Everyone wants to get BRANDED

Reality Check: Korea's Clothes Suck

The folks here in Korea seem to be all about dressing fancy. But really they do it like a blind, amputee in a dark closet of left over 80's clothes. I think in my time here (9 months) I have bought 2 t-shirts and a pair of pants. I'm a shopper, I am wasting away.

So internet shopping has been my saving grace. Problem is that I don't want to wear something blazoned with the company that has clawed their way through the masses of candy coated teenage girls and is now presented as "the best" of their time.

It's clothes people! You wear them to cover your bad tan lines, the celluloid and the hairy legs that haven't been shaved since you went out on New Year's.

But for real we all want to wear something with a little bit of recognition. We also want something that makes a statement about us, what we do and how we live.

• Most people want there cloths to say, "Look how much disposable income I have." Which is easy with every sock, earring and pair of pants with some designers name on it.
• Others would rather scream, "I'm comfortable!" their clothes usually say "100% cotton, jersey knit."
• Often ex-pats like, "Look where IIII'VE been." (A fav of mine when things haven't reached their expiry date.)
• And then of course we must have our counter culture folks with the, "A friend of mine who you would never talk to in a dark alley made this after a really great hash party."

So in reality we are all branded it's just a matter of what you want to say and whether you have to say it or you if your gonna let Eddie Bauer say it for you.

All of this to support some really cool "Non-Brands" that I have found out on the net. Neighborhoodies has some way fun stuff. Think NYC Urban Outfitters. Need to get me a gift? Just grab me a GC and I'll be all up on a "Tenderloin Dist." Hoodie. Not to mention they do this Free MP3 a day thing, it's good stuff and they have an archive you can stream while you shop their site. Ni-ce!

Then there's American Apparel which is trying to fill the trendy-minus-the-name-niche. Little more sunsplashed, Cali, industrial look, but when you've got the tunes running from Neighborhoodies it's all icing. Check'em out shoppers and skip your local strip mall.