British style, or lack of it

[Sarcelle]

I haven’t been abroad for a while (annoyed with the whole palaver of flying and just been holidaying in UK.)

Recently went to Mallorca and spent a day in Palma. What struck me is that compared to a lot of Europeans, with exceptions, we dressed so badly compared to them. And we are less fit. Since I got back I have been really noticing, it’s like we don’t care, yet in the main we have a lot of the same shops as them.

This is an observation for both men and women and when I say British I mean every age and demographic that makes up modern Britain. We seem to wear a lot of easy clothes - sportswear, stretchy stuff. In Palma they were wearing great shirts, dresses, fitted trousers, great accessories. I was sitting next to a Spanish guy at lunch, plain blue shirt, well cut trousers, clutching a book - he just seemed to exude style in an effortless way.

I know there are exceptions but it just strikes me that the average British person just does not dress that stylishly. I include myself in that btw. Sometimes I do dress well, but never with the same casual elan, and it always gets a comment along the lines of - ooh, you look smart, where are you going, even if what I am wearing is very simple. Like I S this be doing something extraordinary to warrent dressing a bit more smartly.

We buy a lot of clothes in UK but perhaps that is the problem. We buy a lot of cheap clothes and don’t accessorise well. I don’t think money or lack of it is the reason. Lack of will and perhaps a bit of self-respect?

I am sure I am going to get flamed for this post but what do you think?

I was in London in December, and I thought everyone looked very well dressed. Outside of London, however, I don't think people looked exceptionally good or exceptionally bad. And I think that is how it is in most countries.

I'm Australian. If you spend time in Sydney and Melbourne, you will think that everyone in Australia is well dressed, that everyone is svelte and that everyone has a lot of money. But if you venture beyond the confines of those bubbles, you'll see that that simply isn't the case.

It is like this everywhere I have been - France, Italy etc. are no exception.

If you check the "how to look expensive" long running threads (sadly seem to have died a death over the summer) you'll see that the main conclusion we came to was that as soon as the sun comes out, many Brits seem to go for the "show as much skin as possible" rule. The spaghetti strap, the ill-fitting shorts , the birkenstocks over white feet, the cold shoulder tops, and the wearing a size 12 when really you're an ample 14. And the Maria Von Trapp curtains school of pattern and colour.

After following the threads, I must admit on holiday this summer it did become easier to spot the Brit.

Although, the images you describe of people in Palma were probably largely due to them working, whereas the majority of Brits weren't, I guess. I don't wear my work clothes when I'm on holiday and I doubt they do either.

I do think as well, there is a tendency to buy 10 cheap tops from Primark instead of one more luxurious one from a higher end shop. Don't get me wrong, I have at least 15 Primark basic white £2 t shirts, but they are what they are and won't last for long. Under a v-neck jumper, or in the house, fine. For work, nope.

I'm sitting in a coffee shop in the UK at the moment. I don't see any sports wear, leisure wear, stretched out t-shirts or badly fitting leggings. 90% of the people are in jeans and good quality t-shirt or jumper. So no, I don't really agree OP

RedDwarves, that is true. When I or my friends from here in Wales, visit London we always feel shabby immediately, esp, our shoes.

Remember once in Paris being gobsmacked by how good some of the women looked. I mean the effort!

In our local town centre I'd say way too much sports wear being worn by people who clearly don't plan on doing any sport!!

There’s nothing wrong with my self respect, thank you very much.

My life isn’t lived to please you, or any other random.

The whole concept of dressing to impress others is odd. Buying showy clothes, shoes and ‘accessories’ to dress yourself like some ‘show piece’ there for others enjoyment & approval...it’s odd. As it caring that an audience looked ‘stylish’ or not.

I’m clean, I’m tidy, I’m not showing my underware through my clothes. I wear shorts in the summer because it’s hot, I don’t care that my legs aren’t perfect.

I’m a person, going about their daily life, not some clothes horse to please you or anyone else. If you don’t like it...tough.

tell you what though Annie, while I agree with what you are saying, the feeling of wearing well fitting smart clothes is fantastic, it gives you amazing confidence, knowing that you look good. And that is for you, not anyone else.

I have got this Paul Smith shirt that kind of hugs me when I wear it. I know I look great, and feel great too...

Oh please. This is not about you @AnnieAnonimoose and your self esteem. It is not about dressing to please others or looking like a showpiece - it is a perception, which many seem to agree with, that we as a nation are not as effortlessly stylish in the same way that some of our European neighbours.

