SOCIAL MEDIA

11 June 2014

Most Common Fashion Disaster

 I've always had a very loose definition of what counts as fashionable. I believe in allowing room for personal taste. I generally ignore rules and wear whatever clothes I enjoy, and I appreciate it when others do the same.

However...there's one article of clothing that is an unequivocal fashion disaster, universally unflattering to women--and generally speaking, not a good idea. Yet, somehow, many of us find ourselves with this item in our wardrobes:




The Unisex T-Shirt!!!
and its cousin:

  
The Unisex Polo T-Shirt!!!

Could an article of clothing, so regularly worn by so many women, be any more unflattering? I really don't think there's anything "unisex" about it. This is not a compromise between men's and women's clothing, this is a men's t-shirt, marketed to women who, for the most part, don't have nearly the muscle mass in their biceps to fill those gaping sleeve holes.

These t-shirts are bad. Yes, there may be appropriate times to use them. Putting new shingles on your house is probably an appropriate time to wear a unisex t-shirt. However, this post was inspired when I switched out my summer and winter wardrobes and counted up the huge stack of t-shirts that belong to me but would probably look more appropriate on Angel. The thing is, it seems like you never buy these t-shirts, but they simply come to you, through no fault of your own. And, unlike pretty party dresses that you love, they're practically indestructible. I have a collection of t-shirts from: church choir, Awana club, high school theater, college promotions, McDonald's handing out free t-shirts, youth group, mission trips, etc. None of them seem to be going anywhere, and, I'm proud to say, they don't get that much wear, either. Although, next time I need to get on a roof, I know I have the appropriate wardrobe.

Do you have any of these shirts, or are you going to claim complete innocence? What's your opinion on this fashion statement?
Anna Belle said...

I have a ton of these! There are so many cute ideas for making them into quilts or something (if they have more memories, like camp or band!) but I work out in them (no lululemon for me). They do end up self-destructing eventually!

Meg said...

Haha! You make me laugh! I just cleared out a scary amount of these shirts. Sad amount. And now I try to only let the ones that are more fitted/shaped stay in my closet. The other ones either don't come home anymore or they go in the pj drawer.

Being Reese 2 said...

I seriously didn't even recognize you in the first picture! And yes, I may have few of these hiding out in my closet. Though I will never admit it, even if being subjected to torture by waterboarding, I wear Mr. A's Army PT shirts when he's not around. My uniform for the past two weeks has been yoga pants, bare feet and his PT shirts. But like I said, I will never actually admit that to him...

Suzanne said...

I am so impressed you were able to shingle your house! Seriously.

I actually don't own but maybe one of these and it isn't really that big on me. Almost every tee I own does fit me. I've always been worried about looking bigger than I am and wearing an oversized tee is the first way to do that.

bisous
Suzanne

Why Girls Are Weird said...

Yeah I pretty much only use unisex t-shirts as sleep shirts....

Lauren said...

Unisex polos are the worst! They gave them to us at work to wear on Fridays like we should be excited and all the women refuse to wear them because they look like sacks. Awful!

Anonymous said...

Unisex t-shirts are my favorite to sleep in our lounge around the house!

Moonofsilver said...

wow, I've never head to Mcdonalds giving out free stuff!! And yes, I also have a lot of those. I sleep in them. Yay.

retrobellewife said...

My first job was at a theater, so...I have every one of the t-shirts that I had to wear there. Not only were the same for girls and boys, but they never had my size (not even close). My shirts always swallowed me. They would be great to lounge in, but I haven't worn them since I worked there. :)

Patty said...

LOL! This was great...once I got married and moved in all my crap, I threw out a lot of unisex t-shirts.
I worked at a hardware store for a time, and they had the worst matching polo shirts we all had to wear; major yuck!
But the fun ones with memories I'm thinking of making into a t-shirt quilt.

Kristin said...

I have tshirts from high school that I just can't get rid of…I'm too sentimental! I don't wear them though.

Mrs. Cheerio said...

I don't own any of these manly tops. I borrow them from my husband to workout in or sleep in. :)

Britt said...

Yes! I have a mountain of these that I have to get rid of almost every year because I get them for being involved in organizations/events. Luckily, this past year, my job has started using American Apparel so All of the shirts are more fitted and look great! But now I have nowhere to wear them since they're way too nice for construction projects or sleeping!

Kate @ Another Clean Slate said...

I have SO many uni-sex tshirts although I tend to cut the neck out of them since I hate how they fit.

Cramer Coffee and Jesus said...

hahaha. now that you say it, I see how un-flattering those shirts are. I started reading your post and thought "I'm sure there isn't anything Rachel couldn't pull off...." but hey, a unisex shirt is indeed one of them.

