for people who worry about their clothes...
 

I haunted this site during most of the late winter/early spring for a few new tips on travel. I was flabbergasted at the postings from Americans concerning how they might appear to others if they wore certain clothing. I’ve just gotten back from an extended visit to Canada-then England-then France-then England again-then home.<BR><BR>Rest assured all, if you’re a “good dresser” at home you’ll do fine, if not, don’t sweat it.<BR><BR>I had lunch with a French family that I was staying with in Chartres. There were 10 present, + me. I was the ONLY one not wearing blue jeans (including the women), and 5 of the adults were wearing white sneaks.<BR><BR>Jeans were prominent in every country I visited and in every city. Tennis shoes are fast becoming the shoe of choice for casual and every-day wear anywhere that I was.<BR><BR>I saw a fellow in Great Yarmouth with a “letter” jacket with the huge legend, “U.S.A.” he told me he liked the jacket but had never been to the States nor did he have any particular desire to go. I saw many American sports logo caps all over France and England.<BR><BR>GENTLEMEN always remove their hats upon entering any room or building. If you’re going to a fancy restaurant, bistro, theatre, whatever, use common sense and dress appropriately. Otherwise don’t waste your time worrying about it.<BR>

You're absolutely right. I was reading the postings and I ended up bringing one pair of Jeans and my husband brought two. I wish I brought more jeans. We never had any problems with what we were wearing. On the nights that we went to a fancy dinner we dressed appropriately but there is no need to be wearing black pants and shoes while waiting on a line to see the Louvre<BR>

"GENTLEMEN always remove their hats..."?<BR>What planet are you from? Not here in the States, buddy. That went out with holding a door for someone else, "please", and "thank you."

This is for people who dress nicely when at home, office or traveling: do not cast your pearls before swine, and likewise, don't waste fashion tips on those who wear jeans, soiled tennies and fannypacks. What they don't understand is that people judge you by how you dress. Doors open, upgrades happen for those who look like they will fit in with the other nice dressers. It is as simple as all that.

JustDontGetIt - I don't care about the people who judge me by what I wear, I don't want to go thru the doors that might open because of what I wear and I surely don't want any upgrades that would lower me to the depths I would have to sink in order to fit in with those other nice dressers you speak of.<BR><BR>Cast your pearls on someone else somewhere else. I hope our paths never cross!

Personally, I'd rather wear jeans (blue and black) and open doors on my own.

I asked on this site about black jeans for a medieval banquet in Ireland and got blasted for being an "ugly American". I took my black jeans but did not wear them to the banquet. I wore black slacks instead. But...many people there had jeans on! Also, last week I went to my dentist and had to smile because, yes, you guessed it, she had on black jeans!

Capo, thanks for the chuckle.<BR><BR>I've never worried about whether what I pack is appropriate but I *do* worry about how to fit a whole lotta clothes into a carryon (after 3 lost luggage incidents, that's the limit for me). Literally, it's like fitting a mountain into a molehill.

Peter and Capo you are just not well dressed men, that's all. Why would you have to sink to dress nicely? What is so hard about wearing spiffy looking clothes? The grunge look of the Pacific Northwest is out after you are 20 years old, unless you are a lumberjack on the job. Capo, dress up a little, I am sure your new girlfriend will appreciate it in the long run and change your underwear too.

Capo wants to be natural if that means three day old jeans and natural smelling underwear let him be. Just keep your arms down when you are opening those doors.

What do you remember about your trip a year or 2 later? Sightseeing? People you met? Food you ate? Hotels you stayed in? I doubt anybody remembers clothes they wore unless they did not feel comfortable. "Comfortable" is the key word. Why do we all go on vacation? Feel great, learn new things and... worry about your pants/dress if they fit in????? Come on, if you wear jeans on weekends why should you give them up for 3 weeks of what supposed to be enjoyment of travelling?

On my recent visit to Paris, the locals were wearing jeans, among other things. It wasn't black, black, black, as the fashionistas on this forum would have you think.

