Read Surveys (By Author)

Michael Snow

1. When do you feel at your most attractive?

I never feel 'attractive'
Some people are, some aren't What they wear never figures in to that

2. Do you notice women on the street? If so, what sort of women do you tend to notice or admire?

3. What are some things you admire about how other women present themselves?

I never notice how others present themselves

4. Was there a moment in your life when something “clicked” for you about fashion or dressing or make-up or hair? What? Why did it happen then, do you think?

5. What are some shopping rules you wouldn’t necessarily recommend to others but which you follow?

I only buy online. I would say the most important rule about searching for things on line is to be very, very specific
E.g. I don't search for 'shirt', I search for '"white" "100% cotton" "button cuffs" "shirt"

6. What are some rules about dressing you follow, but you wouldn't necessarily recommend to others?

Comfort first, always

7. What is the most transformative conversation you have ever had on the subject of fashion or style?

None. I have never had a conversation with anyone on that subject

8. Do you have a unified way of approaching your life, work, relationships, finances, chores, etc.? Please explain.

9. Are there any clothing (or related) items that you have in multiple? Why do you think you keep buying this thing?

I work from home up to two weeks at a time, so I need 15 shirts
I work with many legal clients, so need WHITE shirts
So I buy 4 white cottton shirts at a time (you usually get get great savings - sometimes as much as 60% - buying in bulk like that
Same with navy trousers, which I buy in threes
I also buy my socks always same colour, from the same place, so in my drawer any two socks is a pair

10. Have you ever successfully given someone a present of jewelry or clothing that you continue to feel good about?

I gave my wife jewellery from time to time, 95% of which she never wore

11. Is there any fashion trend you’ve refused to participate in and why?

Lots. E.g.
Jeans - nasty, coarse, hot, rough, heavy, uncomfortable fabric with harsh, abrasive seams everywhere
Jumpers - too hot and itchy
Jackets - too hot & restrictive. Only time I wear one is when I have to wear my suit

12. Can you say a bit about how your mother’s body and style has been passed down to you, or not?

Not

13. Have you stolen, borrowed or adapted any dressing ideas or actual items from friends or family?

14. Was there a point in your life when your style changed dramatically? What happened?

No. I still wear exactly the same as I did in my first job out of university - I just replace things as and when they get torn or stained (or in my younger days when they no longer fitted) with the same things

15. Is there anything political about the way you dress?

16. Please describe your body.

Slightly above average height, fat, short arms, thick neck, huge hands and feet

17. Please describe your mind.

Confident, intelligent, quick-witted, excellent memory

18. Please describe your emotions.

Calm. Not really a very emotional person

19. What are you wearing on your body and face, and how is your hair done, right at this moment?

A pair of soft brushed cotton shorts, nothing else
(I'm at home indoors)
I never 'do' my hair

20. In what way is this stuff important, if at all?

I think not at all, but because other people think otherwise, I have to dress to meet certain socially acceptable standards

21. With whom do you talk about clothes?

No one

22. How do institutions affect the way you dress?

At client sites I need to look 'professional' - i.e. shirt, trousers, shoes
Other than that, they don't

23. Do you think you have taste or style? Which one is more important? What do these words mean to you?

I have neither, when it comes to clothes, these words mean nothing to me in that regard

24. Do you remember the biggest waste of money you ever made on an item of clothing?

I nearly wasted a lot of money
I tried to get a made-to-measure (not bespoke) suit
It was a disaster
It was so bad I got a full refund and £200 compensation for my wasted time
Other than that, as I buy only bland, simple, unnoticeable things, and just replace what I already have, I've never wasted any money on clothes
I read stupid (to me) comments in articles like "we only wear 20% of our clothes" or "wardrobe full of clothes but nothing to wear?" Can't understand any of those. I wear what I have, I cycle my shirts & t-shirts and trousers so they all get worn equally, I wouldn't buy something I wouldn't wear

25. Are there any dressing tricks you’ve invented or learned that make you feel like you’re getting away with something?

26. Do you have style in any areas of your life aside from fashion?

Everyone says my home is lovely, I am a really quite good cook, I go to the theatre at least monthly (well, I did pre-Covid)
I don't know if any of those are 'style'

27. Can you recall some times when you have dressed a particular way to calm yourself or gain a sense of control over a situation that scared you?

