots of women are willing to pay their prices to not have zippered cold shoulder tops.

talbots is not free of the madness

https://www.talbots.com/online/blouses-and-shirts/flounce-sleeve-painted-houndstooth-blouse-prdi43331/N-10157?selectedConcept=

THAT IS SO AWFUL! My eyes are hurting, I'm getting a headache, and I fell dizzy from looking at it. I cannot imagine seeing an actual person wearing this garbage.

p.s. and a talbots employee even wrote a fake review for the blouse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 60-something year old aunt has started sewing dresses for herself. The woman makes 300k and is sewing her own work dresses like it's 1892 because everything in the stores is such garbage.

I want to read about your aunt. Can you start a thread dedicated to her adventures in dress making?

This! She's sounds great. Can she teach us to sew?

Back on topic, I wandered into Talbots the other day and it was PACKED. I mean, women everywhere. And I realized that it's bc they have decent basics and lots of women are willing to pay their prices to not have zippered cold shoulder tops.

talbots is not free of the madness

https://www.talbots.com/online/blouses-and-shirts/flounce-sleeve-painted-houndstooth-blouse-prdi43331/N-10157?selectedConcept=

THAT IS SO AWFUL! My eyes are hurting, I'm getting a headache, and I fell dizzy from looking at it. I cannot imagine seeing an actual person wearing this garbage.

p.s. and a talbots employee even wrote a fake review for the blouse.

Wow, you're so right!

[Anonymous]

My friend is retired from Levi Strauss. He says they now use cotton that was considered only suitable for lint and rags when he started 40 years ago.
Keep in mind that those of us from the UK and Europe have very few clothes relative to Americans. We expect to pay the equivalent of $150-$300 for each garment made from natural fiber.
My clothes are cotton, silk and wool, mainly from Liberty of London. Several garments are decades old and still getting compliments.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I love Everlane. Just basic, good quality stuff. I'm a millenial and I hate all of the "funny" slogan teas ("shopping is my cardio," "target is my happy place," "messy bun and getting sh*t done" etc etc etc).

I used to love Everlane. Their stuff is too odd for me now, as a 40 yo woman. It looks very good on the skinny Asian millennial models, but it's not wearable for me. I used to like their T-shirts and stuff.

what changed? they still have the same basics.

No, I used to have v-neck and scoop neck t-shirts and they don't sell either anymore. Or the nice scarves and regular silk blouses they used to have. The stuff has gotten edgier, I guess--boxier and cropped. The dresses are unwearable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ladies, forgive me: a rant. Women's clothing is just objectively ugly these days. And it's a universal trend, from department stores to discount stores to outlets to boutiques to chains. All women's clothing, for all sizes and shapes and price points, is hideously ugly.

Bizarro Prints/Colors

You know how the color palette of the 70s was earth tones and off-beat shades like pumpkin and avacado? You know how the color palette of the 80s was neons and bright jewel tones? See how those are two completely different color palettes? Well, put them together in a blender, and that is what is going on right now. Same with patterns. Forget things that make sense, like polka dots or houndstooth or pretty florals. Everything now is just...random.

At one point, I was considering a shirt that was a lovely material/weight, which had a really nice cut/fit. I loved it. Except it was a HIDEOUS navy-on-blue print of morning glories or some other flower...like, close-up of the interior of these flowers. I stood there, staring at it. I closed my eyes and summoned the spirit of Georgia O'Keefe. Even she agreed: "This shirt looks like vaginas, and you shouldn't buy it."

Like, who designed a vagina shirt? And then who approved that design? How do you tell your fabric vendor that you'd like 5,300 yards of vagina print in a merino wool with a hint of stretch? What does that conversation look like?

Medieval Times

Let's get into the "cold-shoulder" trend. OK, fine, some people really love to show off their shoulders in a long-sleeve shirt. Note I'm not talking about off-the shoulder. No, we're talking even turtlenecks that show off just the top patch of shoulder for NO REASON. Forget the optical confusion of this look, why would you want your shoulders to be cold? If it is cold enough for a TURTLENECK, why would you expose your shoulders? NO SENSE.

I saw a thick, heavy sleeveless funnel neck sweater that REACHED THE MID-THIGH. If it is cold enough to wear a sweater that comes to your thighs, why would your arms be hanging out. I don't understand!

