How did it fade?

[ArrowCollarMan]

Suits, dresses, hats, ties, stockings, shinny shoes, high heels, these are just some things that defined entire eras. Long ago people used to be "dressed up" all the time. It was regular attire. How did it all evolve (or devolve, depending on your opinion) into what we wear today? I have made some observations on how it progressed through time. Starting somewhere in the 1600's, it seems, things began to get very extravegant. In the 1700's this was particularly evident but into the early 1800's it began to fade even though alot of the extravagence began to remain. In the 1800's it went from large coats, high collars and scarf-like ties to smaller coats, lower collars and smaller ties and began to take a less random edge. And it appears from the late 19th century and onward alot of men's suits and so-on have remain realitively unchanged while the women's has changed dramatically. Today, its all t-shirts and jeans. It went from extravegent to simple. How did this happen? What shifted the "dressed up" apparel of yesteryear?

 

[Senator Jack]

Without dubiety, you're going to to get a lot of replies that it was the 'hippie' 60s that did us in. I'm going to forefend these claims. It is the marketing of youth culture that did us in. And this marketing is supported by people who invest, wittingly or unwittingly, in youth markets. Do you have stock in any company that caters to the youth market? If you do, I don't want to hear you complain. Think before you answer.

Regards,

Senator Jack

 

[Feraud]

I was going to post this in the Observation Bar but this subject reminded me of the article.
See this interesting article the deals with New York parents who have a dread fear of growing up.
Up With Grups*

Let’s start with a question. A few questions, actually: When did it become normal for your average 35-year-old New Yorker to (a) walk around with an iPod plugged into his ears at all times, listening to the latest from Bloc Party; (b) regularly buy his clothes at Urban Outfitters; (c) take her toddler to a Mommy’s Happy Hour at a Brooklyn bar; (d) stay out till 4 A.M. because he just can’t miss the latest New Pornographers show, because who knows when Neko Case will decide to stop touring with them, and everyone knows she’s the heart of the band; (e) spend $250 on a pair of jeans that are artfully shredded to look like they just fell through a wheat thresher and are designed, eventually, to artfully fall totally apart; (f) decide that Sufjan Stevens is the perfect music to play for her 2-year-old, because, let’s face it, 2-year-olds have lousy taste in music, and we will not listen to the Wiggles in this house; (g) wear sneakers as a fashion statement; (h) wear the same vintage New Balance sneakers that he wore on his first day of school in the seventh grade as a fashion statement; (i) wear said sneakers to the office; (j) quit the office job because—you know what?—screw the office and screw jockeying for that promotion to VP, because isn’t promotion just another word for “slavery”?; (k) and besides, now that she’s a freelancer, working on her own projects, on her own terms, it’s that much easier to kick off in the middle of the week for a quick snowboarding trip to Sugarbush, because she’s got to have some balance, right? And she can write it off, too, because who knows? She might bump into Spike Jonze on the slopes; (l) wear a Misfits T-shirt; (m) make his 2-year-old wear a Misfits T-shirt; (n) never shave; (o) take pride in never shaving; (p) take pride in never shaving while spending $200 on a bedhead haircut and $600 on a messenger bag, because, seriously, only his grandfather or some frat-boy Wall Street flunky still carries a briefcase; or (q) all of the above?

 

[ArrowCollarMan]

Arrg. I would find it much easier to wear a suit everyday. Only thing to worry about would be the tie, really. I've often wondered how it would look if there was a more opdated version of suits, hats, dresses and shinny shoes. I ocne sat it a mall trying to imagine the mall and everyone in it as they would have looked in 1915...I think i did a good job

 

[JW]

I think it all spawns from laziness.

Seriously, who in their right mind (from a lazy point of view) would want to decide on colors, put on a three-piece suit, tie a tie, button on suspenders, tie their shoes, shave their face, attach cufflinks and collar bar, and comb their hair when all they REALLY have to do is roll out of bed put on their week-old jeans and t-shirt combo and slip-on shoes and walk out the door?

That way they can sleep in longer after that late party last night - maybe the hang-over will subside too.

 

[scotrace]

And then reverse it all

Seriously, who in their right mind (from a lazy point of view) would want to decide on colors, put on a three-piece suit, tie a tie, button on suspenders, tie their shoes, shave their face, attach cufflinks and collar bar, and comb their hair...

AND THEN, when you get home, reverse the whole process. After getting home from my office, it takes as long to get out of all that and put it away and wash up and change as it did to get ready in the morning.

Worth it though.

 

[Miss Neecerie]

AND THEN, when you get home, reverse the whole process. After getting home from my office, it takes as long to get out of all that and put it away and wash up and change as it did to get ready in the morning.

Worth it though.

You dirty up and then uncomb your hair upon arrival home?

 

[JW]

AND THEN, when you get home, reverse the whole process. After getting home from my office, it takes as long to get out of all that and put it away and wash up and change as it did to get ready in the morning.

You're right about that. With jeans and a t-shirt, you can just take it off and fling it, and your done. . . It won't look any worse the next morning when you pick it up off the floor either.