So what is it about people that are so overly concerned with being a part of the latest style trends that they will wear things that look oh so ridiculous on them? Though you expect this to some degree with teenagers and college types, when you get a little “older” you just need to be a little more comfortable in having your own style.

This topic has come to mind for two reasons. First, we just had a guy visit our office wearing what I consider to be the most effeminate getup for a straight guy I have seen in recent memory. Second, I have a real beef with people who do not dress to their body type.

I have to be a little careful I guess because some of the people that read this blog will know who I am talking about. Oh well, throw a little caution to the wind, right? So on to my rant.

This guy that just came in the office, to remain unnamed, was wearing khaki caprices, a white t-shirt with a pink sweater vest and some weird small billed (almost beanie) kind of hat on backward. I am a pretty tolerant guy when it comes to fashion sense because I am no stylistic expert myself, but this getup frankly had the entire office snickering until he left; then it was a full on laugh fest once the door shut on his way out.

It was obvious he thought he was pretty hip with what he was wearing and had put a lot of thought into the ensemble. Perhaps he should think a little less and simplify his approach to his daily wear. I might have thought I was way off base with my thinking had I not see and heard the resounding affirmative chuckles. It wasn’t even the color that bothered me that much, it was the entire presentation that threw it over the top.

The style is subjective, I realize this, though within current styles there is a wide range of options that work for better for different people. Any normal person can look in the mirror and have a general sense if something works or not, at least one would think.

This takes me to my next part of the beef, dressing for your body type. For this one, my rant points squarely to teenage girls for the most part. I see this with some others of other ages and gender, but by far the majority of my observations have been with those angst-ridden young ladies. So many just can’t seem to realize that not all of the latest trends work for their body type.

First of all, this is not a personal shot at people that are overweight, particularly tall or short, etc. The simple reality is that we all are different and very few of us fit the advertised norm that so many styles are based on. So all PC out of the way, some of us are fatter than others and most of us poke out in places that the models don’t. Deal with it.

The other day I was out at lunch with co-workers and the girl in front of us was rather round, which for the last time I will express the necessary PC in saying weight is not the point here, so move on from any thoughts to rebut my callousness. What bothered me was the fact that she was trying to pull off the ultra-short jacket look over a longer undershirt. Rather than give structure to accentuate the fact that her top half was narrower than her bottom half, it looked like she had squeezed into her daughter’s jacket or caught in a sudden rainstorm that caused ultra-shrinkage of the fabric. She looked like she was about to bust a seam. The undershirt was then extra long and stretched to capacity over her more than ample backside. Short version, it highlighted all the wrong features in a big way.

I see kind of thing oh so often with those teenage girls, especially with the whole midriff bearing styles. Girls, if you have a pooch, or perhaps better-termed gut, don’t wear the hip hugger jeans with short shirts. A belly is only attractive to be seen sticking out, frankly if it doesn’t stick out. I don’t need the extra attention to your fat roll.

I won’t spend extra time trying to balance this article with examples for skinny people, tall people, etc. You get the point. Dress for your body type. This is not to say that all people with a few or more than a few extra pounds need to wear baggy clothes either. Wear what looks good on you and makes you look good. Simple concept. Pick a swimsuit that works. Tuck or don’t tuck shirts appropriately. Do or don’t wear those tighter clothes depending on what works. If you need help, take a friend when buying your clothes and give them carte blanch to tell you exactly what looks good and what doesn’t. It may hurt a little at the time, but you will be thankful later on.

Oh, and if you were wondering, I know what “structure” in clothing is because I’ve caught an episode or two of What Not To Wear on TLC with my wife. Perhaps a few episodes of this show should be standard viewing to kids to give them some basics.