I HATE! Denim on Denim

I have long since known that wearing denim on denim is a crime of fashion. I did not know, however, that there is an official name for this unacceptable practice. Apparently, it's been dubbed the Canadian Tuxedo, which sounds awful even if you don't know what it is.

But alas, I digress. Let me get back on point. The Canadian Tuxedo was suggested to me as a topic I might like to write about (i.e. something I might like to hate) by a dear friend of mine who has been living in Ireland for the past two years or so. I guess I'm to gather that many Irishmen (and don't get me wrong, I would never ever diss my own heritage) have fallen victim to this trend. Perhaps that's why she suggested it? Although, judging from the sheer horrendousness of it (see picture at left - we all remember the 2001 American Music Awards, but unfortunately not for the music or the winners), I would have assumed that this abomination was American-specific.

Regardless, this is definitely something that has been on my radar. Denim on demin, even if the denim matches exactly, is never acceptable. Why wear so much denim? Why not diversify? No one is going to want to look at you if you're wearing the equivalent of a denim jumpsuit. No one is going to know where to look if you're wearing denim from head to toe. It's not just natural. Even the cowboys intermingled a plaid shirt here and there.

And don't even get me started on wearing UN-MATCHING denim on denim. There is no excuse for this. There's nothing I can even say to justify such a thing. This just shouldn't happen. Ever. If you're wearing one wash / color / shade of denim on the bottom, refrain from wearing the jean jacket of a different wash / color / shade. I'm sure there's something else in your closet - another alternative. How about some nice paisly or plaid or gingham? Anything would be preferable to an un-coorindated denim jacket or shirt.

Let me just explain where the problem lies exactly because I'm not sure I'm being 100% clear. When you wear two different washes of denim, a light wash jean jacket with dark denim jeans for example, you look like you were trying to match, but failed miserably. It just looks trashy. You look straight out of the 80s and I think this is a trend, unlike old-school Ray Bans for example, that we never ever want to be reincarnated. And especially if you're wearing a head-to-toe denim get-up and living and/or visiting New York City, you're basically screaming 'I'm a tourist from some bumblefuck town in the Mid-West, please ridicule me mercilessly, rob me, and strip me of dignity.'

So the moral of the story is that unless you're a cowboy that actually needs to wear a matching denim suit for ranching purposes (and even if you are and you do, you should change before leaving the house to attend a public function), then there is absolutely no need to ever wear denim on both halves of your body.

I HATE! Crocs

I think it's entirely possible that Crocs are, in fact, the ugliest shoes ever invented. (And think I have the right to pass judgment because I'm practically a shoe connoisseur - you can ask anyone.)

My question is this: Why can't people see how truly hideous theses shoes are (...if you can even call them shoes - they're more like floatation devices for the feet)? They're neon foam clogs with a heel strap. Doesn't the description alone kind of make you want to vom? What is so remarkable about this shoe? Why does everyone from Mario Batali to my two-year-old cousin show up looking like they're wearing just the feet from a Sesame Street character costume? I actually believe that Mr. Batali was one of the original proponents of the Croc phenomenon, which is odd considering that he is such a large man, and the two giant pieces of foam-rubber on his feet make his legs look like those toothpicks that hold sandwiches together.

Regardless of who should really be blamed for, i mean, credited with the introduction of the Croc, the shoe has caught on like wildfire, and now I am forced to see this atrocious trend whenever I walk out my front door (and even inside my front door, so to speak, as I recently discovered one of my boyfriend's roommates owns a pair. I almost jumped out of my skin when I came upon them). The company must really be doing well because, to my dismay, a Crocs store (read: a store entirely filled with Crocs - nothing but Crocs) was put in a few blocks from my office and now, everytime I walk uptown, I am unwillingly subjected to the new fur-lined, yes fur-lined, Crocs annoyingly situated in the front window.

Maybe I understand them as a shoe for little kids. They are foam-rubber, which is easy for those members of our society who have not yet fully developed hand-to-eye coordination. You can just slip your foot inside - no laces needed! (Let me just take this moment to note that Crocs are almost in the same family as, if not identical to, clogs and I HATE CLOGS as well; they may in fact be the ugliest type of show ever created. Blog entry to follow.) They seem to be safe for little kids, although I do not understand how a clog-esque shoe stays on your foot as you run. I do also recall hearing a few stories of children getting their Crocs sucked into escalators, but that's just water under the bridge. (It seems the Croc company did a pretty good job of sweeping reports of those incidents under the rug.) And they're colorful, which is something kids are apparently in to. And you can buy these additional little pieces in the shape of flowers or trucks or stars or whatever you want to decorate the outside of the Croc with. (You wanna know how I know all this? I spent an afternoon babysitting my two-year-old cousin / dissecting / studying her three pairs frighteningly overly-adorned of Crocs.) So I get it; they're fun for little kids. Still ugly, but fun... I guess.

But my pain problem with the shoe lies with the other demographic who has seemed to take a liking to Crocs - ADULTS! There is actually no legtimate excuse for any adult to be caught dead wearing Crocs. They may be comfortable (I'm convinced that this is the main reason why the Ugg trend lingered so long), but they are truly hideous and the two simply don't cancel each other out! There are plenty of other comfortable shoes that aren't butt ugly. Not to mention that no one will respect you if you wear Crocs (how Batali gets away with this, I have no idea). They're a child's shoe, if a shoe at all, and any adult who wears these will undoubtedly look foolish and should be endlessly and mercilessly mocked. Crocs are not appropriate footwear; appropriate for saving you from drowning in a firery boat crash, yes, but for wearing, no - not for work, not for leisure, NEVER!