young folks and vintage clothing.

[countryclubjoe]

Hi All
It has come to my attention just recently that young folks, by young I will say in there thirties,early fourties.
Theses young folks while they appreciate a vintage fedora or a great pair of spectotar shoes or winged tiped boots. Admit to me that the vintage look simply makes them look OLDER. The young folks I come across either at work or at training classes, seem to want that macho look, tight jeans a baseball shirt with short sleeves and sneekers. Some have gone as far to say that they havent worn a tie since high school.
So one reason vintage clothing is not catching on with the 30,40 age group IT MAKES THEM LOOK OLDER.
Go figure.
Best regards
CCJOE

 

[AtomicEraTom]

I think we covered this in a thread somewhere, but it is a problem. I'm 21 and dress in vintage, or something of a traditional style; always a collared shirt, nice pants of some sort, etc. I also almost always wear a fedora and my hair is always neatly groomed with pomade. On average, I get guessed 10, maybe 15 years older than I really am. Not wild on that, at all. One time, a guy thought my dad and I were brothers, he's 52!

 

[Tomasso]

by young I will say in there thirties,early fourties.

That's the age where many folks begin the fight to 'retain' their youth (young clothing, surgery, etc...)so they would be loath to wear anything with even a hint of Grampa. Most will give up the fight by their fifties.......

 

[scottyrocks]

I wear long sleeved collared shirts, with a short sleeve henley underneath almost exclusively. I never wear a t-shirt with a cute saying, picture, or sports team on it. I haven't worn blue jeans outside of the house in a couple of years or so.

Basically, I feel that I no longer want to dress as a child anymore, despite just about everyone around me doing so. If that makes me look older, then I'll look older and I'm very happy about it.

 

[herringbonekid]

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?41532-Does-vintage-make-you-look....-

 

[Baron Kurtz]

I have exactly the opposite issue. Suits, fedoras etc. make me look YOUNGER. At 33, I still get asked for identification when buying alcohol. I typically get my age guessed in the early 20s. In full vintage "business" get-up, I look like I'm wearing dad's clothes, and the age guesses go down.

By contrast when I fail to shave, grow my hair out, wear workwear, and flat caps, I look perceptibly older.

bk

 

[m0nk]

Personally, I don't care if I look older based on what I wear, but I can say that I look older based on my greying hair and balding spot... not to mention wrinkles around the ol' eyes and what not. In fact, you might think that I look younger wearing a hat because much of this is covered up, whether by brim shading over the eyes, or the greyness hidden on the head. If I were not to shave, I would definitely look older as almost all of my facial hair is stark white.

 

[resortes805]

Only on the Fedora Lounge would 30 and 40 year olds be considered young!

 

[Paul Roerich]

Only on the Fedora Lounge would 30 and 40 year olds be considered young!

It's the over-40 pot belly and goatee (to hide the double chin) forum?

 

[LizzieMaine]

30 to 40 used to be considered "the prime of life," and those over 40 were respected elders. Twenty-somethings were callow whippersnappers in Harold Teen pants who should fetch the coffee and donuts for their betters, and speak when spoken to.

 

[Miss Sis]

Yes, it tends to make me look older, and.....? So what? [huh]

So many people fail to realise that pre-WW2 people WANTED to be older rather than younger. They equalled that with glamour and respect.

 

[Canadian]

I have always thought dressing like one's grandfather was a good thing. To the day he died, my mother's father wore suspenders, dress slacks, a collared shirt and when he wanted to dress up, he wore a sweater. Not the most formal guy, but he was a guy who wore bespoke his entire working life (until semi-retirement when he worked because he promised various people that they would receive bespoke fur coats or leather work and that they would be made by Bakers Fine Furs, not some farm in China) and when he retired at 80 and moved to my hometown, he and I used to shop together. Being my grandfather, he kept trying to buy me stuff, but I would often pick out things for him, and buy them for him.

He preferred golf shirts by Arnold Palmer, because they had a pocket on the chest for his glasses and room for a cigar. He never wore jeans and was pleased that every time I visited him in the home (his last few months were in an old aged home which was rather posh) I wore a tie. He thought it was good for a young man to wear a tie every day.

Vintage? He had never got past the 1950s. He was a furrier by trade and most Christmases, I got a beaver fur hat, like the RCMP (or Red Army) wear. How many 12yo boys wear fur caps anymore. I remember dressing him for a friend's wedding. He had bought the young couple (the bride was the daughter of a very good friend) a nice microwave. He showed up for the wedding, and was shocked that (A) everybody was in jeans and a tee shirt and (B) the couple had been living together and although they were glad to get a microwave, they already had set up a household. I remember him coming back, totally dejected that the sports coat, tie and slacks I had selected as appropriate for a gentleman of leisure pointed out that he was actually an old man, bereft of an understanding of the times.

I learned a great deal about how to dress from him. Shirts came from Sears or cousin Ron's clothing store, not Walmart. Ties were tied, securely around the neck with a proper not. Shoes were made from leather, not rubber. I got my first pair of Florsheims passed down from him. Long underwear was never to be seen, but worn whenever it was cold. He was the kind of fellow who would put on a sweater before turning up the furnace.

At 28, I have definitely learned from people older than I. But it is absolutely essential to remember that to him and people like him, it wasn't vintage, it was "style".

Tom

 

[splintercellsz]

Then at 18, I am a baby o' the bunch!!

I prefer vintage over modern, as it seems more comfortable. Do I look older, to me & my gal, yes, I look like a man, and not a school boy. But other than that, I have not had anyone try to guess my age. Maybe in due time...

 

[sheeplady]

I don't think people think I look older. By the looks I get from strangers, I think they just think I'm odd.

That's totally ok though.

 

[Two Types]

When I was a teenager (many years ago) I used to wear old suits. Some of the people at school used to laugh and say it made me look like an old man. I didn't care: dressing in a suit made it much easier for a 14 year old to get served in the pub.

 

[Paul Roerich]

...dressing in a suit made it much easier for a 14 year old to get served in the pub.

Yes!

 

[AtomicEraTom]

I guess its' not just me that gets guessed for older. Frequently my car does, too lol

Almost once a week it happens, in fact it did last night in the drive-thru. The lady asked me "What is this? A 1970-something?" I told her my car was a 1990 and she thought I was pulling her leg. I said nope, it's the same age as me. She didn't believe I was of such a recent vintage, either lol

 

[W-D Forties]

When I was a teenager (many years ago) I used to wear old suits. Some of the people at school used to laugh and say it made me look like an old man. I didn't care: dressing in a suit made it much easier for a 14 year old to get served in the pub.

All the lads at school did that! Did you grow a bum-fluff 'tache too?