No
Clothes have no effect on how I feel or think about myself
Whatever I wear (or nothing at all) I am the same person, with the same abilities and competencies

28. Would you say you “know what you like” in the area of fashion and clothing? If so, do you also know what you like in other areas of life, that is, are you generally good at discernment? Can you say where your discernment comes from, if you have it? Or if you don’t have it, why or why not?

No
I have never 'liked' an item of clothing
I wear what is socially necessary
I have never seen anything and thought it looked 'good' and certainly not thought would look 'good' on me, I have never seen anyone that I noticed as 'well dressed'

29. Did your parents teach you things about clothing, care for your clothing, dressing or style? What lessons do you remember? Or did you just pick things up?

None of those things

30. What sorts of things do you do, clothing or make-up or hair- wise, to feel sexy or alluring?

Nothing
Either people will find me sexy, alluring, attractive or not. If they are the sort of person who would only be attracted to someone for what they wore, they are almost certainly not the sort of person I would find attractive

31. Many people say they want to feel “comfortable,” or that they admire people who seem “confident.” What do these words really mean to you?

Comfortable means either no clothes, or soft, seamless (or seams outside) clothes, not too hot, warm enough, not tight, not restrictive
Confident has nothing to do with clothes. It means knowing yourself, your abilities, your limits and when to push them

32. If dressing were the only thing you did, and you were considered an expert and asked to explain your style philosophy, what would you say?

Be comfortable

33. What is really beautiful, for you, in general?

A smile, someone who makes me think and laugh

34. What do you consider very ugly?

Hypocrisy, bad manners, unpunctuality, being rude to people they consider 'beneath' hem

35. Are you generally a good judge of whether what you buy will end up being worn? Have you figured out how to know in advance?

100% of what I buy is worn, usually immediately, as I only buy to replace something too torn or stained to wear

36. When you look at yourself before going out, and you are trying to see yourself from the outside, can you describe a bit about what this “other person” is like? What do they like, dislike, what sorts of judgments do they have? Is this “outer eye” based on someone you know or once knew?

I don't look at myself before going out

37. What is your process getting dressed in the morning? What are you considering?

I consider nothing
For work I take the rightmost shirt (cleaned, ironed ones get hung on the left) a pair of trousers, any two socks from the drawer (I always buy the same colour and make of socks, so any two make a pair)
If I have to go out at weekends exactly the same but take the top t-shirt from the pile (cleaned, folded ones go at the bottom)

38. What are you trying to achieve when you dress?

Be socially acceptable

39. What, for you, is the difference between dressing and dressing up?

I only dress 'up' for weddings, funerals, interviews, meetings with senior clients or govt. ministers
That's when I'll wear my suit, which I hate because a jacket is so hot and restrictive

40. If you had to wear a “uniform” what would it look like?

I do already
white cotton shirt, navy linen trousers for work, t-shirt and same trousers for non-work

41. What would you say is “you” and what would you say is “not you”?

Me: Comfort, books, travel, good food, substance, function, performance
Not me: Fashion, TV, sports, fast or microwave food, style, form, appearance

42. What is your cultural background and how has that influenced how you dress?

White home counties working class, independent school then university, so now middle class
Hasn't influenced it at all, as far as I know

43. Do you remember a time in your life when you dressed quite differently from how you do now? Can you describe it and what it was all about for you?

44. What sorts of things do you do, clothing, make-up or hair-wise, to feel professional?

None
I am always professional, regardless of what I wear or how I dress
'Professional' is a state of mind

45. How do you conform to or rebel against the dress expectations at your workplace?

I dress in what's socially acceptable

46. Do you have a dress code, a school uniform, or a uniform that you wear for an extracurricular activity?

47. Are there ways in which you conform to or rebel against these uniforms?

N/A

48. Do you find it comforting or constraining to have a uniform?

It's not 'comforting'
It removes the necessity for wasted time and thought

49. What is an archetypal outfit for you; one that you could have happily worn at any point in your life? What do you like about it?

