Pet hate; "Snazzy Websites"

thehappypiper · Mar 10, 2014

Recently I have become interested in clothing which is a bit better than my usual fair. Until now I've been a great fan of Uni-Qlo. A little-known budget brand outside Asia, their clothes are decently made and well-priced but recently they seem to have decided to only make clothes for anorexic ten year olds or freaks of nature, It doesn't help that I have a "Scottish" physique, i.e. short with broad shoulders and strong legs. This is the antithesis of the Chinese body. Not to be indelicate, but it's been a real trial trying to find underwear with enough "room in the pocket". Thank God for Marks and Spencer, which recently expanded to my city. However, last year I discovered Avirex, and I am generally very happy with what they make. But tonight I logged onto Evisu [I know they are not what they used to be] and was simply unable to find any way of getting to a product overview, instead being bombarded by a constant stream of waif-like creatures who seemed to be either very depressed or suffering from a rare genetic disease. It is the same with high end watch sites; you want to check out which models might be appropriate and isntead you get bathed in images of women you could never hope to meet having champagne on a yacht!

Can we please just have the facts? I say to hell with your "ethos". I do not want to follow you on Twitter! What do you sell, where is it made and how much does it cost?

p.s. I bought a pair of Levi's in December and was horrified to dicover this "American Legend" was made in Pakistan....home of the Taliban. WTF?

latbomber · Mar 10, 2014

There is nothing worse than a flash animation filled clusterf**k of a website! There have been products in the past that I have been seriously considering buying but because the website was so annoying and useless I changed my mind!

flakyjakey · Mar 10, 2014

Please don't take this in the wrong way, but are you really Scottish? It is an incontrovertible truth that real Scotsmen don't wear underclothes (at least under their kilt)! And if they have fetishes it is for women's well-seasoned hobnailed boots!! (joke)
And yes, I hate all advertising of this nature - right now I'm getting indelible fuiken pop-ups on my laptop!

mso489 · Mar 10, 2014

Generally, I can't buy clothes online, most especially pants (trousers) and shoes. I don't care what size they say they are,

if I can't try them on, I don't know if they'll fit. I stop by the local discount store every few weeks, name brands at deep

discounts. I can do a loose summer shirt from online or catalog. Recently watched a particular shirt for about a year,

until it appeared in a usually overpriced catalog, for less than half the original price. Still a little steep for me, but worth

it for the wild print. Yes, if you're stocky, or over a certain age, watch out for "slim fit" anything. For underwear, just buy

what you know, or you'll be profoundly uncomfortable for hours. Clothes have been remarkably inexpensive for a long time.

I think prices will go up, and we'll all have to buy fewer, to keep for years. More people are buying kids clothes used, because

kids can only wear a given size for a year at the most before they outgrow them. And the worn look is more popular, so even

I can wear my stuff even though it has some fraying or a small hole; very hip that.

riskybusiness · Mar 10, 2014

What is it with men's clothing, especially young men's clothing these days? The style is so emasculated. It's like boys are trying to dress like their sister.
Grahm Norton had a segment on his show once: Gay or European? He had people in the audience stand up and the guests had to guess if the audience menber was either gay or European based on how they were dressed. They all had on tight-fitting clothes, and slightly loud colors. The guests were usually wrong by the way! Funny segment.
My friends get quite a laugh out of Topshop & Topman. For those of you on the west side of Ye Olde Ponde, this is a teen fashion brand with stores in every mall. The models in the window displays are so androgynous we actually play a game, "Guess the TopShop model's gender!"
Seriously, I feel your pain; I loathe fashionable European clothing now. Everything is slim fit and the models are always depressed Emo wankers whom you want to punch. Grow a pair! (*pow*) Stop pouting (*smack*) Stop brushing your hair forward like Justin Bieber! (*blam*)

thehappypiper · Mar 10, 2014

I never buy clothes online and one of the reasons I like Avirex is that some of their lines fit me, although the US size I wear is Small and the Chinese size which fits is Large. Their trousers in particular are very good and they have a few Made in USA A2 jackets which are simply wonderful- only problem is, they're 9,800 RMB each! Too much. I tried on a modified Spring MA-1 today and it fits like a glove! But I never buy something on the day I see it. I always wait [I don't actually need any more clothes] but I can see it in my future. One thing I do find distateful is some of the legends on the jackets "We came to save your country" for the Flying Tigers. Don't get me wrong, they did a wonderful thing but come one, you can't walk around China with that on your back! There is a very cute sales assistant who knows me and tonight I was trying, in my terrible Mandarin to tell her why wearing a military jacket celebrating the Paratroopers' work in Vietnam was a bit too much. We could not find a link on a Chinese search engine for "Napalm", primarily because I spelt it wrongly.

