The Art of Getting Dressed
Making putting clothes on as enjoyable as possible
I’d like, today, to talk a little about the process of getting dressed. That is to say, the physical act of taking clothes from wherever you choose to keep them, and putting them onto your body, the selection of which clothes being only one part of the process.
It is perhaps easy to see this physical interaction as a means to an end, the concept of an outfit already existing in the theatre of the mind, and the physical manifestation of that simply being the practical application of the concept. Whilst all of that is the case, what I am interested in today is how to make that process as enjoyable as possible and to what extent we find use value in clothing in the moment of putting it on
Welcome to this week’s meeting of The Prep Club, pick up a copy of last week’s bulletin here, or on your way out for deep-cut down jackets, and some articles from 2024 that I’m most proud of. As always the club directory is available as a resource for labels and retailers specialising in collegiate apparel.
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I feel we must begin with a recognition that slow mornings are an immense privilege, some of that which we’ll cover today does rely on having a little bit more time whilst getting ready. Some of it doesn’t though so I hope you can find some value if your morning routine is more of a scramble, it tends to get that way. We’ll be moving forwards with an awareness that time is very much of the essence.
The first question I feel we encounter is: when do you decide what clothes to put on? Whilst it may not be recognised immediately, at some point you chose which clothes you would put on today, we’ll call that building an outfit. For the fashion concerned, which as always I presume you are, I’d wager you have a plan of sorts on any given day, if you don’t, you probably should. Not knowing what to wear is going to take up far more time than anything else I suggest today.
There are a swathe of ways in which one can plan outfits, use photographs of your pieces, take a couple hours on a weekend and try lots on, choose one piece for certain and allow that to inform the others, replicate a look from a reference. Whatever form it takes, I do believe having at least a concept of what clothes you’ll be wearing before opening your closet is very helpful. Experimenting is enjoyable but it is equally time consuming, making it an exploit in one’s leisure time is less stressful. If you’re ever truly stuck, build off of weather-appropriate footwear first, form follows function is perhaps the closest thing to an infallible strategy we can hope for.
With a plan in place, an outfit in mind, we can reach for the turntable, or more likely your streaming service of choice. Start the day with some music, feel like you’re in one of those Mr Porter videos from a few years back. I struggle to perceive an everyday pursuit that isn’t improved by an appropriate soundtrack. It’s a step towards shifting perspectives on getting dressed, allowing it to be a time from which one can gain fulfilment. Music can offer presence which we perhaps abscond otherwise in a rush out of the door.
At this point we perhaps encounter the question of pretence which looms over the entirety of today’s discussion, it’s something I feel I need to address at the very least. A lot of this is a little pretentious, except for the fact that no-one has to know that you do it, perhaps other than those you live with. Enjoy your pretence in private and it ceases to be pretence. Put a bit of Miles Davis on and feel like a million bucks whilst you brush your teeth.
Now, and only now, we can head to where our clothes are kept. Wardrobe care is vital both in saving us time, and maximising enjoyment. Whilst this suggests I’m growing old already at twenty-one, it’s pretty great to feel like James fcking Bond when you open your sock drawer. There are a million videos about organising this sort of sht, get your Kondo on and get it all folded. HGTV’s Rajiv Surendra talks about feeling like he’s going shopping in a beautiful store every time he opens his aestheticised kitchen cupboards, I feel the same about my impossibly anal wardrobe arrangements, my clothes are very curated, it should feel that way when I look through it all.
Likewise, you need to be able to see everything easily, whether you’re dressing with a clear outfit in mind or more of an in-the-moment creative approach. I challenge you to list every item of clothing you own without checking, being able to see it all is going to make a world of difference when it comes to building a look. Total visibility isn’t always possible, but the closer you can get the better.
I’ll also presume, if you’re here, that you have items of clothing that you treasure, it’s only basic manners at that point to keep them neat. Within the canon of collegiate style, there is somewhat of a question mark around just how well looked after one’s wardrobe ought to be. OCBDs for example can likely go unironed unless they are particularly mangled, khakis can almost certainly be beat to hell. Knits deserve to be folded neatly, and jackets benefit a great deal from decent hangers, likewise shoe trees are probably worth it. Take a break from buying clothes and spend the cash on things to take care of what you already own.
It’s my preference to lay out everything I intend to put on, a final chance for a change of mind or a realisation that something isn’t working, and then we can refer to the words of Hardy Amies
“A man should look as if he had bought his clothes with intelligence, put them on with care, and then forgotten all about them.”
Ignore that man bit at the start, this is pretty damned good advice for anyone and everyone. Fashion ought not to be burdensome in day to day life, anything that requires constant adjustment or fixing probably isn’t worth it. Likewise, starting the day put-together and allowing an outfit to wear in naturally is going to look far more natural than any attempt at the outset to look as though you don’t care. The tie can be loosened, the jumper removed and thrown over the shoulder/ around the waist, but if it starts cohesive, it’ll only look better as the day goes on, it’s authenticity (it’s always authenticity).
Champion of that which I hope to communicate today is a perspective on putting clothes on. That this is the time in which you pay the most attention to the clothes you own. It’s when you notice how things fit, combine, layer, and as such it is very, very important. Taking a little extra effort to make that process joyful is perhaps a little pretentious, but the club says to hell with that. Be pretentious, enjoy yourself doing it and it ceases to be pretentious, it’s only ever authenticity.
We obsess a great deal over the intricacies of clothing before they enter our possession as a way to justify their purchase. The key is to delight in those facts once you own the thing. Getting dressed is the time when you enjoy your clothes.
Prep Club Adjourned, see you soon.
Ironing for me feels like a chore, unless I have music. Then I feel like the main character in a movie. Thx for writing about stuff that truly matters lol