I don't know what I want (Buyer's guide)

[quad]

still looking for more opinions: and

already have grey suede redwings and roughout maize work oxfords

[starfox64]

i was contemplating the first pair, but i think i like them more for the price than the actual shoe themselves. second is ok but i think black suede is a better choice.

[kill-9]

my APC cable knit finally came in



bonus: under new EG jacket

[whinefields]

finally got back home and had a chance to put away/organize my december purchases. good thing i'm on a no cop till may because i definitely don't need anything more

self explanatory


really awesome turtleneck made out of the softest material


raf tee


dries suit (pants and jacket)


dries lightweight coat


materials are really awesome on it; here's a closer look


lanvin wool pants


with the coolest zipper


lanvin "running" shoes



apc "tennis" shoes

[Syeknom]

What season is that Dries suit? Excellent purchases.

[areo]

Amazing jumper

[bels]

Sick purchases everyone but I'm grumpy this post is getting used as a last purchases thread. I sort of hate last purchases threads because I'd much rather see everyone posting up cool fits with their garms in the WAYWT thread than dispassionately listing them here. We don't have a legit "last purchases" thread for this reason.

Love you all though! But post fits not purchases!

[RycePooding]

Anyone have experience with Japan Blue? Can buy 0701's for 100 bucks, been liking my 501s a lot, wondering if an upgrade is worth it.

[prawnzee]

[Syeknom]

Could see some of you lads being down with this stuff.





Saw this and thought of you cameron

[thomaspaine]

Saw this dude a few months ago in the saint laurent black high tops and I can't get them out of my mind. Look great with skinny/tapered black jeans.

[rublev]

Damn that Dries coat looks amazing. Also... zipper on the Lanvin. Lets see them ON!!!

[trav]

Finally copped a jacket... Just in time for it to get warm again. Copped for $420 on ebay (BNWT) which was the high end of my bid but I'm pretty pleased.

[edward]

I've had my eye on these CdG Shirt x The Generic Man sneaks for a while, been waiting for the price to go down. Could get 'them for about $120 now. Color preference/general opinions?

[can-]

American apparel's design team has been killing it lately

I find their gear to be a great cross section of price, quality, design and point of origin and i think dov charney is a brilliant stylist and marketer, I give the dude mad props


gear under the spoiler

[maj]

i have a weird way of spending money, i allocate money to a "project" in advance and that budget is firm (with exceptions for certain things but for the sake of example) everything gets planned out in advance and if something has to be taken away then it's extra savings for me, but if something is to be added it has to be cut. no exceptions. it's this which allows me to constantly build savings while indulging in my hobbies and i'm planning a last few cops before the summer freeze as i did last year which has left me with a dilemma.

back when i was first discovering i liked black clothes there was a certain few pics that stood out to me and they , i was like "damn that shit is amaze". the prices were always stupid and i never thought anyone could afford this shit, but roll on to 2014 and here i am faced with those two pieces which inspired me for months and led to the whole pursuit of looking dope; after a few months of all work and no play they're attainable. easy choice right? owning them feels like it has to be done, it makes logical sense because they're versatile with everything in my wardrobe, they bring something completely new and they hold great design but i can't help but feel that constant worry of "no one needs £300 jeans, no one". this is supported by the idea that i wear the geography baskets 5 times a month at most, if i buy more of the stuff will i really wear it? or will i just feel obliged to. i've said it before but mr owens is like that ex gf you keep going back to every once in a while for a fling and you know you shouldn't but you enjoy yourself, then it leaves you in this greasy film of regret as you slink away, but my word did it feel good in the moment.

then on the other hand what could i do with that money, what is the "opportunity cost"? for a start i could get the two faf polos i've been eyeing, i absolutely adore wearing the one i currently own and i know they'll add something to my wardrobe, on top of that i could replace my black jeans with some new fancy ones from uniqlo as i really love wearing them at the moment but they have blood from work and a bit of raw meat on which isn't cool, on top of this i could buy a set of stans to complete my 'perfect outfit which is a re-imagination of carty from away days but with raeburn instead of a kway. even with all this i'd still have enough left over to buy the absolutely fantastic raeburn track pants and the cpc nycra bomber from this season, that's essentially a whole new wardrobe! for the cost of two items! on the counter side to this, is more better? sure i'd have loads of great shit to wear but i'm already frozen for choice at the moment leaving me unable to get ready in the morning unless i've planned out days in advance, is the point coming where i have to limit what i buy to a few key high tier treasured items?

set out like this the the choice seems it has been made for me and i suppose it is really, but i can't help but feeling which ever option i choose at some point i wish i would have chose the other but i suppose that means i'll be happy with which ever way i go. of course there is an argument for "don't by either if you'll regret anything" but i don't think there will be any real regret here, more the grass is always greener.