It's not derailing the thread to point out that on a global scale, expensive well fitting clothes are a luxury afforded to the well off, a cleaner from Almachar might go on holiday to London, sit in a cafe near Sloane Square and marvel at how well dressed Londoners are. You're comparing apples with Big Mac meals.

I live in South Germany and the people here are incredibly stylish, especially the men. Winter fashion in particular seems to be great, men and women (even children!) Have really mastered the scarf. They look great. Really quite classic.
Unfortunately my clothes stand me out immediately as being English, as my neighbour told me! Brighter colours and prints.

Outside of the workplace I think British style is a little too casual. Jeans, leggings, vest tops, hoodies, trainers and tracksuits as apposed to shirts, chinos and blazers. There's nothing inheritantly wrong with jeans, leggings or hoodies but I think they are too often worn all together which just isn't stylish.

Yes, I am sure that everyone I saw in Palma who I thought dressed with style were all visiting millionaires rather than bank clerks or waitresses.

The people in our small hotel in Palma were 95% European.
And looked fantastic in casual wear. Not workwear.

Whatamisupposedtobedoing makes a good point. My family live in Germany. In the city centre you see some beautifully dressed people . Family live in a suburb 45 mins out of the centre. It’s an ageing population there and not a very flash area and it’s mainly just practical weather appropriate stuff you see people wearing. Totally uninspiring as you’d see in many suburbs across Europe and beyond I guess. Same in the uk.

I agree with sitranced I spend a lot of time in France and don't see as many mums in the playground there in a hoody, and it's Brittany so similar weather to the UK south coast.

I think Brits on holiday do tend to show more skin, and wear synthetic fabrics which aren't as cool as cotton/linen.

Oh alright I give up. There is no link whatsoever between being in the centre of a naice, relatively posh city centre rather than at one of your minimum wage jobs, and being able to look stylish in a £200+ Paul Smith shirt. If you went to a Spanish soft play the mothers would still look immaculate at 10am on a wet Wednesday. Style has nothing whatsoever to do with economics and economic snobbery.

Maybe they don't pay a ridiculous amount on rent/mortgage like we do in the UK and have a lot more disposable cash?

Maybe you only visited the nicer parts of Palma and perhaps a mile down the road they're all dressed in badly fitting polyester that they've bought from the '1 euro stall' at the Tuesday market?

Out of interest, how did you know the nationality of everyone you saw?

I disagree. I think British people look stylish and interesting and Europeans look classy but also bland and boring. I read the expensive threads and was struck by how bored I would be wearing 3/4 camel trousers and a 'crisp white shirt' all summer.

This is a stereotypical post of course, I have seen scruffy people in britian and every country I have visited too.

I 100% agree Plsydonut. I think that continental style that op is describing can be very bland and uniformy. I think lots of British women have more flair and imagination. Certainly than the French. I have no idea where their reputation for style comes from. Must of them dress so boringly.

We definitely have a culture here in Britain of buying fast, cheap fashion rather than buying less, but better quality clothes. I'm not necessarily talking about spending a fortune on very expensive, luxury clothes either. This doesn't mean everyone in the UK dresses badly, or that all Europeans dress well. It's a generalisation.

Oh please. This is not about you @AnnieAnonimoose and your self esteem. It is not about dressing to please others or looking like a showpiece - it is a perception, which many seem to agree with, that we as a nation are not as effortlessly stylish in the same way that some of our European neighbours

Don’t ‘Oh please’ me.

YOU made it about me and every other person in the UK not dressing to your new found standard.

I didn’t mention self esteem.

You said Lack of will and self respect

I said there’s nothing wrong with my self respect.

You are slating everyone who doesn’t ‘dress to impress’ so yes, this IS about me and everyone else who dresses to be comfortable/please themselves and not people like you.

Of course it’s dressing to impress. It might LOOK effortless, but it’s not. A huge amount of effort & expense goes into ‘looking effortlessly stylish’. Of course it’s dressing to impress

sitranced ‘a little too casual’...a little to casual for what exactly. Or to who?

No, I didn’t know the nationality of everybody I saw. I could with some degree of certainty pick out the British ones.

Economics do play a part but you can buy simple things rather than the gaudy or sloppy. Furry slider versus a plain ballerina.

Anybody can wear what they like but stylistically the British have lost their way. It was announced today we are the third in the obesity league table in Europe. And that probably has a lot to do with what vast numbers wear. Sports Direct will never go bust in this country. It is the go to for a lot of people in the UK for all their clothing needs, not for sports but for the stretchy fabrics and elasticated waistbands.

@AnnieAnonimoose - you are mixing up two different posters.