- Day 11 Suit (Grey Birdseye Suit by Calvin Klein; Plaid Shirt by Gap; Stripped Tie by Calvin Klein; Vintage Tie Clip)
In an apparent effort to add more stuff to my routine in the morning, I've started wearing a tie clip. My mom was able to find some pretty cheap vintage ones at an antiques fair in Atlanta and mailed me one. Today was my first day since it arrived where I was wearing a big enough tie to use it (it doesn't work with skinny ties).
As with a number of things related to this project, I ended up on WikiHow reading about how to use a tie clip this morning. It turns out, as with everything to do with suit wearing, there's a specific set of rules governing how to wear a tie clip (stick it on so that the closed end points right; wear it between the fourth and fifth buttons of your shirt).
In a number of ways, this project really couldn't happen without pervasive Internet access. When I started wanting to wear a pocket square (b/c Prince William wore one when he was in LA and it looks dapper as heck), I had to go on YouTube and WikiHow to figure out how to fold a pocket square. When I needed to shine my dress shoes, I had to read a bunch of blog posts about how to do it. Same with ironing. Same with tying a knit tie.
The interesting thing from the above examples that has got me thinking is how much the Internet is compensating for an erosion of traditional skills at the hands of postmodernity. With postmodern America's emphasis on convenience, comfort, and unlimited income yielding business casual and disposable crap, a lot of skills that people would normally just know how to do have dropped out of our skill sets. It turns out that wearing a suit all the time is not natural or easy and requires a lot of extra knowledge: knowledge that the Internet provides!
Given the outfits I saw people wearing at the career fair today (seriously, how do you not figure out that you have to take the label off a new suit jacket?!), this point I am making is probably obvious, but I have been really interested to experience it for myself.
Also, it really makes you appreciate the Internet.
Thanks, Internet!