A huge gulf in both years and culture. I sometimes feel it is very wierd for youngish Chinese people to be buying and selling clothes "celebrating" the work of the American Air Force. I have a std, regulation MA-1, complete with orange inner lining, and that is fair enough- it is a brilliant jacket, but when you're selling denim jackets with the platoon numbers of bomber squadrons on them, that's a grey area.

phred · Mar 10, 2014

Being both big and tall, I am regularly frustrated by vendors who seem to think that it's either one or the other. I can find pants locally that fit my waist, but they assume that I'm about 4" 11". If the pants fit my inseam, they seem to think that my waist should be about half as big around as it currently is. Fine - I'm working on it, but in the meantime, I need pants that fit!
So, online I go - and I normally order only one item of any one kind at a time, just in case I need to return it due to some warp in the space/time continuum that means that a 34" inseam doesn't actually measure 34"... which happens depressingly often.

av8scuba · Mar 10, 2014

Back to the OP, I too loathe snazzy websites all bloated down with flash, videos that play themselves, etc. I live in the sticks and my only choice for internet is via satellite. Even with the recent improvements for satellite, these sites still take eons to load and some never load. So I too just bypass the site and go to a competitor that keeps it simple. Besides, that is how I like to run my life...using the KISS principle. Keep It Simple Stupid. : puffy

:

tuold · Mar 10, 2014

I've sold myself out to a number of focus groups in the past and present. It's good for a little extra spending cash. But what I've found fairly recently is that these companies want you to develop an emotional link with their product. It's not enough that it's a product which fits your needs and specifications, it has to become a part of who you are. It doesn't matter if it's clothes, cars, or even banks. They want you to love their products as you love yourself.

dochudson · Mar 10, 2014

Recently I have become interested in clothing which is a bit better than my usual fair. Until now I've been a great fan of Uni-Qlo. A little-known budget brand outside Asia, their clothes are decently made and well-priced but recently they seem to have decided to only make clothes for anorexic ten year olds or freaks of nature, It doesn't help that I have a "Scottish" physique, i.e. short with broad shoulders and strong legs. This is the antithesis of the Chinese body. Not to be indelicate, but it's been a real trial trying to find underwear with enough "room in the pocket". Thank God for Marks and Spencer, which recently expanded to my city. However, last year I discovered Avirex, and I am generally very happy with what they make. But tonight I logged onto Evisu [I know they are not what they used to be] and was simply unable to find any way of getting to a product overview, instead being bombarded by a constant stream of waif-like creatures who seemed to be either very depressed or suffering from a rare genetic disease. It is the same with high end watch sites; you want to check out which models might be appropriate and isntead you get bathed in images of women you could never hope to meet having champagne on a yacht!

Can we please just have the facts? I say to hell with your "ethos". I do not want to follow you on Twitter! What do you sell, where is it made and how much does it cost?

p.s. I bought a pair of Levi's in December and was horrified to dicover this "American Legend" was made in Pakistan....home of the Taliban. WTF?

these are not cheap but IMO worth every penny.. the 'boys' will thank you.

Under Armour

mso489 · Mar 10, 2014

A few tactics for stepping up your look a little without going fashionista -- and if you are a fashionista, good

for you, but most aren't: You can mix up pretty standard jeans with something a little more upscale, like

Lee/Wrangler/Levis etc. rather than designer labels, with an open Tattersaul (thin line plaid shirt) and a sports

jacket. There are some pretty good canvas or linen sports jackets that look good but not overdressed, when

you don't want to look like you're ready to paint the garage. A tie can dress up any button-down shirt, and

you can get a few that are somewhat colorful, so you don't look like you're going to a job interview or a

funeral (if you aren't). A couple of cuff-link shirts and the cuff-links can dress up ordinary duds in a big way.

You don't have to get starchy to look organized or interesting, in your own way. I'm not good about this,

but shining your shoes always makes you look put together.

thehappypiper · Mar 10, 2014

I'm glad to see I'mm not the only person who has a problem with modernity! But it is more than that isn't it? It's the fact that

1) Most people have no idea how clothes are supposed to fit anymore

2) Many companies seem to have exchanged quality and service for a 'headgame'.

I used to work with a 21 year old man and we got on well, but he was always embarassed whenever we popped into a clothing store as I would immediately look at the label to see where the item was made, what fabric was used, ask the salesperson if they did alterations etc. He would get all flusterd and say things like "God, you're like my dad! This is a cool brand. Why don't you just buy it?"

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thehappypiper

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