Style Observations in Europe

Reggie here – just got back from a two week vacation around Europe, so apologies for falling a little behind on our social networking platforms. Melissa and Christine did a fine job on the blog while I was away.

While I was filling Melissa in on the style game in Europe, she instead asked me to write a post about it. Makes sense, since we (as a country) are so far behind. By no means do I have the experience of Melissa, but she has it easy – keeping an eye on men’s style in Europe is rather difficult when there are so many hot women to look at!

My locations were Amsterdam, Munich, Barcelona, and Paris. This is all just light observations, and I don’t plan to jump to any conclusions here. Just calling it like I see it.

The only guys wearing those frumpy suits were over 60 years old. Everybody wore modern cut, or at least classic yet fitted suits. If you wore a Bay St suit there, you’d look like a moron. No joke.

That reminds me of an alley in Amsterdam that had an English pub, where I saw a group of 10 English gents, decked out in three piece suits and poor boy caps, having a laugh and heavily intoxicated. It was literally a scene straight out of the 1920s. It was all so appropriate.

I only remember seeing one Affliction/Ed Hardy shirt the whole time I was there. I realize it’s mainly an American thing, but it was a breath of fresh air not having to see it everywhere you go.

Saw one pair of Uggs in Europe (excluding Paris). And it was on a guy. He was dressed exceptionally well in a slim fit leather jacket, but I will never agree to Uggs on guys.

What I found pleasant was the number of scarves people wore there. It could be hot out, cold out, rainy out, and you’ll see every type of guy wearing different colours and tying styles of scarves – some styles I’ve never even thought to do. It’s such a quick way to dress up a boring ol’ t-shirt, and in a constantly changing climate, it’ll keep your temperature level during those hot afternoons and cool nights.

Oh, and if you thought people at our clubs dress bad, wait ’til you see Barcelona. Ugh. Shirts buttoned far too low, cheesy t-shirts (some way too tight), crummy polos, collars popped everywhere. Every club/bar I went to ended a sausage fest – perhaps this has something to do with it?

While I was supposed to be on vacation, I still couldn’t help but notice our labels were localized in every city I was in. It’s not like I was looking for it (my money was reserved for beer, not shopping), but it was pretty re-assuring to see that Melissa’s buying choices are spot on.

In Amsterdam is a shop called Sabarly. Found it while walking along the western side of the Damrak & browsing all the tempting coffeeshops. The quaint little store could easily be replicated in West Queen West, and carried great pieces that I had never seen before from Drykorn and Ted Baker. And prices were pretty good in comparison (especially since we get killed with the tax here)! The Dutch saleswoman was also smoking hot.

As I strolled down Rokin, I kept passing by Maison de Bonneterie, which would be Amsterdam’s equivalent to Holt Renfew or Nordstrom. It took me a few glances to realize that Cold Method was listed on their window. I poked inside and was greeted by friendly staff who were more than willing to point me out to the Cold Method section, which had a massive selection of jeans, shirts, blazers, jackets, scarves, and accessories. The store also carried major fashion labels as Dolce & Gabbana, Diesel, and Nudie. It was pretty sweet to see Cold Method under the same roof as them.

While wandering through the the seemingly endless Gothic Quarters of Barcelona (which doesn’t exactly have a major shopping area, just random shops thrown about), I stopped into what seemed like the only menswear store. Unfortunately I can’t remember the name of it, but I was literally freaking out when I saw this little shop in a random alley of the Gothic Quarters carry Dr. Denim. How random is that? The prices were pretty much identical to ours, and carry almost every new piece we just received.

Finally, in the beautiful city of Paris (which I sadly only had two days to spend in), I happened to notice a suit store that carried Pal Zileri near my hotel and a few blocks from the Louvre. In an area of the city that screams fashion, this was definitely a good sign.

If you’re looking to read more on my chaotic (and non-Gotstyle affiliated) adventures in Europe, head over to my blog.

‘Til next time!

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