June 2015 - GasketRaynes

Everyone has things they love. Sometimes we love the same thing, but different. I’ll explain.

We all love ice cream…it’s delicious. Now if I asked you what the best brand of ice cream is, I’m sure you’d have an answer. If I then said ice cream is ice cream and it all tastes the same, you would probably lose it. You would no doubt try to convince me that your brand is the best. I’m sure you’d go of on some diatribe meant to make me feel bad for having expressed my opinion. You’d logically breakdown the scientific basis for why your favorite brand is truly the best.

You know what that would prove? Only, that you’re a little crazy and that you spend too much time thinking about ice cream. But who isn’t? And who doesn’t? Mmmm…ice cream.

Now I’m pretty sure I had a point…Oh yeah… the point is love what you love!

You are allowed to love things that others don’t. When it comes to fashion and clothes, there are people that will make you feel like you’re only fashionable if you wear the latest, greatest and most expensive things. And it’s simply not true. Some of the stupidest looking clothes are the latest hottest design. I’m talking STUPID. And guess what? If those designers listened to my dumb opinion, they wouldn’t be millionaires, laughing at me from their yachts. Stupid, dumb opinion…always ruining everything!

And that’s really the key. Your clothes and your style are about you and no one else. If you love the suit section at JCPenny, great! Own it. Don’t let anyone make you feel bad about it. If you get your suits handmade by blind Belgian nuns that only use thread made from the hair of unicorns, also great! Own it. Don’t let anyone make you feel bad about it. Also, stop hogging all the unicorn hair! That stuff doesn’t grow on trees. It grows on unicorns, and I can’t find any!

Post originally seen on The Dapper Professional as a guest blog post.

I love Blazers! The end.

I feel as though you’re looking for more…fine, fine, I’ll give you more.

*Cough Cough*

I REALLY love Blazers!

…still not enough?

Okay, okay, I get it. Here goes…

Hugh and Crye Styled Blazer — Hugh & Crye Blazer

Stafford Blazer styled — Stafford Blazer

Frank & Oak Blazer Styled — Frank & Oak Blazer

Ralph Lauren Styled Blazer — Ralph Lauren Blazer

I love blazers. They’re one of the many ways we men now have to express ourselves. No longer do the girls get to have all the fun. No longer are we, as men, confined to simply a black, grey, navy or heaven forbid, olive suit. You know the olive suit. The one all of our Dads or Granddads have. The one they wear with the world’s ugliest tie. Well no more!

When it comes to blazers these days, the sky’s the limit. The fashion industry has blessed us with all sorts of patterns, textures and beautiful colors. Now it’s true, these particular sport coats can get a bit pricey. But with a little effort, there’s no need to spend hundreds of dollars on one jacket. There are lots of discount sites out there and if you’re paying attention to the sales events, you don’t pay an arm and a leg just to gussie up your torso. I’ve found that the real trick is to wait for end of season sales. They practically give stuff away at those sales. It’s best to stock up on what you need at these times. Of course, it requires some patience, as you won’t really be able to wear most of it until that season rolls back around. But hey, there’s always and unseasonably cold or hot day here and there, so you can break out the fresh new gear.

I know what you’re thinking…“I too love blazers now!”

…not enough?

“I too REALLY love blazers now!”

…Still missing something? Oh I got it:

“I love blazers! And that Christian is so awesome. I wish he was my best friend and then we could read comics together and do all sorts of fun activities and…”

Too Much?

Here are some of my favorite blazers that I was able to get for under $100 each.