Matching

Boyz II Men

This week we're gonna talk about the optics of continuing to listen to R. Kelly. Just kidding, we're gonna talk about matching in fashion. I want to highlight two types of matching. Matching colors as an individual and matching outfits with other people. I went out recently and put together some solid fits and it made me think about matching as a concept, so I wanted to get on here and talk about it.

Matching the colors in an outfit can go long way. Attention to detail can make or break a look depending on what you're going for. I'm more of a minimalist when I dress so I don't like to use too many colors, and I try to avoid using colors that will draw attention. Colors like lime green, hot pink, or anything neon are huge no-gos for me. I still like to look good and have a statement piece, but I don't need that piece to steal the show with its vibrancy. My statement pieces tend to be my pants. I have a pair of "milk pants" from Basketcase Gallery that I simply adore. They're only brown and white, but the structure and design of the pants is enough for me. Even though I love minimalism, it's important not to be boring with the colors in your fit. I am a strong believer in the idea that you shouldn't wear all one color unless it's all black. But you have people like Jerry Lorenzo who've started a trend? Sure, why not. A trend in wearing one solid color with his clothing collection "Essentials", under the Fear of God line.

Essentials makes full body earth tone sweatpant suits that're all one color from head to toe. They have gained a lot of popularity and are seen as luxurious to many. In my opinion it's kinda crazy that people are leaving the house in all sweatpants cotton and calling it a flex. It's a forced cozy look. There's a mental barricade I have in understanding why someone would want to wear the same color from head to toe in a sweatpants suit, but I guess I'm just not the audience. This is the pretends to be on their phone in public spaces look. People who wear this fit always match it with sunglasses.

There he goes. But in all seriousness, there are a lot of things wrong with this photo that I won't point out because I don't want to make fun of this man. I've moved past my roasting things phase in blogging, so we'll only critique what's relevant. With that in mind, I will try to make my point without making fun of the man above. The reason I don't like the matching of one color in a fit is because it feels like oversaturation. Ironically, even if a fit's all one color (but black), it would be hard for me not to see it as maximalism. Our friend in the picture above is literally just wearing orange in a sweatpants combo, yet he's still doing the most. Structurally there aren't any dimensions at all. It's just one color and standard double jersey material from top to bottom. I don't understand why he's standing like that. He's just wearing Nike basketball sneakers and a FULL BODY ORANGE SWEATPANTS OUTFIT. I really don't get why he's standing like he's killin em with this fit. Where is he going?? Anyway, wearing all one color depending on the execution can also come off as lazy. Sadly, again I have to refer to the fashion savant above because his outfit is so bare that all you can do is talk about the color. Not only did he rely too much on the color, but he also seemingly wore it to personify... a color. Which isn't great. When you wear a solid color top to bottom and the fit lacks dimensions, it really feels like you're just wanting to be a color for a day. And honestly too much of one color can be over stimulating (to me) and can take away from the overall idea of an outfit. Even if the pieces you buy are meant to be worn together, I think they can go a long way and be used with more versatility if you separate them. The same is true for patterned pieces as well, not just solid colors.

This is a perfect example of how to go about styling a simple pattern. The fit I put together this weekend was directly inspired by this fit. I bought those pants back in October 2022 and they immediately became one of my favorite jawns. What's nice about the fit is that it stands out, but it isn't busy partially because the only colors represented are black and white. What would ruin this fit is if he had a shirt to match the pants. Having a two tone look throughout the fit would be too much. It would take a solid idea and turn it into gimmick. Gimmick might be a heavy description, but I certainly don't think it would be as clean of a look. I think a statement piece can make an outfit great if you build around it. The minute you try to make the entire outfit a statement with every item is when you lose me. Let's say you have a floral print button-up and some pants to match. How could you put both on and not feel like you look off? In my mind it makes more sense to separate them if you enjoy the pattern and use it with other stuff you own. That way you have a shirt and pants you can match with other things in your wardrobe. Matching colors and patterns as an individual has it's pitfalls, but ultimately there isn't any wrongdoing. At worst you'll be over confident with a fit that isn't cohesive; no biggie. However, what we're getting into next isn't so innocent. It isn't a victimless crime, it's undeniably more intentional, and it fundamentally exists as a statement. We're going to talk about couples matching their outfits.

Eh yeah... the more I think about it, the more I realize I can't approach this topic without joking the entire time. This photo is too much. So, with that said I'm going to end this week's blog. If you match with your partner to this degree, I just want to let you know that you aren't more in love with each other just because you bought the same clothes. Also, your codependency is showing. Ok have a great rest of your week.