New Amsterdam 2: Many Generalizations

GOOD EVENING.  So continuing with last week’s post, I feel I must relate my general impressions of New York’s style.  Mind you a few things:

1) I’ve only been to New York twice.

2) Both times I nearly died from hypothermia.  Am I using hyperbole?  No.  In this case it would be hypobole!

Ah.  That was an excellent pun.  Cheers.

Indeed.

Anyways, granting me the above indulgences, I feel I must forward a few generalizations on the state of Style in Gotham.  I feel a list coming on.

1) It is true that everyone wears black, or at least earth tones.  There is no easier way to declare yourself a tourist than to don that bright red and orange Burton snowboarding jacket.  Indeed, Times Square sometimes looks like a ski resort’s deck, so engorged it is with the polychromatic insulation of outsiders.

2) I would hesitate to describe New York as stylish, at least as far as how I would define it.  It is true, people there are more polished, and the term metrosexual*almost certainly originated in Manhattan.  The men certainly take a sort of pride in their appearance, and the trappings of class and wealth are displayed, albeit in a subdued level compared to the Left Coast.  Rather than say, a spinnah necklace, one would be more likely to sport a fine manicure, subtle hair product, and elegant dress shoes, which leads me to my next observation.

3) Dress shoes are certainly worn with greater pride there than other locales.  They are paired as frequently with jeans as with suits, sometimes more so.  Which leads me to my fourth point.

4) The New York (winter) uniform consists of slim, tailored jeans; fresh dress shoes; earthy scarf, slick leather gloves, and fitted overcoat.  Toggle coats seem to be particularly popular:

A winter uniform requires no head. Yes, I know he isn't wearing dress shoes, but you get my point.

New York, being that much closer to Europe, is that much closer to European sensibilities.  Being more accustomed to the granola grunge of the San Francisco Bay Area, New York’s chic is refreshing, if ultimately unsatisfying at times.  Indeed, the best-dressed gentlemen I saw in New York were not New Yorkers at all:

A group of Japanese tourists were walking around the Lower East Side, apparently looking for some place to take pictures.  I would have arranged to take a better picture but they insisted on speaking Japanese, so the above shot is the best I could do and I fear it does not do them justice.  Rest assured, it was quite interesting.  And even though one of them is wearing orange and thus was advertising his non-New Yorkness, in this case that is a good thing.

*the term metrosexual disgusts me.  I feel it is somehow offensive.  It certainly offends my spell checker, and if a man cannot trust his spell check, why next he may be doing away with his thesaurus!