Why do we all deserve affordable style?
I have always been a fan of style; snappy dressing and sharp suits bring a smile to my face. Style is increasingly becoming synonymously associated with expensive designer brands, one-off bespoke items and celebrity backed companies. I believe that this is fundamentally wrong as it has created the idea that style is a trait only available to the wealthy, whose deep pockets enable them to achieve a great look and turn heads.
The irony is that this couldn’t be further from the truth. I have seen people spend a fortune on designer clothes from flashy brands with multi-million dollar advertising campaigns, but because they haven’t considered what they are buying or how they are going to wear it, they look terrible. In stark contrast I have seen people combine Primark essentials with a few choice investment pieces and walk out in an outfit that looks far superior to some designer attire.
Thus, I decided it was time to make a change and embark on a journey with all of you to assist in finding the A-list look for less.
How can you look like Ryan Gosling for less than £150?
On our right we see Ryan Gosling fresh from the set of Crazy Stupid, where he plays a young man who is exceptionally well dressed as well as dashingly charming. He takes a bumbling Steve Carrol under his wing and teaches him how to dress better and improve his image. The overriding image portrayed in the film is that to be well dressed you need to spend a lot. There are frequent scenes of Steve’s wallet being torn open and credit cards being furiously swiped.
So I took one of the iconic styles from the film and tried to source it for less than £150 (not including the price of the watch). This may sound easy, but it means finding and sourcing 5 items of clothing for less than the price of Ryan Gosling’s sunglasses displayed on the right.
1 – The Sunglasses
Sunglasses are one of those items that you can spend a fortune on; normally we would recommend investing in one good pair of sunglasses to protect your eyes from UV damage.
In this case we are simply going for style, the sunglasses we found look identical to the Ray Ban’s that Mr Gosling wears, yet only cost £5. They are plain black plastic with shaded plastic lenses, allowing you to rock a look that normally costs 2000% more if you opt for the branded version. Also, if you fancy adding something a little more personal into your look, why not change up the colour for a funky pair of turtle shell or green to add a unique touch.
2 – The shirt.
The shirt worn by Ryan can easily be replaced by this TM Lewin example. The bold blue and white stripe gives the shirt a fantastic striking look, when mixed with the plain dark green trousers. It can be made smarter or more casual by easily adding a tie, Ryan wears his shirt with one button undone to give it a casual west coast summer feel. Add in a narrow dark green tie and it will completely transform the look to smart casual, and you could add a matching green jacket to take it that one step beyond smart casual.
3 – The Belt.
The tan leather belt can be bought from many establishments, but always make sure that the belt matches the same hue as your shoes. For example, if you decide to wear black shoes with this look, match the shoes to a black belt. We would recommend H & M’s tan leather belt as it is durable, affordable and comes with a simple buckle rather than a huge buckle like a lot of the competition seems to sport.
4 – The Watch
I have not included the price of the watch for one important factor: it is likely that you already own a watch, which will work with this outfit if it has a brown leather strap and simple face or is a modern chronograph in a silver or gold colour. I would not recommend wearing your watch with this outfit if it is large and chunky; oversized watches will distract from the subtle colours in the chinos as well as compete for attention with the bold striped shirt.
The watch linked with the article is simply the closest match affordable match to the one Ryan is wearing.
5 – The Trousers
The trousers I would recommend to replicate the outfit are ASOS’s Slim Fit Suit Trousers in a Dark Green Pindot. They are slim fit resulting in the right taper to the trousers, allowing you the freedom of movement you need as well as a fitted look that will complement slim, normal or athletic builds.
6 – The Shoes
Next is a great shop to get affordable stylish shoes, with a significant improvement in the quality of its products over the last few years. The ‘Hell for Leather’ shoe collection, from which we picked the tan wing tipped shoes, have especially comfortable insoles and will give you many happy miles before you need to re-heel or re-sole your shoes.
So now you know it’s affordable, Isn’t it time you got your style on?
Cost break down
Ryan’s Outfit
Assumed to be – £650
#3PG’s A – list affordable style
1 – John Lewis Sunglasses – £5
2 – TM Lewin shirt – £34.95
3 – H & M brown leather belt – £12
4 – Rotary Men’s gold watch – £125
5 – Asos Dark Green suit trousers – £25
6 – Next Wing Cap Lace Up – £50
Total (without watch) – £ 126.95
Total (with watch) – £251.95
Please tweet us or comment on what you think of these style choices. Let us know whose style you would like us to analyse next!