Run To Radiance said...

I will admit...I totally work out in a unisex t-shirt. But NEVER the polo!! No no. ;)

Cate @ Wild Ruffle said...

I used to have a giant stack of the freebies. But I've long since donated them. A bulky tee on my small frame is not good. Though I perhaps should've kept one just in case I need to re-shingle my house. ;)

The Lady Okie said...

I do not claim innocence! I love my unisex t-shirts. They're so comfy. For realz. Also, my sister actually has the nerve to look cute in them. Seriously, the girl could put on a potato sack and look amazing.

Kristina said...

I don't have many like that. Even the smalls are too big for me and do nothing for me. But yeah, they're good for cleaning in and stuff like that.

Inge Jane said...

Oh my gosh I have a TON of these! And you're right, I just acquire them. I feel like working in a school means there are lots of events where these free t-shirts come to you. It's okay, I wear them to the gym!

Stephanie said...

haha I refuse to wear t-shirts for that exact reason. If it's not fitted and specifically for a girl, I will not be caught dead in it. I have 4 t-shirts, all fitted from Victoria's Secret, with 1 of my 4 sports teams on it. The end!

Charlene Maugeri said...

Haha this is so true! I have SO many from college. I never wear them though but for some reason I just can't part with them, ya know?

Unknown said...

I have so many unisex t-shirts. Lately, my collection has been making it's way to my teen daughter's room. Hey, she could be wearing worse, I suppose, so I won't complain!

Steph said...

I have *tons* of these t-shirts. I agree that they are incredibly unflattering, and there are very few occasions that are acceptable to wear them (I wear mine to workout, sleep, and when I know we're doing something very messy at school).

ashleynicole said...

I have a ton of these shirts, but they go in the dresser rather than the closet because they're only really pj shirts. But one day, I went crazy and turned like 10 of them into workout tank tops. Best use ever! (I used this link: http://www.lucilleroberts.com/blog/fashion/diy-workout-tank-top)

Amanda - Voyage of the MeeMee said...

Bahahahaha... I have many many many unisex t-shirts... I wear them for bumming around or to sleep in! :)

deanna@delirious-rhapsody said...

i don't think i own a single polo. but i do have a fine collection of unisex shirts.

Unknown said...

You crack me up! I sometimes use a big T for a sleepshirt... but that's about it. It's really not a good look on my boyish frame. ~Tammy

http://wildruffle.com/2014/06/11/wrinkle-linens/

Haley said...

Agreed.. But I also thought you were sporting a fanny pack in the first picture. I would have to say those are pretty terrible too!

My New Happy said...

Sooo funny! I actually have a few of these for around the house projects or working out at home. I try not to wear them in public :)

Anonymous said...

I used to have a TON of those. I think they found their way to the giveaway pile during one of my moves. Most of them had some sort of sentimental value, but were too awful to wear other than as a sleep shirt. But now that I've been playing with my sewing machine, I wish I kept them so I could size them down and wear them in public.

Elegance and Mommyhood said...

Oh I couldn't agree more about the over-sized unisex T-Shirt and got rid of a couple I had since High School. Good riddance!!

There is a link up from June 11's post I am currently hosting at my blog. I would love for you to join me and link your next OOTD. Please if you do, link back to my blog. Thanks so much.


Enjoy the weekend Rachel - only a few more weeks left till your BIG move!!

Elle Sees said...

oh i have some shirts that i would never wear out in public! dog walking or getting dirty purposes only! ;)

Charlotte said...

BWA HAHA! The unisex shirt is a plague indeed, especially for petite girls like you and me! (Well, I don't know how tall you are, but you have a slender frame.) No matter how small the unisex shirt is, it looks like I'm drowning in it. Yes, I do have a few, from the same places you mentioned - siblings' colleges, old work shirts, etc - and I wear them as sleep/workout/around the house shirts.

Paige @ Reasons to Come Home said...

Bahaha...agreed! Although I am a fan of t-shirts, most of mine are made to fit a woman. They do accumulate very quickly and hardly ever get ruined, though!

katie said...

Can I just say...a chick wielding a chopsaw is hawt. =)

Erica said...

So true, I don't know how they seem to just magically collect!

Martha Hokenson said...

Urk, don't get me started! Thankfully I've whittled down my collection.

Saxon @ Lets Drink Coffee, Darling said...

Ugh, hate polos! Even the ones made for women...I just hate the way I look in them! I too have SO many T-shirts...from high school, college, church, etc. I generally have stopped wearing them unless they are very recent or are something I just personally still like wearing or that I am still involved with.