So that's all bad enough, but now this trend has extended to inexplicably slashed sleeves and Tudor-esque hanging sleeves--on corporate-wear. If you want to look like that Shakespeare-obsessed teenage girl from "10 Things I Hate About You" as a grown-ass woman, that's a look, at least. That's fine, I GUESS. BUT, it appears that the new fashion is to add these Ye Olde Touches to **work attire,** as in a fitted sheath dress that looks like something Joan from "Mad Men" would wear, except the sleeves are all slashed Elizabethan-style. Just...what?

Because--as we know from reading too many Philippa Gregory novels--the function of slashed sleeves was to show the expensive undershirts, and the function of long hanging sleeves was to hide Anne Boleyn's rumored sixth finger. None of this functionality is needed at a board meeting on a Tuesday or a lobbyist's office on a Wednesday. There IS no intersection of Wall Street and Whitehall Palace. I am so mad.

Random Shit

There were so many times, at so many stores where I reached for what I thought was a BASIC, only to find that it had some random shitty detail. Like, not a blouse with pretty jeweled buttons, or a pair of pants with a ribbon sash or anything nice like that. No, I'm talking about a basic long-sleeved button-down with...a sequined pineapple on the pocket. A pair of shoes that had no fewer than seven buckles across the top...and no, they weren't boots, they were flats.

I just don't understand why pants have to have umbrellas on them, you know? I feel like clothing manufacturers got together in 2008 and just decided they were done producing clothing that made sense.

Nobody Wants Middle-Aged Money

I wandered into J Crew, and clearly I am too old. I tiptoed into Talbots, and was confronted by a pair of stretch pants with an olive/martini glass print, so I am clearly too young. Why does no one want to cater to me, a boring, middle-aged mom with a job who just doesn't want to wear olives or pineapples? I'm too chubby for cropped tops, plus also, I can't wear crop tops to work OR to the park with my kids. On the other side of the coin, I just kind of feel like stirrup pants would make me tumble into menopause at an accelerated pace. Why does no one want to make some basic clothing and take my money?

I want my shoulders to be warm, and not to wear a vagina shirt. Is that too much to ask?

I could go on, but I will stop. Please tell me I am not the only one in this group with the worst wardrobe I have ever had, including when I was 6 and owned a terry-cloth romper that made me look like a strawberry, or when I was 19 and had at least three items in my closet that were purchased at Charlotte Russe.

Thank you for your consideration.

I thought it was just me!

This happens to me once every 4-5 years. I get grossed out by the choices and don't buy anything new for a few seasons. I did manage to find a few classics at JCP today. They will tide me over until the hideous prints and cuts subside.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I love Everlane. Just basic, good quality stuff. I'm a millenial and I hate all of the "funny" slogan teas ("shopping is my cardio," "target is my happy place," "messy bun and getting sh*t done" etc etc etc).

I used to love Everlane. Their stuff is too odd for me now, as a 40 yo woman. It looks very good on the skinny Asian millennial models, but it's not wearable for me. I used to like their T-shirts and stuff.

what changed? they still have the same basics.

No, I used to have v-neck and scoop neck t-shirts and they don't sell either anymore. Or the nice scarves and regular silk blouses they used to have. The stuff has gotten edgier, I guess--boxier and cropped. The dresses are unwearable.

I'm confused!

Here's a 100% cotton v neck t shirt:

https://www.everlane.com/products/womens-cotton-v-crimson?collection=womens-tees

Here's a 100% cotton basic crew:

https://www.everlane.com/products/womens-cotton-crew-palesage?collection=womens-tees

Here's a slim cut long sleeve crew, 100% cotton:

https://www.everlane.com/products/womens-slim-ctn-ls-crew-black?collection=womens-tees

Here's a 100% cotton scoop neck t:

https://www.everlane.com/products/womens-cotton-scoop-neck-black?collection=womens-tees

I have this in a bunch of colors, but it isn't 100% cotton:

https://www.everlane.com/products/womens-pima-stretch-midsleeve-white?collection=womens-tees

I don't really have a dog in this fight, don't work for everlane or anything, but I find them to be the best place for cotton or silk basics right now so I don't really get where you're coming from!

[Anonymous]

I'll echo the recommendation for Boden. Really great basics and classic dresses. Admittedly, some of their shirts and coats have patterns that are too cutesy, but the cut is usually fantastic.

[Anonymous]

I really, really hate the cold shoulder trend. Please let it die already.