Be An Original, Avoid the VRU

Whenever I give fashion advice, the primary aspect I stress is that guys must have a personal style. For women it�s different, they always have the �look of the season.� For guys, there is no �look� or �season,� and as a result less rules for them to follow. With less rules come less fashion mistakes. When guys start to dip their toe in the pool of fashion, trying to catch that �look of the season� disaster is inevitable.

The wheels of men�s style turn so slowly that rarely does any one item of clothing look too dated. However, every so often a look or item will creep up and explode in popularity to the point where it looks ridiculous in a years time.

Right now there is a look going around that is total fashion poison. I call it the �Velvet Rope Uniform.� You�ve all seen it in some shape or form. The defining factor is the colorful, stripped, button-down shirt, worn untucked.

If you don�t know what I�m talking about, drive past any club in America on Saturday night and look at the guys waiting in line to get in. Guaranteed 80% will be dressed in some form of the VRU.

Other items that define the VRU:

Designer Bootcut jeans- These are essential to the VRU. They are usually from Seven, True Religion, or Paper Denim & Cloth. Guys that rock the VRU don�t know how to buy their size, so usually their jeans are too short, �hovering� right about the shoe.

Black leather lace up shoes- Fine for the office, dorky for a night out. Bootcut jeans call for a �heavier� shoe, like a boot or a sneaker. Most leather dress shoes are too �delicate� to be worn with jeans. It throws off the whole balance of the outfit.

Gelled hair- Ease up on the slickness Rico Suave. Try using a dab of pomade instead. It provides good hold without the hardness.

Leather Blazer- I can�t believe people still wear these. Maybe they were cool in the 80�s when Burt Reynolds wore them, as for today, a HUGE no.

Ironic Tee Shirt- The �Getting Lucky in Kentucky� shirt was funny for about 5 minutes. It�s dead now, so leave it alone. VRU guys will sometimes swap out their striped shirts for these; but don�t let that fool you.

Now that you know what defines the VRU, avoid it at all costs or else end up looking like a total fashion victim. There is no fashion in menswear, no �look of the season.� Every once in a while one will emerge, and the latest happens to be the Velvet Rope Uniform.

Strive for personal style and I guarantee you won�t laugh when you look at pictures of yourself in 10 years. Think about how we look at pictures of Sinatra, James Dean, and Steve McQueen from 30+ years ago and think� damn, he was a cool guy.

No reason why you can�t do this for yourself. That is my challenge to you.