@Imoyram thanks so much! laughing sadly at those prices but man those are nice shirts, I very much approve. also nice jackets. (I love pretty much every jacket ever.) and nice shoes.
mm, well, I can't go shopping except online while I'm away at school, but I think there are a couple outlets around my parents' houses? the only time I've done like serious outlet shopping was while visiting my grandmother, though. (bought my singular dress shirt. thing is no-ironing-necessary and thus incredibly magical.) and in fact I have gone to a Gap outlet! I got two of the four button-ups I own there, actually. for the immediate future I just ordered some cheap Old Navy shirts because I only had two short-sleeved shirts in dress code, lmao. they're generally fairly tolerable? not super interesting or anything, but.
if anyone cares here are some of the ones I'm fond of. Spoiler: probably nobody does care but brightly colored menswear?? surely not wish I passed well enough to wear the pink one but the teal is still nice okay but I really love chambray I am a MAN who likes FLOWERS
my recommendation forever is accessories!! even a relatively plain outfit of "simple clothes" can look *jazzed up* if you accessorize well. accessories for the dudely inclined are sadly a bit harder to find, but either some kind of pin on your shirt/collar clips could work very well. and never underestimate the pizzaz of a nice hat. (also that last shirt, the floral one is so cool. i would rock the heck out of that) edit: by collar clips i mean something like this, there are also styles of necklace that read more as "fancy neck tie" than "girly girl jewelry"
.... shit, I want that floral one in dark blue ): I think cool ties aleays look nice, if you like them - there's a lot of them in nice patterns/colors that you could coordinate with a neutral shirt
Okay I should actually go to bed now!! Goodnight folks! Have fun fashioning! You guys cheered me up a bit with this! Will come back in morning! Night! :)
@Imoyram damn I love that silk print jacket. and that waistcoat. augh why so expensive. @Choco annoyingly hats are not dress code. otherwise I would wear them always. also thanks for complimenting my taste in shirts, lmao. @witchknights likewise thanks! and yeah I am very much a fan of ties. not so much the patterns and colors I usually see, but. so far I have three in nice jewel tones (from Walmart, lmao). only problem is they are way too long for my torso. #shortguystruggles
Depending on just how overlong they are, doing a full windsor rather than a half windsor knot can help shorten them up. Or you can just tuck the narrow end between two buttons of your shirt, if the feel of that doesn't bother you (it annoys me).
aww man *shakes fists sympathetically @ ur dress code* and you're welcome!! i'm usually much more femme presenting but i love me a good button down shirt with a neat pattern/texture[/user]
@budgie problem with full windsor is that my singular dress shirt is actually women's (although it's passably masculine with binding) and thus has a hella skinny collar. half windsor barely fits under it, no way a full windsor would. and actually I've just been tucking the long end of the ties into the front of my pants? works pretty well, lmao. @emythos yeah they kind of are. mine is pretty nice in that it doesn't have explicitly worded gendered distinctions though. also I can get away with wearing like plain t-shirts to class because I'm not generally out and girls can wear "fashion blouses" that aren't collared, lmfao. I'm hoping to start dressing more like the cis guys though.
I think you can get shorter ties online. What's your price range for accessories? what stores have you looked at? Like, forever 21, H&M, gap and stuff? really wish i could help more, but the only dude i get to shop for is my sir boring lawyerdude of a boyfriend and i'm not even in the us
Thrift stores often have ties meant for, like, preteen boys, because the preteens outgrow them. I've gotten some nice ones that were actually a good length and width on me that way.