|
|
 |
 |
| Sunday, 2 May 2004 |
 |
|
 |
Magazine |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
|
Good for'em : The fashion savvy male by Umangi de Mel Men can no longer afford to raise their eye-brows at the fairer sex for spending what seems like an eternity at beauty salons or designer-wear stores. Nor can they scoff at them, females for doing whatever possible to watch the figure. Tables have turned lo and behold, it's the men who rule the ramp and take the trouble to look 'good'. Sophistication and looks, are two words that seem to be indispensable in male vocabulary.
He feels that the Sri Lankans are like slaves to fashion who don't really analyse if it suits them or not. "They just wear it cause it's in vogue." The fashion savvy male seems to have taken grooming very seriously and pays attention to it as much as the females do. "Actually men pay more attention to grooming than women. If you take the day-to-day life, 70 per cent of the working type males are well-groomed than women. Especially at the end of a day, you find the female not so bothered about their looks. On the contrary, the male would look very neat with the shirt tucked in and hair in one place," Michael says and adds, "If you take shoes, the males bother to polish the shoes whereas women don't seem to polish the heel in a black shoe, that needs polishing." According to him, small things matter a lot. "For example, men take better care than women of their nails."
Michael says that it's easier to pick 10 guys at random of which seven will be well-groomed. "This country has always seen males who are more conscious about looking good and pleasant."
It certainly looks as if men spend on fashion much more than they did before. "Most definitely" says Michael and adds, "A guy would not be wearing what he wore two years back, today. They tend to follow more fashion trends". He feels that the word 'gym' has played a vital role in the young lives today. "Gym has a major impact on the fashion industry today.
Although it's the western techniques and style that continue still, eastern fashion too seems to be getting back. "Clothing wise, western style still prevails. The sarong is our national costume but it's not suitable for office wear. Yet eastern fashion never died. There's one segment in the fashion culture that's very Sri Lankan in their thinking. You see people who are into arts and music wearing the Kurta." He says that even the Kurta has been slightly westernised. "The new type of shirt that people wear now is more on the lines of a Kurta". Michael believes that Indian influence is not only found in Sri Lanka but all over the world. "I think it's totally because of the first Miss Universe and Miss World, India had a major boom in their fashion industry after they won those titles. The other influence is Bollywood. People are majorly influenced by what comes in the movies."
It also includes pressing your clothes, polishing your shoes and matching what you wear. Clean clothes is a must when it comes to grooming," he says adding that body odour is a problem often occurred in Sri Lanka. "Best thing is to take a deodorant with you. Most people don't believe in it, but it can be very offensive. Grooming and looking good is not only the clothes you wear. Hygiene is what matters most," concludes Michael. |
|
News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security
| Produced by Lake House |
"In my opinion, it's what suits you best and not what's in
vogue," says Michael Wijesooriya, designer talking about the 'in
looks' for the fashion conscious male. "Also, it's definitely not
'anything goes'. It's more fitted type of clothes rather than the baggy
ones. What people need to remember is to analyse their bodies before going
for any kind of clothing. The age doesn't matter although at some point
you've got to think about it too. If you are 50 years old and have got no
stomach, you can still wear fitted clothes," he says.
Males do feel sort of incomplete when they's not groomed in the modern
sense of the word. They may even feel that they lack sophistication.
"If you look around town, you get enough and more shops where
everything's available for reasonable prices. "You get very trendy
clothing now. There's no need to spend a lot to look good. Considering the
fact that women have a bigger variety of clothes than men, it's a wonder
that you still find the man looking very trendier the average
female," he points out.
Speaking of the availability of male grooming services, our designer
says that it's mostly salons. "From hair cuts, to facials and
clean-ups, a salon caters to the needs. Even manicure and pedicure are
done at most salons for men. Earlier males had an attitude that going to a
salon could spoil the macho image and that salons are not a guy thing but
it's changed now. Actually it's the female who make the male feel like
it's a feminine thing when it's not."
Everybody's become more health conscious and makes an attempt to take
care of their bodies. It's good to work out and be more concerned about
what they eat cause it all revolves around fashion and looking good.
Giving a few tips for the well-groomed man, Michael says that it's to
be done on a daily basis. "It's the basic cleanliness, trimming your
hair, moustache, side burns, finger nails and toe nails.