Well on trips to cities in Europe, I do remember what I wore. I remember looking as chic as I can in a black suit and eating in really nice restaurants. I remember feeling comfortable in nice hotels and nice shops, where I had good service. I remember turning heads because I took my nice clothes, nice comfortable clothes. I don't know what you people wear that is so uncomfortable during the day. Is a nice slack suit with nice stylish shoes so uncomfortable? Do you buy them 2 sizes too small or what? I don't get it.

Part of preparing for leisure travel is buying a new wardrobe. Pride in appearance isn't a sin as some would have you believe.

Faina, I must disagree about what is remembered! Hotels and meals may be long forgotten, but you and everyone else will remember the clothes you wore on your trip, for the next twenty or fifty years or a hundred, because there they are...in your photos! (Or maybe you don't take photos?) <BR><BR>Ever view photos from your youth or your parents'(assuming it's long past!)? The ones documenting the frumpy outfits and unfortunate hairdos for all history? <BR><BR>How much more unfortunate if this is a souvenir of a cherished travel experience with something exquisitely foreign in the background! Call me vain, I may deserve it, but when I'm a shriveled-up crone in a rocking chair, I'd prefer to have attractive images to jog my memory. <BR><BR>So I'm glad I brought some stylish, flattering (comfortable, wash-and-wear)outfits.

Hey Nan,<BR><BR>do you remember anything else about your trip other than how YOU looked? This may be the MOST vain post I have ever read.

I was answering a question about what I remember about what I wear. Do you want to read what I remember about the food, the wine, the art, the sculpture, the friends I made, etc? I remember too so vividly what I wore, because of the pictures. I am dressed nicely, is that so bad? I guess I have always taken pride in my looks.

Interestingly, I just returned from a vacation in Africa and the majority of tourists we saw were European. We were advised to wear colors that "blend in" with the flora so as not to distract the wildlife etc as well as not to wear white shoes. Though my husband and I did... the majority of European tourists we saw were wearing.. you guessed it.. brightly colored baseball caps, shorts, red and white cross trainers.. huge "belt packs" logo'd sweatshirts etc. etc. I noted that with extreme interest.

"Spiffy", Lea? With all due respect, I'm not sure I, or anyone else, should be getting fashion lectures from someone who uses the phrase "spiffy looking" clothes. :) <BR>

Sorry, Capo, I was "talking down" to you. Just a moment of lapse on my part.<BR>Wear what you want, my dear.

Lea, is it truly necessary for you to make personal attacks? You can wear what you want, and others that feel comfortable in jeans will wear what they want. However, I have to agree that more and more Europeans are wearing jeans and sneakers. There is absolutely nothing wrong with it. I doubt that any of us would choose to go into the Ritz with a pair of jeans on, however, I will tell you that if I appear at the Ritz in my jeans and I am seated, and my money is accepted, then shame on you for getting so hoity-toity. And it so happens, that I have checked into the Ritz with my jeans on. Great rooms, by the way. There is nothing better than having a spontaneous picnic sitting on the grass at the Tuilleries in my jeans. Can you do that in your fashionable black attire, in which you look like you are dressed up for the evening during the daytime, or better yet a funeral?

To Anonyimouse: Dear Mousy One, "is it necessary for you to make personal attacks?"

Guess what Lea? You're a tnuc. Read that backwards. Nowhere in your post did you say you were wearing black, so I don't see where you were personally attacked.

Now that's a personal attack if I ever have seen one! Wonder if Lea soiled her underwear? Nah, she probably wears Depends or panty liners.

I agree with the people who are comfortable and wear what they do at home while on vacation. What I have noticed after years on this board is that some of the people here tend to use a vacation to reinvent themselves. As a vacation and a new wardrobe will make their life or their vacation more enjoyable. Perhaps when people are happy with who they are inside , their wardrobe will be less important.

People who like to dress nicely at home probably like to dress well in Europe; this has nothing to do with their ego or lack thereof. If style weren't important, we'd all just wear sack cloths. The issue of what one CAN wear in Europe is ridiculous; you CAN wear just about anything you want; the point is, how do you want to look?

