With discussions of menswear on the rise both in print and online, comes the inevitable rise of discussions about WHO can discuss menswear. Specifically, about whether women should have a say in what guys wear. It’s become fashionable for journalists and bloggers to search out street cred by telling men not to dress for or by females. As a female writing about men’s style, I take this – understandably – to heart.
Essentially the criticism falls under one – or all three – of the following lines of attack:
1) You don’t speak for all women!
2) You’re not an expert!
3) You can’t tell me what to do!
To answer the above charges:
1) You don’t speak for all women!
Nope. I speak for myself. But while our parents raised us to believe we’re all unique snowflakes, many of us are, in fact, similar in many ways. Just like there are plenty of guys who like the New York Giants, or spaghetti and meatballs, or when women wear tank tops, there are many ladies who like guys in dark rinse jeans and desert boots. I am one of them. If this look jives with your own personal style – or what you aspire to for your own personal style – then give a listen. If not, feel free to seek your style advice elsewhere.
2) You’re not an expert!
No, and I’ve never claimed to be. I talk about what I like. If you’re looking for advice on how to, say, operate a forklift or perform open heart surgery, then I would agree that, sure, you should most definitely be seeking out a bona fide expert. Thankfully, I don’t write about operating heavy machinery or on bodies, so men are pretty much safe to read what I have to say without fear of injury.
3) You can’t tell me what to do!
This one gets me most of all. I am not your new stepmother with whom you’re testing behavioral limits. I am not telling you what to do or wear, and the insinuation that I am says more about a man’s aversion to graciously accepting a woman’s advice than it does about my ability to capably provide it.
The truth is, you fellas need us, just like we need you.
If men dressed with no input from women and women dressed with no input from men, you’d all be in track pants, and we’d all be in baggy T-shirts with our hair tied back, and the entire population would cease to exist.
So let’s all get over ourselves, shall we? I’m simply asking guys to tuck in your shirt once in awhile, and maybe toss any bootcut jeans. I don’t think I need to share all the same working parts as men just to do so.
What do you think? Drop me a line at megan@stylegirlfriend.com to tell me why you think women should or shouldn’t add their two cents to the men’s style conversation.
