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PaperclipPerfector  1yr ago (text post)   22756 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of February 14, 2024

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I have literally never in my life seen a shirt or sweater that costs $200+. The most expensive shirts I can get cost $100 each, and those are dress shirts (which most people will only ever need one or two of). Everything else is less, often significantly less. The most expensive jeans I have ever seen are Levi's that sometimes cost upwards of $100/pair, but you don't need many and they last years and years. Most people only need one suit, two if they're really feeling fancy and want different colors (and again, those last for years and years).

I'm definitely with @FiveHourMarathon on this one. I can imagine someone who is trying to spend massive amounts of money might spend $10k+/year, for sure. But I can't imagine how someone might have normal clothing habits where they spend that kind of money without even meaning to.

Walk into a Brunello Cucinelli, a Hermes, a Thom Browne, or similar and you'll find hundreds of pretty normal looking clothes selling at 1k+ prices each.

To be fair, there’s a brigade of women who buy entirely new wardrobes every year to keep up with fashion. That crowd might spend 10% of income on clothes- I’m doubting they all have 6 figure incomes, so maybe more like $6k/yr on average. That seems like a thing that could be true.

You've never seen a $200 sweater? Take a trip to the mall today.

https://www.nordstrom.com/s/7542724

I confess that while I've been in a Nordstrom (and other mall stores), I haven't actually been shopping there. I am normally just sitting in the husband area while we all dick around on our phones waiting for our respective wives to finish shopping.

This is a human rights issue that needs to be improved upon: the lingerie section at Nordstrom needs a better husband waiting area. My wife always takes a million fucking hours while she gets fitted, is upset that her rib cage didn't get any bigger so the size is still so weird they'll only carry it in three bras, the sales woman digs through the back to find the one weirdo Barbie doll size, then tries all three on until she settles on the one that looks least orthopedic. But the waiting with my credit card area is too exposed! I want somewhere no one sees me!

I have vintage cashmere sweaters that cost $500+ new, but once again though expensive they lasted the original owners some period of time, and have lasted me years and years since. You can buy several of them but you can't do that every year without amassing a ridiculous collection.

Buying nice "vintage" clothing at thrift stores, both living near the sort of thrift store that regularly has nice things, and having the knowledge and patience to find the nice things also comes across as extremely bougie, with a bit of hipster thrown in. More so than just buying the sweater new, something someone who makes a lot less might be proud of, and see as an accomplishment. I remember someone commenting about how she bought nice boots once, and realizing she was an adult now, and could buy a $200 pair of boots she had always wanted now! Which was empowering for her.

Very true. Second hand shopping is a true High-Low barber pole activity. The Boston Cracked Shoe. The middle class is defined by discomfort with their status, which comes out as a sense of discomfort with buying second hand clothing. Where the poor have no pride to harm, and the rich are comfortable enough with their status that they feel no threat from telling someone they bought a suit at Goodwill. My father in law could not stop laughing about how, in a wedding of two one percenter families, we had a tiny wedding and my wife thrifted her gown while I had an old tux from Goodwill I dusted off for the occasion (though I did buy a pair of new pants for the occasion.

Though I do think more sanitized, online operations like Poshmark and TheRealReal might be changing things around.

There are definitely people who do just that, though, and they sell their old clothes or donate to thrift stores.

You can buy several of them but you can't do that every year without amassing a ridiculous collection.

Or you can sell the old ones to you and buy nice fresh ones!

People do do this; seems crazy to me as well but it's a thing.

I'm someone who's both fairly frugal and has no issue purchasing clothing/items second hand with the plan to wear them until they fall apart. This, combined with being patient, means I've acquired some choice deals over time.

It's also lead to moments where I realize that I'm out and about for outdoor chores while wearing clothing(shirt, pants, shoes, watch) that, had I bought new, would be edging toward a thousand dollars. So... shrugs helplessly

dress shirts (which most people will only ever need one or two of)

The first result on Google for the query "how many dress shirts own":

Generally, it is suggested that men own around 8–12 dress shirts if you wear them every day for work, or just 3 if you only wear them for special occasions.

Yes, and most people don't wear dress shirts every day for work. There's a reason I said "most people".

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