Style Enlightenment
The road to nirvana is paved with simplicity
By: Matthew Wong
Men who invest in style
understand that clothing can
give you a boost. We all thought
it had to be shoes when Jordan
took flight from the free throw
line. The right outfit can literally
lift you to new heights, making
tasks such as jumping fifteen
feet through the air to dunk a
basketball feel achievable.
For men whose style mantra
leans more towards Michael
Scott than Don Draper, getting
dressed can feel like trying to
figure out a 3000 piece jigsaw
your ex gave you last Christmas.
Does this shirt match my pants?
What tie goes with this shirt?
Why did anybody think a jigsaw
was a great gift?
From the outside looking in,
these two groups of men might
seem further apart than Repub-
licans and Democrats. No matter
which camp you belong to, is
there a singular solution to mak-
ing your mornings suck less?
Yes: a style uniform.
Mornings are, by nature, challenging. After grudgingly pulling ourselves out of bed
we open up our closets to tackle our first (world) problem of the day: What are we
going to wear?
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The word "uniform" is met
with a less than enthusiastic
approval ratings calling to mind
the starchy, coordinated outfits
that may have characterized our
elementary school years. More
recently it calls to mind mock
turtlenecks, dad jeans, New Bal-
ance's, and grey t-shirts.
There is nothing wrong with
wearing the same thing every
day, as many powerful people
do (think Zuckerberg). The key
is to make sure your uniform is
done correctly. Command it so
that it tells the story you want it
to. When executed correctly, you
will look as strong as Steve Job’s
vision. From an immaculately tai-
lored navy suit with crisp white
sneakers, or going triple-black
with a bomber, shirt, and jeans,
today's "uniform" can involve a
modern aesthetic.
Fashion's MVP’s are consis-
tently street-styled, donning ex-
pensive designer duds and styl-
ing them in a way that warrants
repeated fire emoji comments on
Instagram. While these clothes
might equate to thousands of
likes, looking perfect in front of
an expensive DSLR lens is rarely
(IF EVER) translatable into ev-
eryday style.
Unwavering dedication to
consistency is an undervalued
accessory in menswear. When
you have it, hold on to it. When
you don’t, search for it. Develop-
ing a rock-solid set of clothing to
wear day-in and day-out is the
equivalent of putting your best
foot forward on a daily basis.
A wardrobe stocked full
of flash-in-the-pan menswear
trends fizzles out rather quickly.
Firmly defining a style uni-
form streamlines everything. It
removes the clutter from your
wardrobe. It leaves the drama
and uncertainty and dressing
behind.
Buying into a uniform also
allows you to double down on
quality. Paycheques dedicated to
fast-fashion replicas are a thing
of the past. Investing in high-end
brands with exceptional crafts-
manship makes your accountant
happy when you explain those
Common Project sneakers are
worn on a daily basis. A minimal
wardrobe stocked only with the
good stuff? Yes, it’s possible.
For those looking to slowly
dip a toe into the sartorial pond,
the style uniform is your gate-
way into the world of menswear.
Mastered the minimalist look of a
white t-shirt with black jeans? It's
time to conquer suits and sneak-
ers next. Being more sartorially
inclined does not need to be as
compli