Some thoughts: if you don't worry about what other people think of your attire, then wear what you want. If people judge you by what you wear, that's their prerogative. You can't change people's attitudes, only how you deal with them. If you don't worry about what people think of your appearance, you can't be judgemental about theirs. I like to get dolled up (same category as "spiffy") so a hundred posts about "don't worry what people think" won't change me; neither will a hundred posts about "dress up so others will think better of you" change the mind of someone who honestly doesn't care.<BR><BR>I have exactly two uncomfortable things in my wardrobe - an evening gown with bone stays and a pair of pointy-toed red suede shoes with 5" gold stiletto heels. I suffer maybe once a year when I wear one or the other to a fete. Everything else is wearable for hours without discomfort - including business suits, tailored dresses and a couple of cocktail dresses. I've never found jeans to be particularly comfortable - too hot in the summer, they ride up when I'm sitting, they are completely gross when they get wet. So I'm always befuddled when posters equate looking dressed up with being uncomfortable. Agreed, ties for men are a form of torture (although I think they are snappy - see "spiffy" - and a man in a business suit can set my heart a-poundin'), and a man in full dress...oh sorry, left you all for a moment there...is something to behold, surely, for men, there's *something* in your closet that's both spiffy AND comfortable? Or am I delusional?

Well said, Elvira, that is what I was trying to convey also. I wear nice clothes almost every day in the office and in public, so why not on a trip? And they are comfortable too as Elvira said. Slacks are more giving and lighter than jeans and a nice top can be just as comfortable as a tshirt with COORS stamped on the front. If I am camping or walking the dogs in the mountains, I wear jeans and hiking boots and tshirt if I do say so myself, I look spiffy.

I just hate to be judged by the way I look or dress. Who cares what you wear as long as you feel comfortable. I rather be well educated than be chic and shallow.

I am now certain there is a secret society of clothes afficianados that recognize each other by their fashionable style of dress; appraise each other; and go aglow upon recognition a fellow club member. Maybe they enjoy high tea together, no longer strangers, bonded in the fashion statements they are making. I can see them now, holding their tea cups with their little fingers crooked outside the handle. How lovely. I envy them so. <BR><BR>Oh why the heck do I continue wearing jeans and sneakers? Why don't I care? I'm not a teen any more. Perhaps I should have an mri to find out what is missing, or see a therapist. Maybe its all in the genes....

Yes, there are clothes divisions and we don't like each other on the whole. There are those of us who are well dressed and stylish even when we are casual. There are the others who can never get stylish, because they have no taste and hide behind the word "comfort", as if being stylish precludes being comfortable. We will never meet because we don't hang in the same places, we may pass on the street, but neither of us notice the other. The unstylish because they don't care and the stylish because they dismiss the unstylish as unworthy of notice.<BR>So don't worry which side you are on, just be yourself.

Louise,<BR><BR>The first thing I ever posted on this board got eaten alive by the Fodor Fashion Police. And that was my simple statement that a lot of Europeans wear jeans and a suggestion that you wear what you are comfortable in. Oh you would have thought the sky was falling. I was called an ugly American for suggesting that jeans were not unacceptable dress for touring in Europe. <BR><BR>And finally, finally, vindication, as people go to Europe and discover lots of Europeans do, in fact, wear jeans - and even blue ones! (In fact, we were just there two months ago and saw lots of jeans ourselves, on people of all nationalities.)<BR><BR>What is your problem? I sure have never judged anyone for dressing "sylishly." Heck, most of us who wear jeans as our recreational clothes also wear other choices on occasion. We even have been known to dress up for work, restaurants, church and the like. And, to get right down to it, I think I do not look unstylish in my jeans - in fact, I'd say I look damn good in them. <BR><BR>But, you, you condemn others for their choices and look down your nose at others. Are you such a snob? Or is it just plain bad manners?

