Dapper or Crapper: Matt’s Fleece Vest
23 Comments Published by Joel December 4th, 2006 in Clothes. Share This
My take: Sure, it looks warm, but just like my poor puffy vest, that thing dresses the outfit right down. That shirt might be okay on its own, but the vest just ain’t working. Take it off at the office. Sorry!
Maybe you should look into a traditional button-up vest. It won’t be as warm, but it’ll be far more snazzy. And you look like you’re thin enough to pull it off.
i try to stay away from anything fleece. it just bugs the hell out of me.
I think we need to talk situation too. If you’re going out to the bar with buddies, with no intention of picking anyone up, then I think it’s fine. It’s utilitarian fashion. That not a ‘good’ looking combination though. I wouldn’t use it to meet your girls parents at their cabin or anyplace else where a really good impression needs to be made.
If you aren’t standing on the side of a mountain or dragging your sea kayak in for a spot of lunch, that is just wrong.
As the world knows I am the ultimate fashion authority and everything I say goes…
Or to put it better; I can barely dress myself and if *I* think it looks bad, it must be awful.
So to complete the ensemble does this come with khakis/cargo pants and those nike “hiking” boots? Seriously, if you need a jacket where you work then buy one that doesn’t look like it was meant for walking your dog.
I am anti-vest altogether. The only time any man should wear a vest is with a three-piece suit or a tuxedo, or when camping/fishing. Fleece vests just add the look of about 20 extra pounds and a rumpled, unkempt wardrobe.
As a side note, the only time any woman should wear a vest is 1986.
Crapper…and here’s why. There is no reason to wear a fleece jacket or vest out to anywhere fashionable if you own a nice wool sweater. The vest is fine for a day on the lake or hiking through the wilderness. In more urbane settings, a sweater is more versatile and conveys the aura of casual class.
I think the vest is OK if he works at Home Depot or some wilderness adventure-type supply store. Or if he’s trying to tell management, “hey assholes, turn up the heat already!” In the latter case, the sweater isn’t going to get the message across.
i am anti-fleece in general. it ages poorly, it is a pet hair magnet, and it constantly reminds me of shopping trips to land’s end with my grandma.
Thumbs down. If he wants a vest, go with a puffy down vest like this:
http://www.fossil.com/jump.jsp?itemType=PRODUCT&itemID=36753&iMainCat=1002&iSubCat=1010&PSID=PFXFEEDFSLSHOP000MC5164948&psid=pfx&1=
I don’t know about the whole puffy vest thing. It seems work only if you have aviator glasses, greasy hair and the inability to grow a decent beard.
Still, better than the fleece vest.
“i am anti-fleece in general. it ages poorly…”
This is entirely dependent on the quality and density of fleece. The fleece jacket you buy at wally world or target or any number of fun-happy-hip-stores will be crap. You get what you pay for so expect crap. High performance fleece items from the likes of REI or Patigonia (skip Black Diamond, these days they’re putting a lot of crap on the market) will age and perform better than the crap by an order of magnitude.
I must add that I
I must add that I
I’m generally pro-fleece (a decent-quality fleece jacket is a useful layer under a waterproof shell in a snowy-winter climate), but a vest of any type + office setting = crapper.
I agree it adds a lot of apparent weight, which for some reason doesn’t happen to the same degree when the fleece has sleeves.
all you need is a keg, a backwards hat and you’re ready for a tailgate and some fraternity pledge paddling.
Crapper unless he just finished a hike.
dood only if your a mountain man……..
So, I’m getting the hint that the fleece vest is an item best worn, but not seen, preferably only in outdoor adventure settings or frat parties. Sadly, neither of those are in my immediate future.
Seriously, thanks for the feedback! I’m back to the slacks and buttondown tomorrow, but had to throw the proverbial hat in the ring today!
Speaking of hats, anyone have a Dapper or Crapper hat related conundrum?
i also try to stay away from hats. the only people i know that wear em are douchebags
Really? Even in the winter?
I agree that most guys of today that wear fedoras or similar are indeed douchebags – they don’t wear them with a suit, and they don’t take them off indoors – but I wouldn’t make a generalization about being anti-hat because I’d rather feel my ears in the winter.
I don’t trust men who wear scarves.
i live in lafayette, louisiana it barely gets before 60
[Caveat - Matt may be an IT guy, in which case he's excused from ever having to have any sense of style or fashion, ever. In fact, in my book, IT guys should always and forevermore be totally bereft of even making an attempt at style, because they always seem to fuck it up somehow and their effort ruins for the rest of us whatever it is they were trying to pull off.]
The fleece is a hearty crapper. End of story. Warm, soft, light, great. Fleece is almost always a huge raging NO! unless we’re talking about fleece from this joint, on she who models it: http://shop.trashy.com/index.php?s=product&set_id=5815
What bothers me more is that, like far too many people on the east coast to this day, poor Matt appears to still be trying to wear a goatee.
Ahh, the goatee. Everyone with a reasonably dense beard loved it at one time. It is the ultimate in laissez-faire facial hair, cutting down your shaving time by 2/3rds, avoiding that annoying mouth, nose, and chin region. It is the lazy man’s ticket to presentability, offering an all-too-easily-won smooth cheek which propriety demands, but with the barest modicum of effort.
I do not fault it for a lack of efficiency and expediency or even grace. I do not fault it for making many fellows appear considerably more rugged and bar-fightable, (always a good look). However, it was far too ubiquitous in the last ten years. Everyone from C. Thomas Howell to Charlie Sheen to Ben Affleck to LeVar Burton to Kid Rock, to your dad has had it. [ just like your mom! - ed.]
Many have said this already, but the goatee is very, very overdue for a thorough drumming out of acceptable fashion, it has burned out it’s welcome and it is holding us back, gents. Ditch it, for at least ten more years and preferably thirty.
Unless you also have the following attributes:
- light brown or blond hair
- a full-length black leather duster
- some kind of all-black leather sneaker (often found with velcro closures)
- ugly glasses
- an Adult Swim or Sandman tee shirt
- a scrotum-sized leather bag of multi-sided dice (perhaps at home, but just as likely on your person)
Then, of course, your goatee works perfectly with the rest of the ensemble and you needn’t change a thing. The woman who chooses to bed down with you likes your goatee, and your long ragged ponytail too. She enjoys Ren Faires, and has one chin and two cats too many, but you’re her man, and as such, you’re the only one entitled to rock the goatee nowadays.
It’s all about the location. The fleece vest is Boulder Colorado casual. You would fit right in with your hiking boots and jeans or cargo shorts.
Now, if I was in Boston or NYC it is crapper for sure.