Real Men Don’t Shop, Help for the fashion Phobic Meets Gay Machismo

There is an enormous amount of stigma attached around machismo in the our gay world. Some gay men simply do not want to ‘look gay’. That’s a whole can of worms I just dropped so for this moment we focus on shopping. Shopping is for girls and sissy boy’s has been the message spread in mainstream media of the past. To break away from this thinking is not so easy for some of our gay brother who are trying to hold to there ‘manliness” or not comfortable in their gay skin they have been born into. Otherwise known as internal-homophobia. I fall prey to this as well. After buying a delicious $20- salad recently from San Francisco’s Firewood Cafe in the Castro district, I found myself rolling down the sides of the ‘retail shop’ looking bag, so I wouldn’t look like a gay on a shopping spree. But indeed I was carrying fru-fru salad. Things that make the gay in me go hmm. AB

I found this great read in The New Yorker called Real Men Don’t Shop, Help for the fashion phobic

ABSTRACT: ON AND OFF THE AVENUE about menswear. Brooks Brothers is still a fine place to go for unpretentious staples like khaki summer suits, oxfords, and button-down shirts. At J. Crew, purveyor of the I Don’t Care look, broken-in chinos, pre-faded T-shirts and madras shorts abound. In the Ralph Lauren mansion, the polo player logo appears on shirts and knits, sometimes three inches tall. Paul Stewart dresses men who want to look quietly dapper in suits of mixed American and English design. Bergdorf Goodman Men’s has exquisite Continental suits at exquisite prices. Designers include Isaia, Etro, Dries Van Noten, and Thom Browne. Tom Ford is no place for the unhip or chunky.

Left Field Spring/Summer Button Downs

Eeny, meeny, miny, moe I chose blue and brown, classic, retro and brings out sexy blue eyes. Perfect for HOT summer days.

Crafted in the USA, Left Field’s Summer shirting include real Trocas Shell buttons, a button down collar with third button on the center back, locker loop at the shoulder seam and notched short-sleeve cuff with button detail. Two are made from rom a barely-there light Japanese madras, while the third is made from baby-butt soft organic cotton gingham. All three look cool and will help beat the heat. (via Selectism)

MORE PICS AFTER JUMP