# Fashion Poll: Ladies, how about a Guyabera Shirt? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 31, 2010, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161 "2010-01-31T20:58:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2010, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/1 "2010-01-31T20:58:55Z")
OK, cool chickies, you can be a part of history with your vote on the Guyabera Shirt. Background: About 15 years ago, I went with a couple of female friends to a garage sale. I saw a guyabera shirt, and it was made of seersucker, blue and white. I asked the girls, jokingly, what they thought of it. The two of them were so virulently opposed that I wussed out, and didn’t buy it. To my everlasting shame. The comment from was “Are you married? Do you ever want to be? Then don’t buy that shirt.” Fearsome, to be sure. At any rate, I have hated myself for being a wuss, and losing the shirt. I am going to start wearing them again, bachelorhood be anathema; but, I want to know if I can wear it around ladies without becoming a whipping boy? > **[LocoStyle.com is for sale | HugeDomains](https://www.hugedomains.com/domain_profile.cfm?d=locostyle.com)** > > Get set up with a new domain name right away. Affordable payment plans to fit any budget. Friendly customer support. What say you? hh ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2010, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/2 "2010-01-31T21:26:03Z")
You could totally wear that. If you plan to be stranded on an island and pairing the shirt with a straw fedora and khaki shorts made from your frayed dockers. ---
**Author:** ![luv2draw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/46a35a/32.png) [@luv2draw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/luv2draw)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2010, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/3 "2010-01-31T21:44:08Z")
I hate them. No offense to anyone but, to me, they look effeminate. Also they are the kind of thing that are ok in their country of origin for the purpose originally made and the general population there is wearing them. Once you take them out of context (as tourists who purchase such things and bring them home), they look silly. Trust me, once you have one, you’ll NEVER wear it. ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/848f3c/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_Dunlop)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2010, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/4 "2010-01-31T21:49:12Z")
> [@handsomeharry](#): > > OK, cool chickies, you can be a part of history with your vote on the Guyabera Shirt. > Background: About 15 years ago, I went with a couple of female friends to a garage sale. I saw a guyabera shirt, and it was made of seersucker, blue and white. I asked the girls, jokingly, what they thought of it. The two of them were so virulently opposed that I wussed out, and didn’t buy it. To my everlasting shame. The comment from was “Are you married? Do you ever want to be? Then don’t buy that shirt.” Fearsome, to be sure. > At any rate, I have hated myself for being a wuss, and losing the shirt. I am going to start wearing them again, bachelorhood be anathema; but, I want to know if I can wear it around ladies without becoming a whipping boy? > > [LocoStyle.com is for sale | HugeDomains](http://www.locostyle.com/mpblp1ss.html) > > What say you? > > hh There aren’t many clothes that are bad choices for all people in all circumstances. It really depends on your age and the type of people you spend your time with and seek to impress. That said, a black polyester-blend guyabera shirt is one of them. Are you planning on it being a staple of your wardrobe? It should be a shirt you wear occasionally on really hot days in the summer when you’re planning on being outside a lot - like to a barbecue or picnic. It needs to be a natural fiber, linen or cotton. It should be white or a natural tan or even blue or anything but black. Even if you get all that right it might still be hard to pull off depending on your age and who you hang around with. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2010, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/5 "2010-01-31T21:56:54Z")
Ick. Really. Why would you? It’s the sort of thing George’s Dad would buy from Kramer and the two of them strut around thinking they looked cool . . . then they’d convince themselves they were starting a new fashion trend and go buy a warehousefull on the cheap . . . Yeah, really, you don’t need all that hassle, and the import tax alone will kill you, so just don’t do it to yourself. Seriously. ---
**Author:** ![RhapsodyInBlue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RhapsodyInBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RhapsodyInBlue)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2010, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/6 "2010-01-31T22:28:22Z")
> [@handsomeharry](#): > > The two of them were so virulently opposed that I wussed out, and didn’t buy it. Your friends did you a favor at the time. Their good advice still stands. ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2010, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/7 "2010-01-31T22:59:50Z")
Only acceptable if it had 75% fewer pockets. And made of natural fiber. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2010, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/8 "2010-02-01T00:25:00Z")
They look like dorkier bowling shirts. Your friends were doubly right. And dude, seersucker? :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Ca3799](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9f8e36/32.png) [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2010, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/9 "2010-02-01T00:40:14Z")
