Wash With Like Colors.

I can't help but feel, in this town called Boston, that color just doesn't bleed into daily fashion. It may be the fact that it is still cold and wintery, but, in my opinion, that's no excuse to be a little experimental with color.

The problem, however, may lie in the availability of color on the market for men. That's why you don't see men like this everyday:
(taken from March GQ, seen on The Sartorialist: http://thesartorialist.blogspot.com/)
I feel like this sort of thing happens all the time in a place like Rome or Milan. It just infiltrates the culture.

Yesterday, I went shopping for the first time in a very long time and did some visual research. With Chris and Ayten we went to a few stores that caught my eye: Banana Republic, J. Crew, FCUK, and United Colors of Benetton. BR is always a great place for nicely made, elegant clothes. They even have a new eyewear line, a bit pricey but nice shapes.
Steering away from collared shirts because I own every last one on the planet, I rediscovered their t-shirts (well made with subtleties of indefinable unsolid color) and got one in a vibrant mustard yellow (among others; http://www.bananarepublic.com/browse/product.do?cid=35922&pid=547901&scid=547901112 ). Looking at the palette of the store however, the colors were mostly drab. Is it symptomatic of the market, are men just supposed to be more subtle?

Walking into J. Crew, colors were practically screaming from the walls, jumping up and down excitedly, dancing quite happily. Summer collection anyone? While the colors for the most part are too outrageous to pull off, walking into J. Crew with a selective eye could pull off a really nice ensemble. I fell in love with a color combination of a pink shirt, a thin navy blue sweater and a brilliant knit tie (something I thought died in the 70s). I had looked at J. Crew online and their selection wasn't as vivid as in person. Goes to show you, online just doesn't cut it. To be truly daring and creative, you have to put in a little leg work.

At United Colors of Benetton, an Italian store by which I sweat, there was some demure color and some interesting accessories. A dull dirty pink seemed to be the color they were pushing on the racks. And a short that caught my eye, that I had spotted on bluefly.com, was basically a jean short. Now, it isn't a short short or anything. It basically looks like a jean that ends right above the knee. I don't yet know what to think... thoughts?
Finally, at FCUK, there was a popping orange and some more edgy fashion. I noticed a neon yellow creeping into the clothes at Boss displayed in the window. Is color coming back in such full force that it will be neon and wild? Have we gone for a cartoon colored world? All I am advocating for is a healthy increment of the color wheel in every man's daily fashion.

All that shopping and research has made me want to clean up my wardrobe, clean up my life and live with a little more daily creative flair. Once spring hits, there's no telling what this kid will be rockin'.

Keep an eye out. Rock on.