With everyone and your grandmother scouring high-end racks and budget bins, greedily snatching up every nautically inspired shred of cloth in town, the whole sailor stripes trend looks like it’s riding a precariously gossamer line between casual cool and taking a flaming nose-dive into the sea of wackness. You know, that hellish place where baggy, reflective raver pants and skintight, bedazzled t-shirts wallow in the perpetual filth of anti-style? Any hope for the preservation of the horizontal stripe’s integrity, I place in the hands of the stylish, discerning youth…
Outfit 1: Chunky horizontal stripes are graphic and eye-catching, adding preppy flair to light, summery attire. Distinguish yourself by choosing thicker stripes in more minimal proportions, employing the nautical theme as a funky accent rather than a played-out focal point. Elegant Topsiders pair organically with stripes, advancing subtle seafaring chic without drowning originality in the mire of over-the-top trendiness.
Outfit 2: This gent should get a full time gig representing blue on the style spectrum. His outfit, while comprised of classic elements like deck shoes, a seersucker blazer, a striped tee and tailored shorts, feels fresh and contemporary. The pairing of vertical and horizontal stripes in varying shades of blue adds depth and personality, and the jacket and pocket square refine what would otherwise be a very casual ensemble. Again, horizontal stripes are used as an surprising contrast rather than a primary piece, making this look more singular and much less lazy.
Outfit 1 was sourced from the fashionist, Outfit 2 was sourced from The Sartorialist.
This week’s Ladies Touch is written by Sarah Parniak, a freelance writer and style enthusiast.
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