[Stingray Sam]

Really great post explaining your difficulty in choosing. To me it always seems like I am happier in the long term with buying one thing for more money rather than many things for the same price. It always seems like I end up looking for ways to spend all of this allocated money so that i feel that i am getting the same utility (?) or even more from the same amount of money. Of course this has been always been a choice between a mid-tier item and fast fashion pieces. Recently I've been buying higher end items that I think will be perfect rather than trying to find many less expensive items that I hope will be a close approximation. Also I applaud you on the way you approach buying items for your hobby, I almost always regret impulse purchases or end up spending more than i wanted to.

[germinal]

what are the two items? jeans and?

if i were styling maj hacks vc in 2014 i would buy:

5 pairs of palace socks
90s football shirts x 2
raf fp polo
stone island l/s polo
chris shannon tracksuit
pringle jumper
various adidas and puma trainers
some kind of baggy grey wool flannel trousers

[maj]

other item is the dorkshdw bomber, they had it last season and i nearly bought it then but this time it's ~black~.

interesting you say 90's jerseys as i have the old highbury remembrance arsenal shirt which i've always loved because of the burg and gold on a polo cut, always try to shoehorn it in at points throughout the year but never leave the house with it on, would love blank football tees without the logos and just the colours/motifs. shannon track pants look crazy and that's a major part of why i want the raeburns as a summer/lighter substitute till they drop and you've pretty much hit the nail on the head with the rest of the items i'm considering bar the socks, i only do slazanger/tesco specials. aint nobody got money for £10 socks..

[germinal]

over chimbus i was reading my old i-D mags from 2009-2011 and one had a great editorial with one of the palace skateboarders, he was wearing gucci jumpers with adidas trackies and the palace socks, that's why i mentioned them. i'm biased but i like this recent direction you've taken and i think craeburn and co jackets suit it better than darkshadow, and i'd rather see your money spent supporting young british designers than lining rick's pockets lol

i kinda want this so i can wear it when they get promoted http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1994-LEICESTE ... 1197733399

[maj]

sponsors were so much better back in the day, here you see walkers crisps, arsenal had dreamcast and jvc, even o2 looked better than fly emirates.

[germinal]

shout out to hull city x cashconverters

[starfox64]

[verilyvert]

My next purchase will be my biggest of the year, and I'm pretty nervous about it. I'm looking at investing for the first time. Went to my credit union where they laid out a bunch of to pick from. I originally wanted to build my own portfolio of selected stocks, but the more I learn about it, the more I realize how helplessly ignorant I am. I also feel like I won't have the energy or time to keep on top of my own selections (unlike the time I spend on clothes). The idea of me being in control of my own finances was important to me, but I'm starting to think I might be better off trusting someone whose profession is to manage investments.

I just don't feel equipped to make this decision, and have been putting it off for way too long.

Do any of you have experience or information that might help?

[bels]

I recently started investing some of my meagre funds. I just put most of it in the cheapest bonds funds I could find and a little bit in a tracker.

I came to the conclusion that in the leagues I am playing in picking the exact best performing fund wasn't as important as picking the right type and the lowest cost.

[bhajz]

why can't u delete posts

[thomaspaine]

Avoid buying individual stocks unless you really know what you're doing.

Financial planners and managed funds that a bank tries to sell you are almost always not worth it. They're sales people, not finance experts.

ETFs and index funds are the default TLDR answer to investing.

Read The Intelligent Investor, or at least the Wikipedia page.

[can-]

are these real?

[SisterRayVU]

[freddy]

^ I agree that fees will eat up potential ROI once you divvy up and allocate your capital for equity buys and etc for a four-digit account. I think it's ideal to have at least $25k+ to get past the pattern day-trade rule for us Americans for it to be lucrative to engage in semi-active stock investing (trading). It's difficult to find an edge and quite frankly, I think it can be overwhelming for many to stay up to date on quarterly earnings, news, and overall industry trends. If anything, I think the time expecting easy money is over for stock picking.

Anyways, yeah don't buy leveraged ETFs as well, and check the fund administrator's fees for specific mutual funds and realize not all brokerages offer the same options – there may be advantages and disadvantages for mutual fund offerings.