

At first easily confused for a “conventional” sort, the “Casual chic” personality is someone who tends to dress appropriately for every occasion and always looks stylish and well-put together. The difference between this person and the conventional dresser, however, is that a “chic” dresser adds small but important personal touches to his or her wardrobe- an elegant piece of jewelry, a silk scarf or designer tie- that speak volumes about his desire to fit in without disappearing into the crowd. The Casual Chic person is confident, successful, and perceived as attractive by others. 

We all know at least one person who will wear nothing but “designer “clothing–everything from his undergarments to his overcoat must sport an easily recognized label from a well-known clothing designer. His or her hair is done only by the most expensive, high-end salon in town and she shops for everything from makeup to mouthwash in only the most exclusive stores. While this style usually gives one an air of affluence and success, it is all too often also a sign of a person who is insecure, uncertain about his personal identity, shallow and overly materialistic.

Not unlike “Grunge” the “Goth” (short for “gothic”) look is generally worn by those who reject conventional society. Sported mostly by teens and “twenty-something’s,” the look is characterized by black clothing, black (usually dyed hair, heavy, dark makeup and jewelry that looks more threatening than fun or inviting. Those who are drawn to this look often have a number of body piercings and tattoos which they display by wearing as little clothing as possible.  (Think Jesse James former fiancé’ Kat VonD) While some people who dress in “Goth” clothing see themselves as artistic and sensitive, for the most part their underlying personalities tend to be angry, immature, thrill- seeking, hostile towards authority and depressed.

Strange as it seems, most people who dress in “athletic attire” like running suits, sweats and so-called “work-out wear” in public are not athletes, but simply people who want to be perceived as such. Those who wear athletic attire while engaged in athletic pursuits rarely want to be seen (or smelled) in public wearing the same clothes they wore while working out, for obvious reasons. Those who do wear these kinds of outfits in public are generally wearing them in order to identify themselves with a sub-culture that they find appealing but which they cannot join due to physical constraints or a simple lack of time or motivation. These people tend to be sedentary, insecure and envious of those with the ambition and drive to achieve athleticism in the real world. 

Of course, these descriptions are stereotypic representations of many different types of dressers; most of us wear a mixture of one or more of these style types on a regular basis and our personalities are a mix of those described as well. Every conventional dresser is not boring, nor is everyone who wears sweat pants to the grocery store a frustrated athlete. 