I was wondering if any aspi's here have a sense of style?Of any type really, weather it be dress sense, movement, music or speech even, possibably even personality.

As I have been getting older I am continually trying to almost build a style and personality. When I was in my teens I think I was a typical Aspi, much closer to full Autism, i had absolutely no sense of style, but as my interests have progressed I practically upgrade and add on to myself.
I have always like gothic stuff, mysteries, psycology and magic. I have also always liked neatness and solid colours and stright lines and to draw.
Up to a few years ago I hated clothes, but now I enjoy them, and have two wardroves.
I wear mostly black, a little white and red, neat stuff , like velvet and leather jackets, usually long length and very black sholdier length hair, this all suits my mind magian personality I have been developeing.

I want to know if any other aspies develope style? I would imagine some Aspies with neatness obsessions may have some, then there will most likely be those who do not wish to worry about clothes at all.
Or are there those who may have obsessions like music and dress accordiningly.
I would be facinated to hear some opinions on this.


Kirk.

I have absolutely NO style, nor any true comprehension about current fashions. I have an AS friend though, and he manages to look neat and trim and fashionable all the time. How? He asks the ladies who work in the different menswear departments to pick out much of his stuff, then later on he will match those items with minor variations in color. It seems to work for him.

Hi Kirk, much like you Max has a definite style - it is wearing all black. It has to be black and it has to be comfortable. No writing on shirts etc. And he wants his hair long and straight (it is very curly so that is a challenge). I spend a lot of time straightening his hair but since this is the first time (at 13) he has taken any really interest in how he looks I don't mind. Linda

Linda,
I am often termed a goth, though I prefere semi goth because I'm not one on purpose. Black lends itself to my interests, but when anilised it is actually because black is esy and neat and goes with almost anything, I tried colour in my late teens and my head nearly exploded with the trying to make things match.
Funny you maneion strightening, I had my own mother use my strightener to put a slight upturn inwards in my hair last night

Bart, I often think when you've never really been in style(like the goths) you can't go out of style.

I think my sense of balance guides my clothes toom like I can wear shoes with throusers but never with Jeans or combats. I wear anything from full cowboy boots to half ones for combats.
I find it very interesting to watch fashion, in truth most of the boyband fashions look the same anyway, mostly blue jeans of boot cut and some for of shirt.

Music wise, I'm not really sure how adaptable other aspies are, I have just been lucky that my philosophy is about listeing to something through twice before decideing, Hence i like classical, musicals, sinatra, 80's , rock and metal music, but my instincts tell me aspies may not try so many new thigns, in my case I just keep wanting more as I tend to be able to memorise music too well so eventually there is not much point in listeing to it over and over again.

Kirk.

Many U.S. stores carry kid's clothing called "Garanimals."

Basically, you know if the top and the bottom match by whether they have the same animal tag.
I always thought somebody could make a fortune in that for men's clothing! You put on a certain sweater, and you wonder which pants match - so you just check the inside label, and see elephant for the sweater, and gorilla for the pants, so you know it's no good. Maybe some sweaters would have two 'animals' that are acceptable matches, etc.

Aspie heaven, if you ask me - or a lot of men of all types, come to think of it.

For me, black panths, black top, not complicated at all.

Last night we were singing christmas carold in the airport, so I wore black throusers, a black shirt with a red silk tie and velvet suit jacket that was practically a taoilered fit.
Simply styleish and effective with it being christmas. the red silk tie along with the velvet jacket and black shirt made it all very christmassey and was with in my own style.

Kirk.

My son would love your style Kirk. Sounds like you looked great and what a fun thing to do, caroling at the airport. I love that you are so much out in the world and enjoying it. Where you always like that or did that develop as you grew older? Linda

And Howie, sandals would automatically not go on the foot if it had a sock on it!

Hi Kirk - your dress sense does sound very stylish and effective for the occassion.

I liked your Halloween photo - you look good with your hair longer. I imagine you make quite a statement with about yourself with the way you dress.
I love to sing Christmas carols at christmas time - at work I put Christmas Carols on and I like to sing along with the music. The patients don't seem to mind too much (I hope). I am working on Christmas day - so another good excuse to put on some carols and sing along.
Do you enjoy celebrating Christmas traditions?

Oh yes, I love christmas, one of my friends finds that odd with my being something of a goth and all.

When it comes to being out in the world, that is something I have had to develope and push myself on, it was not easy and still is not,m i'm not sure every aspi would manage it with out majour insentive, i had the insentive of needing people to perform hypnotism and magic and thing of simular standing on.
I had to practically boot myself out on stage the very first time I performed in a musical. I also did not want to be heard singing but as time wore on I found that if your honest about your talents you have nothing to worry about. So long as you do not claim to be the best and simply do with every one elese does, which is simply trym it doesn't matter if you suceed or not, to simply try I think is enough.
I am still not the greatest with people but I learn and observe, i do not believe in running away even though it is an instinct I still have at times.
The musical society I belong to is something which has helped me imensely, I learned by looking around that any one in the musical society is slightly whackey. the Daughter of the charman is some one who with out realising it, inspired me, she is a bid whackey slightly odd and hugely confidant, she performs in a few plays and will often dance out or sing a song on her own just because shes a little hyper or happy. the people in the society made me realise you have a kind of licance to be slightly excentric or outlandish in your own way. The chairman often wears a crocodile dundee type hat and long cashmere coat, one lady often wears broches of different sorts, I could go on but the poit i was making is that to simply be confidant and stylish in your self actually seems to be enough some times.