They are common in my area (Texas) and don’t look unusual at all to me. I wouldn’t think ‘this or that’ about someone wearing that shirt. ---
**Author:** ![SkeptiJess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@SkeptiJess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkeptiJess)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2010, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/10 "2010-02-01T00:46:08Z")
I like them. I also like the similar Barong Tagalog from the Philipines. I would recommend a natural fiber version of either, by preference. But I’m an old broad and possibly not in your target group. ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2010, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/11 "2010-02-01T00:56:55Z")
They look like a nice, cool shirt for when it’s hot out. Of course, I could throw a rock and hit the Mexican border, so I may just be used to them. ---
**Author:** ![Lucky\_13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucky_13/32/13209_2.png) [@Lucky\_13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucky_13)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2010, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/12 "2010-02-01T06:33:21Z")
My dad wears guayaberas when it’s hot. Of course, he’s in his early 60s. Keep that in mind. ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2010, 7:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/13 "2010-02-01T07:17:47Z")
It’s the two bottom pockets. Women’s tunics have them and so do ladies housecoats. Something similar without all the pockets and without the micro pleats would be great. I do like a guy who wears plain cotton shirts with collar and buttons over a polo. Polo shirts are never seen on guys I’m with. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2010, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/14 "2010-02-01T07:44:28Z")
Only if you’re planning on hanging out with Gilligan and the Professor. Or you consider Cousin Eddy from the _Vacation_ series a fashion guru. (Seriously, that shirt is hideous) ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2010, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/15 "2010-02-01T10:40:47Z")
I got a couple guyaberas becaus this assinine clothing policy where I used to work mandated that women had to tuck in shirts [even the type of polo shirt that catalogs display on models untucked] and I determined that with the bottom pockets it was plain to the most jackass fuckwad idiot that the shirt was not designed to be tucked in. And I like the 4 pockets =) When you gimp around on crutches, pockets are great because you cant really hand carry stuff easily so I could put stuff in the pockets =) The bright red one is still one of my favorite shirts, it is very festive. I got mine from [MyCubanStore.com](http://MyCubanStore.com), and they are 100% cotton. ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2010, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/16 "2010-02-01T12:07:46Z")
Where’s the poll? 😉 Of course you should get one, get a fine polyester not a cheap one, be bold add some color or stripes. Don’t foget the panama hat, huaraches and chinos! No seriously, life is too short to worry about other peoples opinion of what you wear! I have one I bought in San Juan, it’s mf’ing cool, pink with watermelon’s (?) all over it. Alas it’s too small, but I used to wear it with a white bucket hat, but then again I lived in South Florida, ymmv. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2010, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/17 "2010-02-01T13:16:36Z")
What’s the dress code in your part of the country? Do the ladies in question prefer douchebag pop-collars, heavy metal t’s or cowboy shirts with pearl snaps? A natural fiber guayabara can work if your irony is in good shape; skinny with maybe a goatee? It’s retro & actually comfortable in hot weather! Or if you’re really an older, solidly built guy–[the original market](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guayabera#cite_note-9). Have you ever worn a Hawaiian shirt? This Texas company offers the [Hawaiiabera](http://www.hawaiiabera.com/)–combining features of both styles. Of course, I live in Houston. But your profile says Oklahoma–home of Ray Wiley Hubbard, who finally lived down writing “Up Against The Wall, Redneck Mother” only to create [this gem](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22Mrez7ahZA): > [@](#): > > I got on my cowboy boots, jeans > And Hawaiian shirt, mirrored sunglasses > And a mobile phone > I guess I look like some Port Aransas > Dope dealer that’s out on bail > Just trying to get home ---
**Author:** ![Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleeps_With_Butterflies)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2010, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/18 "2010-02-01T13:25:47Z")
Ew. No. ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2010, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/19 "2010-02-01T14:26:46Z")
It’s the embroidery and the pleats and the pockets that turns it into a Fashion Don’t…If you Ever Want Sex Again…for me. ---
**Author:** ![hellpaso](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ecae2f/32.png) [@hellpaso](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hellpaso)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2010, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161/20 "2010-02-01T14:43:31Z")
Ah, Bridget–I do love Ray Wiley! As to the OP, I live on the border where these shirts are ubiquitous. But only on men over 65 (especially the winter Texans who are from waaay up north and think they look exotic). I’ve never, ever seen a younger man in a guayabera. My husband is 58 and I would never “allow” him to wear one–lol! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fashion-poll-ladies-how-about-a-guyabera-shirt/527161.md?page=2)