Yeah in the North Pole lol where everyone can see it!

I only mess with OG/archival Grinch

@@oliversplace263 hmu bro i gotchu

When a fit is fire for all the wrong reason

got that yung lean/drain gang vibe to it.

There are SO many 'essentials' hoodies and such on AliExpress hahaha

because they're mostly just basic items that you can buy in bulk in any store and slap a logo on

Facts always buy from an authorized retailer

@@randomchannel323 No one's gonna know... They're gonna know. No one's gonna know.....

Trending: really bad counterfeits purchased in outdoor markets in Asia.

Do you have any recommendations?

I need some recommendations if you have some

Commenting just for updates and recommendations. One mainstream brand that is a good sweet spot in my (subjective and imperfect) opinion is AMI. Most pieces are expensive, but not "it's luxury so it costs a few thousand bucks" expensive. Contrary to "fake luxury" (Sandro, The Kooples, Acne Studio, for instance) that have similar pricing (#marketing) but are made with sometimes average fabric in China,... with AMI, I found the quality and durability are there. The brand has a great reputation in the fashion world, but Alexandre Mattiussi, the founder and designer, stays "real" and down to earth in his approach and designs. "Everyday clothe, for everyday people. I design the clothing I'd like to wear every day." The pieces are well designed, and the attention to detail, quality, fit, and all that, are produced in Portugal. For sure, if you work minimum wage, you'd have to save up a bit to buy some pieces. And I'm not a fan of huge logos, so I stay away from those. But the money well invested, and the durability will compensate for it over time. You can definitely find similar quality for a lower price, but the brands become a bit more obscure then. Drapeau Noir is another French brand that is quite minimalist (but with a purpose and a refined creative direction) with Japanese inspirations. They make good quality pieces for a decent price (100-150 euros for most pieces), with a very coherent collection (you could basically wear most of their pieces together), all made in Portugal. One of the guys working at their shop in Paris (very knowledgeable about the industry) told me that they make no profit on a few pieces, to stay coherent with their pricing. He used to work at Sandro, and definitely saw a difference. To my knowledge, Drapeau Noir never discount, because the collections don't change that much, and the pricing is right for their market segment.

100 % agree with ya bruh 👍💣💥👏

@@bruhdo3892 KOTN (They have more of a minimalist style but focus on ethical sourcing and a 'pricey' but reasonable price point)

dishwasher and oven are metal instead of plastic😱😱😱double the rent

Oh I hate mid-rage luxury apartments in California, because the taste is so bad. It's almost that unless you're super rich, your choices are old and rundown with 50 layers of paint, or renovated in this dystopian tacky grey hellscape. Most apartments are so dreadfully ugliy in California.

Totally! The Yzy GAP stuff is actually a great example of a more affordable/accessible luxury product which provides something genuinely 'premium' with some of the aesthetic details (like the flame hat), as well as the oversized cut and double-layered construction of some items. The particularly interesting thing there is the GAP brand by itself almost has negative value (no-one before 2020 was trying to use that brand to show off), but in the context of these new items means something different because it's paired up with the Balenciaga-engineered cuts

This man woke up and decided to speak FACTS

Agreed but the fog essentials is good fabric and has a good silhouette. Still overpriced but at least it's not insane imo anyway though i still haven't been able to justify myself buying it.

Spot on! Out of the entire collection the flame hat is the only thing i bought.

these brands got yall paying top dollar for the bare minimum.. clout rags

Thansk so much!

This is excuses people make in their head. This is true in some cases but not in all cases. A lot of times people make up excuses for the reason they buy it when really it’s just the brand.

If it’s really about the quality, why do so many like the bland items with the brand name big on the front rather than items from the same brand with discrete logos or no visible logos at all that actually look better.

damn this is some interesting insight

Exactly!

What a good comment

Rototo socks are really nice.

@@colmcgillveray1010 agreed - they're the best quality socks I've found to date I think!

Two identical hats, but with different prices, in the end they do the same thing. They're still hats. if there is no upgrade or better materials used for the hat with the higher price it makes no sense for a consumer to pay a premium just because the company behind it has higher expenses for other products overall. You should just pay for what your're buying.

Someone buying a Balenciaga hat isn’t buying it because they just need a hat. Clothing is so much more than just a utilitarian thing to many people

@@jawntanamo_bae they do it for the branding? Because if we're talking about style, as i said, an hat is still an hat.

@@nova_steric1749 These people live in a dream world. They care so much what others think and act like its an art Form to make themselves feel better

Yup, that's why I even roll my eyes at brands charging $5-6k for "handsewn" suits which, in reality, had all the most tedious parts machine stitched.

Techwear is just uniform to express your autism

No

Isn't Essentials from a former PUA KZfaqr?

I was actually on the opposite end I had no idea they were as cheap as they are like $40 now I assumed they were like $100 despite how basic and boring they are. I thought it was one of those super expensive items that were just because of who was selling it

It’s really easy to find good quality earth tone basics right now though. Earth tones have been in/trendy for a while now and the quality of Essentials is honestly mid at best. It’s basically a half step up from HM/Zara but is still just fast fashion mediocre cuts with very basic branding. Almost no effort goes into that brand and the items they make.

@@benalexander5010 The point you’re trying to make simply isn’t true. I know you think that Essentials is a “lower quality more expensive” brand, opposed to HM/ Zara while the styles and prices are very comparable. Actually in my opinion Essentials has much higher quality clothing compared to HM/ Zara, my reason for this is because I have a fair share of Essentials pieces myself, with that being said every single Essentials piece is very quality being double layered and the shorts, hoodies, and sweatpants are lined with cotton fluff on the inside. Zara have single layered sweatshirts that get marked up to $100.🤣

@@alexsozansky7234 But the point here is about colors tho, not price. Like he said, hearth tones are really easy to find, so you can get better quality clothes at the same price (not H&M, Zara or whatever) than FOG Essentials.