I'm thinking that we Aspies can learn style of our own if we do not have any in the first place.
Bart, as I recal you like rally driveing? In a position such as that I would look at some photos of what such famous people wear in there spare time and if that was my out and out hobby i would adsjust my style accordingly. My father plays golf at the weeks ends, and interestingly, though i think unconsciously his every day style is that of a golfer, he wears shirts and v neck jumpers and neat throusers.

I do recal hearing some time back the Albert Einstein had many relicas of the same suoit in his wardrobe to avoid complication, while that makes sense, people I found assime you have been wearing the same stuff for weeks, though I do have a few of the same clothes, like I have two pairs of Joe Sanches full cowboy boots but that was to reduce there wear and tear, I also have a pair of half cowboy boot and shoes which i alternate between.
I think my mother is very hapy at this time as it has taken her over 25 years to get me interested in clothes of any sort and it's only taken effect in the past 3 years, before I could not quite get a grip on what I should wear, though I tried lots of things, black was my first style and I have reverted back to it.

O, and thankd Ellen for the compliment on my haloween photos, I loved that costume,though in realith it was just a bit of make up.

Kirk.

That is interesting Kirk. Max likes to play music and I can imagine that one day his desire to play music may inspire him to be out there more with people. I think it is great that you have found both a way and a place to fit in in a public format. I think they are lucky to count you among their number. Linda

Kirk - your post was really interesting.


Good for you. I guess the more you do something the easier it becomes.

I get the impression the musical society as well as helping you, adds hugely to your enjoyment of life.

My husband has a passion for surfing - and I guess when I think about it surfers in some ways almost have a culture of their own - clothes,language and a few other things - much in the same way goths do - I suppose.

It's interesting you say that Ellen, I have found that the more one does something, that it almost becomes natural and you can do it almost on automatic, no matter how hard it is.

Two years ago I was in a play/musical that required us all to remain on stage and act natural through out the entire show, aside from one intermission, we were playing the part of prosioners in a prison. By the end of the run, of the show, i no longer had even a tiny bit of any stage fright of any sport, before I was very awair when I had to perform anything on stage, but that show hugely desenseatised me.Simularly, in learning magic, the moves that were so hard at the start as well as timeing for my magic skills eventually became second nature to me, so i can make any object appear or disappear with out any effort or thought, compared to at the start it was a huigh feat of coordination.

Kirk.

I have no sense of style.

Clothes for me are practical items only. They need to be practical, hardwearing, lots of pockets etc etc.

Sometimes when Im really hypervigilant/paranoid i make a habit of wearing darkish clothes to aid blending in at night time.

in school, i dressed goth. ppl thought i was weird to begin with, so i dressed in a way to get me the attention i could control. nobody associated with me in school, but dressing goth meant i controled them not wanting too. circular logic. But the friends who i did make (the other goths) we so open about who i was. best choice i made.

i now dress for who i need to be. More business like if i need to switch on my business personaility... casual if i'm being laid back, ect. i find it easier to act appropriately if i'm dressed appropriately.

I use music to sway my moods to where i need to be too. I can rev myself up or bring myself down pretty quickly with a couple songs.

lol, it's all about control to me!

Panthossette, I understand that, despite the goth style does not mean I dress in leather al the time but no matter what style i dress in I adapt my colouring to suit it. For example when I dress Business, the suit is a black pinstripe, with a black shiney tie and shirt, though i do alternate. I wear a long cashmere Jacket when it's cold, my long leather coat is saved for when i gfo out to music or gigs when i need my style to be a bit more outragious. For christmas I have been wearing a crushed velvet frock coat.
That music swaying your mood idea is a colclusion I have also come to.I was feeling bad at one point some time agin and happened to put on an upbeat Cd in the car and found that it actually broght up my mood.

Of course some goths paint there room black, that would just be insane, no matter how positivbe you are the psycological effect of being sorouned by black are very bad, wearing it is one thing, but I think people liveing in dull coulours will sooner or later want to kill themselves.

Kirk.

When I was about twelve, perhaps due to bullying, I started becoming more self-conscious, and began concealing my arms and legs inside my clothes- by which I mean I stopped wearing T-shirts and shorts. I had very little sense of style, and if my mother told me, "Those clothes don't match" or "they're out of date", my simple answer was "I like them". As time went on, although I did get better at colour-coordination, my clothes were no more "in". As an adult, my dress-sense has been described as a cross between that of a gentleman farmer, a lord on a stag-hunt and a middle-aged man going out to walk his dog. At the moment I am doing Theatre Studies at university, and although I am not at all into parties or Hallowe'en, like Kirk when I get involved in plays I do like to dress up. I am hoping to stage a performance of Doctor Faustus this semester. That's quite a "Gothic" play as well.