Jumping Back to 2014 Threads
So, yeah, I found myself digging into men’s fashion from around 2014. Don’t ask me why right off the bat, it just kinda happened. I was probably looking at some old photos, you know, the kind that make you cringe and laugh at the same time. My wardrobe felt… well, stuck. Needed a bit of a shake-up, or maybe a look back to move forward, who knows.
First thing I did, I just started searching online. What were guys wearing back then? Pulled up a bunch of stuff. Seems like it was a time for:
- Slimmer fits: Not super skinny like a few years before, but definitely not baggy. Chinos were big then.
- Layering: A lot of shirts over tees, or those light jackets. That was definitely a thing.
- Bomber jackets: These were absolutely everywhere, weren’t they? I swear every other guy had one.
- Clean sneakers: Or those desert boots. God, remember desert boots? I definitely owned a pair.
So I tried a few things. Actually went and dug out an old bomber jacket from the back of my closet, just to see if it still worked on me. Tried on some slimmer cut pants I hadn’t worn in years. Felt a bit odd at first, honestly, like I was putting on a costume from a not-so-distant past. A bit like playing dress-up with my own memories.
Wasn’t Just About the Look, Though
Pretty quickly, I realized I wasn’t just trying to copy-paste outfits from a magazine from a decade ago. That’d be silly, and I’d probably look ridiculous. What I started to feel was more about the whole vibe of that time. Or at least, what I remembered it to be. It felt… I don’t know, a bit more straightforward? Maybe a bit less complicated than how style feels now sometimes, with all the micro-trends.
And then I started connecting the dots, almost without thinking. The music I was listening to back in 2014, the movies that were out, even some of the tech that was new then. It all kinda tied together with the clothes people were wearing. It’s funny how fashion does that, it’s like a little snapshot of everything else going on around it. You don’t really notice it at the time.
Okay, Why 2014 Specifically? Good Question.
Now, you’re probably wondering why I got stuck on 2014 of all years. It wasn’t some grand plan, or a sudden obsession. The truth is, I was cleaning out my old home office, you know, the kind of deep clean you only really commit to every ten years or so. And I found this old external hard drive. Hadn’t plugged that thing in for ages, totally forgot what was even on it.
Curiosity got the better of me. Plugged it in, and bam. It was like a time machine straight back to 2014. Not just photos, though there were plenty of those, mostly terrible selfies I wisely never shared. But old work projects, emails I’d saved for some reason, music I’d downloaded, even some half-baked business ideas I’d jotted down in a rush of inspiration. It was a digital ghost of my 2014 self staring back at me from the screen.
Going through that stuff, man, it was a trip. Made me think a lot about where I was then, what I was aiming for, compared to where I am now. The fashion thing, it sort of tagged along with that feeling. Like trying on those old styles was a way to physically connect with that period, that younger, maybe slightly more naive, version of me. It sounds a bit daft, I know, but that’s how it felt.
Life back then felt… different. I was chasing different things, that’s for sure. Some good, some not so smart in hindsight, but all part of the journey, right? Seeing all those old files, it kinda made me re-evaluate some stuff I’m doing today, or maybe some things I’ve stopped doing.
So, Am I Rocking 2014 Style Now?
Nah, not really. I’m not about to walk around looking like I stepped out of a time warp. That wasn’t the point of this whole exercise. But it wasn’t a waste of time either, not by a long shot. I did rediscover a couple of things, a few clothing items, that actually still work for me. Maybe a certain cut of shirt, or just remembering that it’s okay to try something different, even if that “different” is something old you’d forgotten about.
The biggest takeaway, though, wasn’t about the clothes at all. It was that whole accidental dive into my own past, sparked by a dusty hard drive and a random curiosity about old fashion trends. It got me thinking properly. Sometimes you gotta look back a bit to get a clearer picture of where you’re going, you know? Or just to appreciate how far you’ve come.
So yeah, my little “2014 men’s fashion practice” turned into something else entirely. It started with a bit of fun with clothes, but it ended up being a bit of a check-in with myself, a moment of reflection. Funny how things work out sometimes.
