Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To tell DP that his clothes look stupid?

34 replies

Cavvie · 10/09/2011 09:11

When I first met DP he wore scruffy, oversized clothes that just looked awful. He had a job interview once and was going to go dressed in ancient scruffy, 3 sizes too big, jeans with a horrible old grey t-shirt with dragons on the front Hmm I got him kitted out properly and he got the job. Since then he started making more of an effort, chucked out his old big clothes and bought nice, modern stuff that fit him properly. I never wanted him to dress like a superstar, just to dress DECENT.

Anyway he seems to be going back to the way he used to be. A number of times now he's come to pick me up in jeans with a hole in the knee and now he's got this obsession with buying old jumpers off ebay or from car boot sales for £1 which are blatantly years old, ill fitting and scruffy. At first he said these jumpers were just for the in the house but he's wearing them constantly. We went out for coffee a few days ago and he wore this old jumper that was bitty to hell, right up his back from where it had obviously gone out of shape years ago and just looked silly.

I'm embarrassed to go out with him like this. Do I tell him or just reconsider the relationship entirely rather than trying to change someone who obviously doesn't want to change?

OP posts:
Jojay · 10/09/2011 11:29

Good God, I'd be fuming if DH threw away my clothes that he didn't like.

Some of you lot are def BU!

WhoseGotMyEyebrows · 10/09/2011 11:36

Don't throw away his clothes, that would be disrespectful and crossing boundaries and acting like his mum etc.

It sounds to me that this is just his style. I've been to art college so am used to people who have their own style and really dragon t-shirts and jeans with a hole in the knee (shock horror) aren't a big deal.

Most artists and people I know find the clothes that other people wear . . . think mens clothes from Next, to be . . . well not sure what the word is. Boring, unadventurous, the same as every other fecker out there, lacking in individuality . . .

KurriKurri · 10/09/2011 12:21

I come from a family where if a jumper had holes in it, you just wore another jumper, with holes in different places, underneath.

If you grow up thinking clothes are functional items for the purposes of covering your body and keeping you warm, its hard to change. I have changed, and am more respectable these days, but I still deep down think new clothes are a bit of a waste of money. (underwear excepted)

I think you can tackle the personal hygiene aspect, head on, - buy some nice shower gel, and offer to have a shower with him.

Clothes - you've got to decide what's important, the man, or his dress sense.

Cavvie · 10/09/2011 12:28

No fun though is it, having tell your OH when to shower Sad I have two kids already, I don't need another one.

And this certainly isn't a "style" he's adopted. He literally just wears anything, whether it actually fits properly/has holes/stains etc or not.

OP posts:
notlettingthefearshow · 10/09/2011 12:29

My DH is similar - he can't stay away from charity shops - he doesn't look scruffy as such but some are old/ill fitting/unflattering colours. He is generally not as smart as I'd like, but always dresses nice when we go out. I just give my opinion when asked and give him lots of compliments when he looks good. Apart from that I figure it's up to him.

I think you need to pick your battles and accept you will never change that aspect of him completely. You should be able to accept that.

The hygiene thing would bother me a lot, though I' not sure how to address that.

Just beware though - once you start talking about appearance you may find out you're not the vision you thought you were!

sjuperwolef · 10/09/2011 12:30

i buy dps clothes - he can have an , erm, odd taste in them at times - i just gently remind him that he is a ver good looking man and wearing something like that isnt really appropriate and buy him nice stuff when he isnt with me Grin

only thing he is allowed to buy himself are jeans because im rubbish at getting the right fit for some reason!

QuickLookBusy · 10/09/2011 12:39

My DH has terrible taste in clothes IMO.

On the whole I let him wear what he likes but make him take back very loud shirts, because I wear what I like and feel comfortable in.

However, if he was wearing old smelly clothes and he didn't shower I would not put up with that at all.

PattySimcox · 10/09/2011 12:45

Those of you who feel that it is wrong to change someones "look" / influence their choice of clothes / "lose" items in the wash, can you possibly say that I was in the wrong for binning all of DHs Yfronts when I first clapped eyes on them

For that reason alone DH is very fortunate that I ever married him

WhoseGotMyEyebrows · 10/09/2011 14:40

Does he get smelly then OP?

New posts on this thread. Refresh page