Right around Christmas in 2009, I attended a fundraiser that raffled off many prizes. One of the prizes was actually for two hours with a professional celebrity stylist —- Guess who won that prize!

Keep in mind I wouldn’t be getting any free clothes, just that I’d go shopping with the stylist, and he’d advise me in terms of what I “should” be buying.

At the time I knew nothing about fashion, nor did I care much about it. In fact, after winning this prize, I seriously considered just giving it away to someone who’d both enjoy, and appreciate it more than me.

Anyway, after thinking about it for a couple of months, and realizing that I could probably use the fashion advice myself, I finally called up Sam Saboura (the stylist).

We agreed that instead of going shopping, it’d be best for him to just come over to my apartment and we’d go through my entire closet.

With so much stuff I never wear, I thought it would make more sense to organize — keep what’s still good, donate/get rid of the rest. Make piles.

So Sam (along with his assistant, Haley), came by my place one Saturday afternoon in early 2010, and were nice enough to be willing to appear on camera.

Anyway, I was walking outside with a friend today in the sun, and he mentioned how he regretted wearing a black t-shirt, and how he was starting to get really hot.

I then started to feel some sympathy for these Los Angeles gang members during summertime —- at least sympathy for those who have to wear black.

In fact, they’re at a disadvantage when it comes to conflicts with other gangs.  I mean, if you’re in the midst of some summertime brawls and knife fights, you wanna feel comfortable in your clothes.  I think these gang members really oughta switch from these cotton t-shirts to something that breathes more. Perhaps something more meshy?  Or maybe switch the gang color to something else, maybe a light pastel of some sort?

LA is fashion-conscious city, so c’mon, can all you designers out there come up with something fashionable and functional for our gang community?

Been traveling lately, haven’t been able to write as much.  (Plus, I’m lazy).

So, the other day me and some friends went into some local bar in L.A., and at the door, one of my friends was nearly turned away because of dress code standards.  He was wearing a graphic t, and the bouncer asked him to turn around.  I asked why.

I was told that the dress code does not permit Affliction clothing, and the bouncer needed to check the back of my friend’s shirt.  Not so much a fan of Affliction anyway,  I suppose that’s a good policy.  My friend was not wearing an Affliction shirt, so he was let in.  I also asked the bouncer, suppose the shirt said “Affection” or “Affiction”  or “Afflictio” —- something close, but not quite the word “Affliction” itself.

He pretty much said that he’d then have to let such a person inside the place.  Maybe I’ll make a custom t-shirt, and run a test.

I think the conversation began by me asking, “Do you think Kobe Bryant ever wears his actual jersey when he’s just walking around in public?”

That’s when I was told that this is something that John Elway has done.  That’s right, he just strolls around the city street rocking his #7 Broncos jersey.

Why does he do this you ask?  Because who would ever actually think some random guy in an Elway jersey, would actually be John Elway himself?

Sometimes dressing like yourself is the best way to not get recognized I guess!

http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/7500124626/adam-s-fashion-rescue

About a year ago, right around Christmas in 2009, I attended a fundraiser that raffled off many prizes.  One of the prizes being given away was actually for two hours with a professional celebrity stylist —- Guess who won that prize!

You guessed it, me.   About a year ago, I knew nothing about fashion, nor did I care much about it.  In fact, after winning this prize, I seriously considered just giving it away to someone who’d both enjoy, and appreciate it more than me.

Anyway, after thinking about it for a couple of months, and realizing that I could probably use the fashion advice myself, I finally called up Sam Saboura (the stylist).  Keep in mind this prize doesn’t mean that I would be getting any free clothes, just that I’d go shopping with the stylist, and he’d advise me in terms of what I should be buying.

After talking with him on the phone, we both agreed that instead of going shopping, it’d be best for him to just come over to my apartment and we’d go through my entire closet.

With so much stuff I never wear, I thought it would make more sense to organize — keep what’s still good, donate/get rid of the rest.

Then I had the idea to videotape the entire session with the stylist, and he agreed to be on camera.   So Sam (along with his assistant, Haley), came by my place one Saturday afternoon.

