‘Ugly’ fashion only works if you’re attractive

[WizardinTraining]

I know it’s subjective and there’s no right or wrong and we should all be comfy with ourselves etc but am I the only one that thinks the current ugly/wacky/comfy type fashions that all the Instagrammers are wearing only work because most of them are slim and attractive.

I love all the bright jumpers, clashing patterns, baggy jeans and especially the bold trainers but being short, not very slim and booby I’d look like a Playschool presenter at best and an oversized child at worst <sigh>

DS wears this sort of thing, with added goth elements, he's actually a fashion design student at art school but is built more like a rugby player than an aesthete! I just pick one element to complement him on and ignore the overall effect, I'm going he develops some taste as he studies the greats. It doesn't seem to put the girls off!
I think if you're not a young model type is safer to choose one element to go to town on and keep the rest toned down eg. One colour on the body + mad trainers, plain coat + wacky bag.

Totally agree with you OP!!!

Yes that's true, OP.

I agree but I feel like MN S&B posters don't seem to understand that that's exactly the appeal of it to those that wear it. It's like a sort of humble bragging. People always say 'even the model would look better wearing something else!' - yes, but that's the point, she would but she's showing off that she doesn't have to show off to look hot. See also: big, shapeless dresses on a slim tall woman: yes, she could 'show off her figure more' but she's demonstrating that she's not the sort of woman who needs to worry about what's flattering.

True.

I'm amazed by the unflattering clothes that the youth wear. Although they are not all slim, they will still wear high waisted jeans that make their bums and bellies look larger. I actually think it's sort of an empowering thing. Prefer it to the 90's and 00's when there was so much pressure to be underweight.

I agree with the op but being 45 the mindset of dressing to please is very hard to shake. I find it hard but I'm working on not dressing just to look slim at attractive. A lovely friend explained serstonin dressing recently and it was quite a revelation to me.

Agree. Also, some retro or vintage looks, and some large bright florals.

Agree - all that baggy Lagenlook style stuff only looks good if you are tall and willowy. Everyone else looks like a sack of potatoes.

@CryptoFascist what's serstonin?

And is your username a nod to red dwarf?!

True and yes I agree it's basically a humblebrag... Hey look I don't even need to wear something flattering and I still look hot.

But you can still wear stuff just because you like it.

I think overall its youth rather than how attractive they are

Unfortunately Ive worked this out as Im now old and cant pull off quirky anymore

Just makes me look like Ive been released from an institution.

It all depends on your perspective of attractive OP.

See also: big, shapeless dresses on a slim tall woman: yes, she could 'show off her figure more' but she's demonstrating that she's not the sort of woman who needs to worry about what's flattering

Yes exactly this - you see it when people post pictures for advice too. It feels quite old fashioned to me but I work with a lot of young people! I love the way they aren’t dressing with the main aim being “flattering”.

Yes there’s a blogger I follow who posted about this specifically, she says she’s no longer choosing clothes that are ‘flattering’ because it’s basically dressing for the male gaze which I completely agree with but she is slim and pretty so carrying it off feels much easier.

And I guess by ‘attractive’ I do often mean slim mostly because I’m not 😳 But also traditionally attractive as well.

I agree. Most current fashion would make me look dreadful.

Agree and I think it depends on the situation as well as the attractiveness of the person. A supermodel coming out of a fashion show won't look out of place wearing something that would look totally ridiculous on a normal person going about their daily life, regardless of how good looking they are.

Do you know anyone in real life who is wearing this look? There’s no one around here! Young people and students I see are still in ordinary loose jeans and trainers or tight leggings and sports gear.

Anythjng can misfire if you don’t think it through. I was walking along behind someone this afternoon. Baggy cargo jeans which would have been fine if she’d not had some kind of Ugg ankle boots underneath. The boots were sort of filling the leg inside and acting like a most unnatural internal cuff.

Sadly it's true, and you can add "young" to your list in many cases too.

True

I would add to the OP's post - and thin!

Agree, especially those big, plastic, colourful glasses. They think they look edgy when they actually look like Timmy Mallet.

100% true.