# Do you dress and groom for yourself or for others? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 21, 2023, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348 "2023-07-21T12:19:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/41 "2023-07-21T17:09:34Z")
> [@Kropotkin](#): > > I notice and am judgemental of men in their 60s (my age) who dress in shorts, polo shirts, and athletic shoes outside of a ball park or shopping mall. I interpret that garb as much a statement as any other. Wow! You’d have been judgmental of at least 20-30% of men in that age group who were dressed that way at the Art Institute and surrounding parks and streets. Some were wearing button up short-sleeved shirts, and some Tevas or Birks instead of athletic shoes. But I’m not sure exactly how else a mature male is expected to dress to do casual leisure activities when the temps are in the high 80s. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/42 "2023-07-21T17:10:13Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > I’m not sure exactly how else a mature male is expected to dress to do casual leisure activities when the temps are in the high 80s. Seersucker suit, espadrilles, a panama hat and shades. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/43 "2023-07-21T17:14:18Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > I’m not sure exactly how else a mature male is expected to dress to do casual leisure activities when the temps are in the high 80s. [![](https://i.imgur.com/T0GvsXc.jpeg) ](https://i.imgur.com/T0GvsXc.jpeg) Leon had that down. ---
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/44 "2023-07-21T17:16:41Z")
Nailed it! ---
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/45 "2023-07-21T17:20:22Z")
There! How hard was that?! ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/46 "2023-07-21T17:24:04Z")
Love Leon I do, kayaker. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/47 "2023-07-21T17:25:35Z")
> [@Kropotkin](#): > > There! How hard was that?! Very actually. When you live on a dirt road where the weather is brutal, Leon’s outfit would not make much sense. ---
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/48 "2023-07-21T17:26:44Z")
What one wears in one’s own home is not a matter for others to judge. But even my prairie farmer grandparents had “going to town clothes.” I think Ulfrieda has put the case admirably. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/49 "2023-07-21T17:27:31Z")
If you want to see me in something other than jeans, a Hawaiian shirt and “running” shoes, you’re going to have to take a shower with me. I’ve gotten rid of everything else. Classroom, dinner, concert, funeral, wedding…I just adjust the tone of the shirt to match. ---
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/50 "2023-07-21T17:29:45Z")
O the humanity! ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/51 "2023-07-21T17:32:28Z")
Pretty much, yeah. 😛 Some of them can get rather…bright. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/52 "2023-07-21T17:33:16Z")
> [@enipla](#): > > Love Leon He was unique! I got to meet him twice. Once after a show very early in his career, then once after he had stopped performing and lived not far from me. When I heard he was not doing well I wrote a note offering help if he needed it. His wife read my card and replied, thanking me. He died a short time later. He was 127 years old (according to his biography, to which he always remained true) ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/53 "2023-07-21T17:59:46Z")
> [@Ulfreida](#): > > Seersucker suit, espadrilles, a panama hat and shades. Now THAT would catch my attention! I remember one time some years back I was doing an arbitration, and one of the lawyers (in Chicago) appeared dressed like that. But I think he had a boater instead of a panama. It really made an impression on me. Why this guy decided that, instead of wearing a conservatove suit like 99% of the other lawyers, or maybe even wearing a flashy, stylish suit, he decided the impression he wanted to convey was that of a southern gentleman lawyer of some generations past… (Didn’t help any that he was completely incompetent!) A couple of years back, one of my nephews got married in 100-degree Texas heat. The husband of one of my nieces bought a seersucker suit at a thrift store, trimmed the pants to shorts, wore the vest, cut the sleeves off a white dress shirt, and used some of the left over seersucker to make a bow tie. Was QUITE the ensemble! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/54 "2023-07-21T17:59:56Z")
> [@Kropotkin](#): > > I notice and am judgemental of men in their 60s (my age) who dress in shorts, polo shirts, and athletic shoes outside of a ball park or shopping mall. I interpret that garb as much a statement as any other. I suppose it matters greatly where you live. Around here (South Florida) wearing long pants in summer time makes you stand out as unusual. Or as somebody who’s dressed for work. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/55 "2023-07-21T18:16:02Z")
There are certain cultures, often in hot climates, where things like shorts are frowned upon as the stigmata of youth. Although many of these cultures do value fashion, it’s a bit impractical and outdated given modern sensibilities and swelter. People do judge you for what you wear. I enjoy bright colours but used to get the odd comment from the men-who-always-wear-black-or-beige. Who cares? ---
**Author:** ![alovem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@alovem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alovem)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/56 "2023-07-21T18:18:38Z")
I’ve heard that linen (flax) is better than seersucker (cotton) in hot climates. It wrinkles like nobody’s (dirty) business and has to be ironed. That and the cost are why I now wear cotton, but I used to enjoy wearing linen. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/57 "2023-07-21T18:22:02Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > There are certain cultures, often in hot climates, where things like shorts are frowned upon as the stigmata of youth. Yeah, I guess that makes some sense. But shorts are pretty ubiquitous most places I look in the US that are not terribly formal. I always thought it a refreshing look when you’d see professionals in Latin America wearing short-sleeved shirts. As opposed to the idiot “professionals” in the US, who wore wool suits and ties no mater how hot the weather. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/58 "2023-07-21T23:23:03Z")
I am also curious what judgement you’d pass? There goes someone who likes to be comfortable? ---
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2023, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/59 "2023-07-21T23:39:07Z")
Absolutely. “Insouciant chap” might be another; in extreme cases, “callous disregard for the humble sensibilities of others.” “Maybe I should spot him a $20” is also possible, as is “Don’t make eye contact and edge to the door.” I think the thread has indicated just about everybody judges, or is at least sensitive to, the vibes people give off with their clothing decisions. Ulfrieda has put it nicely. I should add that as I was looking for my cravat and knotted cufflinks in preparation for an outing to the hotdog cart this afternoon, my partner pointed out I was wearing a torn “I’d Rather Be Smashing the State” t-shirt, over the knee-length “shorts” (I call them cargo culottes) and socks that said “Fuck this Shit.” Judge not lest thee be judged. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2023, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348/60 "2023-07-22T00:45:04Z")
I dress so I don’t stand out too much at Kroger. Usually this involves wearing a shirt and shoes. Shaving every few years is optional.\* \*we live in a town that might be called the Gateway to Eastern Kentucky. Quite a few mountain men with long white beards, wearing overalls. The women are of similar appearance, though beards are typically shorter. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-dress-and-groom-for-yourself-or-for-others/987348.md?page=4)