The difference between style and a simple look.?

When men begin to improve their clothing style and understand the value for money of clothing, many quickly hit a first plateau: the plateau of ease .

If you feel like you’re stalling a bit and treading water in the search for the style that really suits you, then this article should speak to you…

Because I’m going to explain to you why focusing only on the quality/price ratio is a mistake, and why copying the best looks does not give lohzoks… but disguises.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN STYLE AND A SIMPLE LOOK

No real styling errors but simply a feeling of disharmony: a style that “rings false”.

On the left, a coherent outfit that conveys the personality of the person since it is not a “look”, but a real style built on years. On the right, a pretty panoply of beautiful, well-chosen clothes, all clean, and no fault of taste… However, a feeling of dissonance emerges: “it rings false”.

WHY DOES IT WORK LESS WELL?

So many small details and codes imperceptible to the eye of the beginner , which make it a big WIN on the left, and a half-FAIL on the right.

patina and rendering of clothes;

general gait and posture , habit of dressing in a single style which may be rich, varied, but consistent;

compatibility between the cuts and the silhouette (way of marking the height of the waist for example);

small personalization elements VS closed collar lacking spontaneity.

kanye west fashion men

But it can happen to anyone …

WHAT COULD THIS YOUNG MAN HAVE DONE BETTER?

More concretely, the outfit on the right displays neutral colors and well-cut clothes.

But it lacks a bit of warmth and personality if compared to the outfit on the left.

the shirt closed to the top gives a too artificial side,

the hat unsuitable for the face, completely sunken on the skull (and even too big) is a choice that I find awkward,

the outfit relies too much on all the current fashion gimmicks: hemlines, brand new satchel, super clean pocket.

In short, he thought he was at Pitti, when he was just going to work or to his university.

These are all micro-elements that separate the real look from the disguise , and that can only be acquired in one way: with time and testing.

In a word, efforts; at the risk of getting stuck on…

THE VILE PLATEAU OF EASE

But how do we fall into theplateausign ?

When we follow you over the comments of the blog or the forum, we often have this kind of progression:

INITIALLY, YOU WANT TO IMPROVE YOUR IMAGE, LIKE EVERYONE ELSE… BUT YOU DON’T KNOW WHERE TO LOOK.

You buy magazines, you sign up for the most visible commercial services, and you come across the high-margin brands. They are the least able to offer you value for money, because a large part of the quality budget goes to advertising or to distributors.

It’s a classic path for most of our readers, before they come across BonneGueule.

Result: big disappointment, and confirmed lack of interest in style.

The typical look of the great beginner who has not yet done anything to take charge of his image (credits: Guide de l’Homme Stylé… Even Badly Shaved, Pyramyd, Chloé editions

The typical look of the great beginner who hasn’t yet done anything to take charge of his image (credits: Chloé Gassian for the Guide de l’Homme Stylé… Even Badly Shaved, Pyramyd editions).

BUT WITH CURIOSITY, FUN, AND AN OBJECTIVE LOOK, THE INTEREST RETURNS AND YOU STILL IMPROVE YOUR STYLE A LITTLE.

Then you have a stronger foundation.

It’s time to buy the first good basics, the first good experiences.

Usually, by this stage, you know how to choose the right size clothes . However, you stay in very neutral colors (blue, gray, white) and in very simple pieces . There is no risk in terms of fit or design. Your outfits are very sober, almost too much.

Without realizing it, you may still be composing outfits that include your “before” clothes, which can make for very slightly wobbly outfits . Beautiful jeans, a beautiful cardigan with a shawl collar, but worn with an old printed T-shirt, for example.

You want to go further, and you want to know more!

This is also the time when you discover us, as well as other specialist media, such as  Parisian Gentleman  or books like Dressing The Man .

AND THERE, YOU ARRIVE ON A RATHER FRUSTRATING PLATEAU … YOU NO LONGER PROGRESS AS QUICKLY, OR EVEN AT ALL, EVEN WITH GOOD WILL…

It is because you have arrived on the plateau of ease .

so that was it

Ahh, so that was it!

Yes, many thought it was enough to follow an easy and simple recipe. They then only take into account the quality/price ratio and copy the looks they like.

We end up with something that looks like this:

The typical look that corresponds to the ease board: good pieces, but a look that lacks flavor ().

The typical look of the tray of ease : good reassuring pieces, but an outfit that lacks flavor and stagnates. (credits: Chloé Gassian for the Stylish Man’s Guide… Even Badly Shaved, Pyramyd editions).

Nothing serious, just something very soporific… It’s always less problematic than falling into this type of disguise :