FLYING THAT FREAK FLAG!

Just so you guys know: this is not another chubby guy celebrity blogspot! Thought that needed to be said! While I do appreciate those, this one's a bit more interactive, a bit more "try this at home", a bit more personal. The goal is to experience style and to make consumer choices for your lifestyle based on true expression of oneself. Release that inner bohemian-hippie-punkrock-slamdancing-rainbow-explodey-geek/freak! Have fun choosing pieces that compliment you on the outside, because we only live once; who wants to spend it in the shadows, hiding on the back of the bus, wearing cut-off Lees and the free t-shirt your bank was giving out two sundays ago??

Still, I do wanna use celebs to highlight their fashion choices. They're usually on the forefront of fashion (gasp! even the chubby dude ones?!) and have their own personal style. And while their clothes may be tailored or high-end designer brands, with today's market of sample sales, with sites like zappos and 6pm and with the bevy of independent brands and imitators marker, it's easy to shop for the same look for less.

That said, let's take a look at a real handsome guy named Tyler Labine. I first discovered this young gent while watching a pretty decent show on CW called Reaper. I remember thinking that his character on the show had a lot of similarities to typical Jack Black characters, but Tyler often played them with a bit more cool and spontaneity. The show was well written and fun to watch, I highly recommend watching that first season.

So, here he is, wearing one of my personal favorites: the crew neck sweater! I know, I know, every sweater in the stores now are either weird cosby sweaters or v-necks, but there are some choice crewnecks still available. You just have to do a bit of digging. I've managed to find some at places like Marshall's or Burlington Coat Factory; basically, overstock clothing stores that are high on the name brands but easy on the budget. The brands usually range from the preppy American brands like Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, Polo, Nautica; some European brands like Ben Sherman, Canterbury of New Zealand (wait.. is NZ in Europe?!), and rarely Fred Perry (but occasionally); and even some slightly more experimental American brands like Carapace, Cavi, LRG and Coogi.

What's cool about this shot also, is the print. Notice the broken pattern on the horizontal stripes. I love the arm stripes behaving sort of counter-geometrically if I may, as the pattern stops right at the shoulder giving a cool, put-together effect. Tyler is proudly sporting the dreaded thick-striped sweater that big dudes aren't supposed to wear. The key though, is that the sweater totally fits him and isn't in any way sagging or bulging. It's rocked with style and confidence, the way any classic piece like the crew neck sweater should be!

Also, you gotta love that hair man! It's definitely not for everyone, but it reveals a mischievous side of himself that's present in all of us. Sometimes you've got to let it fly, despite what society is telling us. His hair is styled, it's scruffy but not at all unkempt. The key is purposeful misplacement as opposed to just simply shabbiness!

So today's moral is: rock da stripes, da crewnecks, and don't be afraid to let your freak flag fly a little bit!