Thanks to them, and a very talented camera operator and a very talented editor, I will be sharing the results with you all very soon.  Hope you all enjoy!

Obviously if there’s spillage or tons of wrinkles, then sure, one must wash.

But what about if none of that is present?  The jeans are clean, have been folded/hung up, and are wrinkle-free.   What are the rules, here?

Maybe 5x they can be worn before needing a wash?  Perhaps 10x/double that is appropriate?

Although this isn’t a hard and fast numerical statistic to go by, in general, I’d say one must throw the jeans in the wash if they’ve been worn a few times over the course of a couple of weeks.

When you’re younger, pretty much you dress as a hobo, shaving cream the neighborhood, and just act stupidly.

Now, especially being in L.A. with parties and parades and god knows what, there’s much more pressure to come up with a good costume.  I’ve been kicking around some ideas, and was looking for feedback.  Maybe you people think these ideas I have are good/funny ones, or just stupid and maybe even offensive.

First idea is to be an Indian.  Native American, or Indian from India you ask?

BOTH.  That’s right, I’d have a Bindi (the dot), but also warpaint.  I could wear a white Gandhi-style toga, but also have feathers sticking out of my head.

But would this be offensive to Native Americans and Indians (or everyone)?  Or is this more a shot at the white man’s disrespect to both of those groups of people, by not distinguishing the two.

My other idea is to be a Cleveland Indian. Not a Cleveland Native American though, a real Cleveland Indian.

I’d figure I’d wear baseball garb, but use old the Air India logo, instead the current team logo.

http://nshima.typepad.com/.a/6a00e393367a358834011571f378a5970b-800wi

Thoughts?

Facial hair can really say something about a guy.  It’s expressive, and a style can mean one thing in one century, and receive a different reception by people in another century.

Often guys will want to wear facial that they think makes them look tough, cool, or stand out in a way.  Facial hair I suppose can make a guy look “rebellious” or whatever.

Considering the motives of guys, my friend MTD told me it’s surprising you don’t see more asymmetrical beards/facial hair setups.

Even my roommate freshman year at college, George, a punk-ish type I suppose, never rocked an asymmetrical look.   Sure, he did have a look in which his sideburns connected directly to his mustache.  Sure, he shaved his head bald and left nothing but 2 “wings” on the sides of his head.  But never anything asymmetrical.

So, George, and you other dudes out there who do weird stuff with facial hair, lets get to work on something asymmetrical, please.  Half-beard, one sideburn, whatever you’re into, just get started with this.

I mean, it’s okay for the crowd to give this guy a hard time, but they do NOT have the right to yell obscenities, threaten, or act violently towards a guy —– just for dressing in a certain way that they do not approve of.  This dude did NOT break any laws or rules.

However, lets look at the other side of the coin.   This guy knew he would be “playing with fire” by wearing this LeBron jersey.  In a sense, he had to expect bad stuff to happen to him.   What was he thinking when he left the house that day?  “People might not be happy with me, but they’ll behave with civility…The worst they’ll do is come up to me and say, ‘You’re not a nice person.’ “  Is this what went through his head?

The question isn’t who’s wrong, but it’s who’s MORE wrong.  And in my opinion, that’s the guy in the LeBron Heat jersey.

It’s okay to be the black sheep of a crowd for the purposes of making a statement.  But having said that, this dude should really pick and choose his battles more wisely.  That one person who wears a pro-gay t-shirt at an anti-gay rally is a brave person making an important statement.   Rosa Parks who refused to give up her seat on a bus full of white people was an inspiration…A guy wearing a Heat jersey at a Cavs game is just a douchebag.

I understand in our society that we have laws and rules, but there’s also something called street-smarts, also known as common sense or intelligence.

Just because something is immoral or illegal doesn’t mean humans are going to 100% comply all the time.  If you go out of your way to put yourself in harms way (whether you’re technically innocent or not), don’t act surprised when you bring out the most barbaric aspects of human nature around you.