22 Comments
Mar 5, 2023Liked by Kelton Wright

I live near Taos, NM. If you have mud on your shoes, clothes, or covering your car, you're a local. You come to whatever event in whatever makes you feel comfortable. I see SW cosplay every time I go to town - I've nicknamed it Bolocore - the necklace, not the machete. It seems to be the fashion of a certain instagrammable demographic. I call the people dressed in fur, and whatever other fashion anomaly that flies in from CA - Moiras (Schitts Creek reference). I love the Moiras. You can find them in the fancy condiment aisle in the grocery store. Or swerving all over the road high on opioids (or something). Texans are clean and drive gigantic shiny new cars - and are loud. Really loud. New Mexicans drive whatever runs - most often with some external part missing. The people that fly in drive convertible Porsches. Locals for the most part dress sensibly - we work hard, we play hard, you have to have clothes that do both. Locals come in so many different flavors, but the one thing that ties all their fashion together is layers. When you have 30-40 degree swings in temperature every day it's a necessity.

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Mar 5, 2023Liked by Kelton Wright

I’ve never been particularly fashion-forward. But in the 13 years since moving from Dallas to Seattle, I’ve developed some fashion philosophies, largely influenced by mother nature:

1) No sandals, suede, or open-toed shoes in the wet season (so, October-June);

2) Own more jackets with hoods than without;

3) Layers are required, especially when the temperature can swing wildly between a cloudy 61 and a sunny 78 degrees;

4) Tights under skirts and dresses are as much for fashion as they are for warmth; and

5) If LLBean isn’t acceptable for the dress code, I don’t need to attend.

Thanks for the history lesson! As you described the Hollywood influences on western wear, I couldn’t help but think about RHOBH Kyle Richards’ obsession with Kemo Sabe and those dang hats. 😂

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Mar 5, 2023Liked by Kelton Wright

so much food for thought here, as someone who has toggled between living in very rural and very urban environments. saw a great tweet (about portland) recently that said "Inside every Pearl District resident are two wolves. one wears the space age $400 coat from the Columbia Flagship, the other wears the $400 waxed canvas from the Filson flagship"

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I feel comfortable in the balancing space between keeping it real and varying levels of kinda weird. As a native New Mexican living in Oklahoma with one of those second homes in the high NM mountains (where survival is nontrivial), I totally feel the western fashion vibe. I have so many cultural identity complications that make some fashion choices confusing and fraught. Lately for me, these little (and not so little) dramas play out more intensely in the domain of hair - gender norms of short/long, straightened, gray or not, sustainable hair care products etc. Thanks for a thought provoking piece.

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Mar 5, 2023Liked by Kelton Wright

I aspire to live in a place where ski bibs are acceptable everywhere and all day long. And my down jackets all have duct tape somewhere...not fashionable, but used and loved. (Love your writing!)

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Mar 5, 2023Liked by Kelton Wright

I had business In Nashville about ten years ago and I had to wonder where all the cows were as it seemed like everyone wore cowboy boots and hats but I never smelled any manure

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Mar 5, 2023Liked by Kelton Wright

Here I once saw a French tourist of a certain age wearing technical fabric khakis, a perfectly tailored coral fishing shirt, and a floral chiffon scarf. It looked effortless and polished but so unlocal. Here the church culture dictates another divide among the ladies, with ratted-up inverted bobs and rhinestones on denim back pockets still popular M-S. Me, I have my frayed Duluth pants for outside days, and unstained Duluths for customer-facing days. The locals know I ain’t here here, but I’m not a tourist either. But nobody’s passing remarks like they do about the self-proclaimed witch wearing a bowler to the grocery, so I’m doing okay.

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Mar 12, 2023Liked by Kelton Wright

I grew up in Texas up until my mid twenties. Hats, boots, and the western accessories were all staples in my wardrobe. Aside from attending an occasional rodeo, I never worked a farm. It wasn't utility.

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Mar 7, 2023Liked by Kelton Wright

We love spotting the microwaves on the mountain. Even the lifties keep tallies of them as they come through. Good point you make about these people being so disconnected from function because they don’t *have* to care. It’s definitely a loud statement of privilege.

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Mar 7, 2023Liked by Kelton Wright

This is such an interesting and enlightening post. My coastal version of this is anything Lily Pulitzer and Vineyard Vines.

I'm always fascinated by what people choose to wear, or by what they've convinced themselves they *need* to wear. I think the pull between function and form always exists, so it's kind of fascinating to consider the occasions when the tension between those ideals is most noticeable and aggravating.

The fishing look from that Byrdie article is a total head-scratcher. Stylish observing, indeed!

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Oh this post was right on time for me! I have been thinking of the west as I move east from California. This morning I finished "The Four Winds" by Kristen Hannah over coffee. Fascinating to learn about 1930's migration from the Dust Bowl westward and cultural shifts that can likely be traced back to that time. There was a bit on wardrobes, and I loved learning more from you.

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I feel like I just read about a foreign land I know nothing about. I can relate to the dressing for function part but the part about fashion trends is so far away from what I can connect to. I knew I was disconnected from pop culture but as I was reading this I realized how far! Perhaps this is one of the gifts of being in my mid 50s. I dress entirely for comfort and function. I have a tiny closet and I don’t need a bigger one. And I don’t care anymore. I don’t look like a slob or anything, I dress decent, and I take good care of myself. But I actually really don’t care other than to have on something comfortable in a color that makes me happy. Lol. So my closet is full of multiple colors of the same woolx sweater. You’d laugh if you saw how I go to the lake when it’s freezing or below, but I’m going to sit still in that cold weather not be skiing. So I’ve got a big down coat and things to cover my entire head, hands and face.

Now for the question that makes me feel really dumb – what’s a puffy?

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