I am like Elvira, in that I am almost always both dressed nicely and comfortably at home. But, home is South Florida, so most of my clothes will not remain comfortable in temperatures below about 75. Plus, the high heels I can wear all day long at home do not work so great on cobblestones. So, I do wind up dressing a little differently than I do at home. When I posted my pictures for you guys to see, I was wondering if I'd get "ugly American" comments because we are wearing jeans in many of the pictures. Were you guys just being polite, or did it look ok to you?<BR>Kimberley

This is funny! It is so like the "Is food so important?" thread. <BR><BR>There are those who like to put their attention on dining (or dressing) well, enjoying the discovery of tarragon in the sauce, and trying to duplicate the recipe at home. Others could not care less about tarragon, recipes, or fine cuisine (or dress).<BR><BR>No matter how articulate, the two groups don't seem to make much headway in changing each others' minds! Not only that, they (I include myself!)can't resist critiquing each other as shallow, ignorant, tasteless, overindulgent, narcissisistic, snobby, etc. Then we get angry, defensive posts in response.<BR><BR>It's a matter of personal preference. We can't all be enraptured by the same pleasures. We could have similar debates over music, books, or "lifestyles".<BR><BR>At the absolute extremes we get inappropriate, ignorant, or obsessive behavior, but no point in getting agitated over that. You won't change anyone's mind, except by being so enthusiastic in your own area of interest that you encourage others to dabble in it as well.

Thank You Redrum!! (whoever you are!)<BR>I too have been haunting this site since January & worrying myself sick that the clothing & shoes I am comfortable with won't "fit in" with fashionable Paris. We are a family of 4 going to France to attend a niece's wedding & will be touring for 17 days total (going to Germany & Switzerland, too). I don't want to bring tons of luggage, so must pack smartly. I'm so glad jeans will be OK! I also am failing to see the need to spend $200 for a pair of "smart-looking" walking shoes when I read that Paris is full of dog poop! Forget it! I'd rather wipe the poop off my dependable not-so-white tennies! Thanks so much Redrum! You made my day!

Elvira, what about Sean Connery in "full dress".....oh heart do be still!

I have spent most of my life in the fairfield county connecticut area. Here we have a pretty preppy code of dress, which is comfortable and stylish for our area. I usually wear khakis, braod cloth shirts or other type of comfortable blouse and merrill shoes or loafers. I look neat and I am comfortable, I am not wearing black unless it is for an evening out or an occasionl pair of black trousers. <BR> Why must I change into beret wearing, all black clothes , smoking characature of what we think the french are in order to enjoy my vacation ? My closest friend is from Lyon and spends a great deal of time in paris when she is at home. She loves bright colors, she laughs at tourists in their all black garb. Ass far as wearing what you would wear in NYC when you are in PAris. That sounds good , as I live 45 minutes outside NYC, we drive in at least once a weekend ( my husband is in town everyday ) People who live in the city wear shorts, tee shirts and heaven forbide wear sneakers. Yes it is nice to wear nice clothes and i do everyday, it is when you feel that what you wear is more important then who you how and how you treat people.<BR> I prefer clean lines with no fussy scarves or accessories, others love them and I think they look great but not for me. Too much to fiddle with. Just like elvira said the boned strapless dress comes out once a year. I believe you should only be uncomfortable once or twice a year New years and one other holiday, vacation should not be one of them.

The only reason I take mostly black and colors with black is for the mix and match ability. I can take fewer clothes and have more outfits if I can wear any top with any pair of pants. A couple of scarves, a couple of bright tank tops to wear under the black shirts -- you've got a weeks worth of clothes with a minimum of pieces.

For everyone who is bashing the people who like to look nice, didn't you read the heading that said "for people who worry about their clothes". That's who this is intended for. It is not intended "for those who could care less what they look like as long as they're comfortable".<BR><BR>Some people care about their appearance. That doesn't mean they don't remember or appreciate the scenery, people, food, architecture or culture of the places they visit. There are some real morons here who jump to some very stupid conclusions.

Sandra, I've never heard anyone suggest that we take up smoking in order to "fit in" in Paris!