@@JeuneF You’re entitled to your opinion, of course. To me, your statement is wildly inaccurate. I have very sensitive skin, and finding comfortable clothes that don’t leave marks or rashes is difficult for me. Essentials FOG makes soft, tightly sown clothes that makes it easier for me to be comfortable.

@@alexsozansky7234 if it’s wildly inaccurate, you probably haven’t looked enough, but I get it, not everybody want to spend time on this. But again, the conversation is about what colors you find and at what price. So having a sensitive skin is out of context in this case. What’s inaccurate, is what you think this conversation is about. Btw I’m not saying it’s bad or you shouldn’t wearing it, we all find personals reasons to like/dislike a brand :)

Shrugs in OrSlow fleece.

Along this line of thinking, I like to consider this type of clothing as "merch" for the "artist" which is the brand, same way you buy a band tee for a group you like. If I like the couture "art" but am obviously not going to wear that in my day-to-day, I can still connect with and support the brand through simple, everyday clothing (where they actually make the real money).

I agree and the couture isn't wearable anyways. Too experimental and you will look strange and out of place in public. With the "essentials" line you're getting "normal" clothing but with premium materials (hopefully some brands are just expensive without good materials)

Balenciaga probably makes money on their couture tbf, think a jacket from their couture show was 20k and their most expensive item is close to 100k

Rei Kawakubo herself said something along the lines that Comme des Garçons would've folded almost immediately if it wasn't for the diffusion lines.

At this point, I just go on ebay and look for good “Made in USA” levi’s for my jeans. Unless I manage to go to Japan sometime soon and get decent selvage denim for sightly lower price (since the yen is currently weak)

That's very true, it's harder to attach 'brand value' to a service VS a product. I suppose in those cases it's more about providing something to the consumer which *feels* more premium or luxurious but actually costs very little to provide. Maybe getting a free drink on your flight or something.

100% agree, because the price for the quality of Essential's pieces are pretty reasonable. I keep buying a hoodie and a T when their collections drop.

Yeah my whole wardrobe would be essentials if they didn’t put their logo on everything

I can’t stand the logo

The brand seems to have peaked in terms of saturation so the next seasons will be pivotal. But if they keep making comfy, quality basics I will be satisfied.

Champion reverse weave hoodies are way higher quality than essentials and will last way longer

I mean, most people who are decked out head to toe in designer aren’t doing so because they’re anti-classism lol. So if they want to look expensive and flex, then advice on how to do so tastefully doesn’t seem inappropriate.

@@stuffenjoyer2223 that's ... not what I said and far from my point. I think it's worth thinking about WHY people have this perception of 'logo=bad' - including myself.

I guess the rationale behind that is the truly wealthy have nothing to prove, so luxury branding has no value to them. That, and smarter clothing (which is classically associated with wealth rightly or wrongly) is often less branded by nature and the focus is more on fitment and material quality than branding

at least the north face hat will last you way more than the t-shirts. I know because i've a lot of the north face garments, including hats, and they've been going strong for over 4 years. the north face it's one of the only brands that I wouldn't really consider that you're buying "premium mediocre" even if you're buying just a hat or some gloves, they stuff definitively has a great quality to them.

@@biggestnibba my north face jacket refuses to piss off and die. It’s been with me for 8-9 years.

@@Rudenbehr that's what im talking about, they migh be a little more expensive, but jackets and other garments from the north face definitely can endure the pass of time.

This is very true - high-margin high-volume sellers (perfume/aftershave falls into this category too) give brands the income to create the more experimental and luxurious items that keep the brand's vision alive. If they switched to only making basic highly branded pieces I'm sure the value of that brand would quickly start dropping

I love ACW* bro… I have a pair of ACW* ERX 260s and a black ACW* hoodie. The shoes are very unique, and I like that they fit my aesthetic. The branding on the Velcro strap and the small textured part on the sole are really cool. The hoodie’s drawstrings have ends that are branded with the ACW* logo, and it also has this cool white patch on the sleeve explaining what the brand is. They don’t just slap logos on shirts and pants, they also have those tiny details that just make me appreciate the brand more.

the ACW shoe collabs whether doc martens or Converse have been so excellent. I got a shirt from them, gray tones that look like a paint roller hit it in a maximum wide fit, it's a bit wilder than a standard tee so it's not quite a #logotee. if I had a house fire and had to remake a wardrobe they are one of my first stops on the list.

@@markmcgivern5938 haha homie praying on his house’s downfall… jk

Totally! Hoping to pick up something from them this season but not sure what yet

Got a pair of their converse collabs .. marginally more expensive than a normal pair of converse but a lot more interesting looking ? The extra 25-30 pounds difference is totally justified imo

I'm right there with you!!! I love the simple design of vintage Coach and you know they are quality and will last because they already have. I do love the price point as well. I've gotten the most compliments on my vintage coach bags, and it's always a "when you know, you know" encounter.

Thanks so much!

Then buy 2

That plus the comfort! The sweatpants are the most comfortable sweats I’ve ever worn. I also love the exaggerated strings on all the shorts/pants

It can be when it's really pointless. imo the yzy x gap x balenciaga isn't. It doesn't even have balenciaga branding and I personally got the shrunken hoodie cuz I really dig the silhouette and it's pretty much the only designer clothing item I have.