Apparently in SoCal, there’s a fad where they make purses out of Capri Sun pouches. You too can make them as well.

Can anyone verify the jacket that this guy is wearing? If my eyes do not betray me, the garment seems to be a jacket with the midsection cropped to about the height of the sleeves (which are short). Will the more fashion enabled please explain this jacket? Karen??

I’ve come to the conclusion that girls hate to carry their wallets. This is further excerbated by the fact that a large portion of women’s clothing do not have adequate pockets. This leaves only a few solutions: keep the wallet at home, keep the wallet in a purse, keep only money and an ID in a pocket, or let the guy carry it. For Tippy, it comes to down to the last choice.

This has many consequences. I am caught off guard when suddenly becoming the wallet-bearer. It usually happens in an instant, and then, I’m standing there with the wallet. I put it in my pocket (as I do with my own gigantic wallet), and time passes. That is, until I need to pay for something, and what I pull out is:

This, is quite an embarrasment. Sure, the wallet may be quite fashionable for a chic woman. But, I am hardly that, and am now stuck with a flowery wallet that will linger in the memories of all who surround me.

It’s the eternal struggle between ying and yang, evangelists and demons, new york pizza and deep dish chicago: men shopping with women.

Yes, all of us guys have probably had struggling shopping experiences with their SO–sitting in the dark corner of Bebe, brooding in the aisles of Kenneth Cole, and weeping in the fitting rooms of Colors of Benetton. Okay, so it may not be THAT bad, but it still can get boring.

During a shopping spree, the sole purpose of the boyfriend has been reduced to a walking coat hanger. Shirt upon skirt upon jeans, he is inundated with the task of holding hangers. This is why I don’t like to go shopping at larger stores–there’s more time to queue the clothes, which can get quite heavy.

So you may be wondering, why doesn’t he just get more involved with the shopping experience? Help pick out some clothes. Get involved with analyzing the fashionable trends. Yes, I have been accused of not being involved enough. But I disagree. I make many attempts to help pick out nice items and to critique the many lines available from the Donna Karens and the BCBGs. But this can only go so far: my primary interests are not in fashion (not to say there’s anything wrong with fasion–it’s quite a rich field).

When being boggled by the concept of fashion with respect to women, I like to make analogies. Guys like to collect cool electronic gadgets. Most SO’s aren’t as interested. In order to get a perspective on things, cool electronics to men are like clothes for women. Thinking about things this way makes much more sense. Anyone loves it when someone is involved with their interests.

So, in an effort to get more involved, I’ll write some tidbits about shopping and fashion. Not anything too technical, but maybe a quick preference or an item of interest. In any case, humorous incidents will probably proliferate in my fashion posts.

Let us begin with one of my favorite fashion topics: what I don’t like.

Here is a top Tippy picked out at Macy’s. This is what I would call the “poofy” look. I usually do appreciate the poofy look at times, but this is just over the top. The center trim on this top is way too poofy. I think it would feel like I was hugging a doily.