I am never 'happy' about any clothes
I don't 'like' any clothes
I just wear what's socially acceptable - so shirt & trousers for work, t-shirt and trousers for non-work

50. Do you ever wish you were a man or could dress like a man or had a man’s body? Was there ever a time in the past?

N?A

51. If there was one country or culture or era that you had to live in, fashion-wise, what would it be?

I have absolutely no idea about how to answer a question like this

52. Do you consider yourself photogenic?

53. When you see yourself in photographs, what do you think?

I look drunk, or a criminal, or a drunken criminal

54. Are there any figures from culture, past or present, whose style you admire or have drawn from?

55. Have you ever had a dream that involved clothes?

56. What would be a difficult or uncomfortable look for you to try and achieve?

Jeans, jumpers, jackets - all too uncomfortable to wear

57. If you were totally comfortable with your body, or your body was a bit closer to what you wish it was like, what would you wear?

I have no thoughts about my body at all, if it changed I would wear exactly what I wear now

58. Is there anyone that you are trying to attract or repel when you dress?

59. Are there any dressing rules you’d want to convey to other women?

60. What do you think of perfume? Do you wear it?

No. It's incredibly antisocial to wear perfume in public

61. What are some things you need to do to your body or clothes in order to feel presentable?

Nothing
I think what I wear is good enough to be 'presentable'

62. How does makeup fit into all this for you?

I never wear it

63. Is there a certain look you feel you’re expected to like that you have absolutely no interest in? What is it? Why aren’t you interested?

Any 'look'
I have absolutely no interest in clothes at all

64. Can you describe in a basic way what you own, clothing and jewelry-wise?

15 white cotton shirts
3 pairs navy cotton/linen trousers
~30 black wool/cotton socks
15 pairs underpants
~30 cotton t-shirts
1 pair black leather shoes
1 black leather belt
1 navy summerweight wool suit
A few ties
1 winter coat
1 pair cotton hiking trousers
1 pair black leather hiking boots
1 pair soft cotton indoor shorts
No jewellery

65. What is your favorite piece of clothing or jewelry that you own?

I don't understand the concept of 'favourite' clothes
To me, that's like having a favourite paving slap you step on while walking to work

66. Tell us about something in your closet that you keep but never wear. What is it, why don’t you wear it, and why do you keep it?

No
If I own it, I wear it

67. Looking back at all your purchases over the past five to fifteen years, can you generalize about what sorts of things were the most valuable to buy?

I don't really understand 'valuable' wrt clothes
Everything I buy I wear
The most expensive single thing was my suit (£200)
It gets worn maybe 4 times a year
The cheapest were my socks, which get worn every day
Which of those is most 'valuable'

68. Is there an item of clothing that you once owned, but no longer own, and still think about or wish you had back? What was it, what happened to it, and why do you want it back?

69. If you had to throw out all your clothes but keep one thing, what would you keep?

No idea

70. Building up your wardrobe from nothing, what would you do differently this time?

Don't know
Probably nothing, without outside assistance

71. What’s the first “investment” item you bought? Do you still own or wear it?

No idea what an 'investment' item is

72. Was there ever an important or paradigm-shifting purchase in your life?

My first computer?

73. What item of clothing are you still (or have you forever been) on the hunt for?

I've have never 'hunted' for a clothing item

74. What are your closet and drawers like? Do you keep things neat, etc?

Wardrobe hanging space: shirts, trousers, suit, ties
Wardrobe shelves: t-shirts
Wardrobe drawers: pants, socks

75. Were you ever given a present of clothing or jewelry that especially touched you?

No
Luckily I have very very seldom been given clothes as presents, and never jewellery

76. Did you ever buy an article of clothing without giving it much thought, only to have it prove much more valuable as time went on? What was the item and what happened?

77. How and when do you shop for clothes?

Online, as infrequently as possible, only to replace something too torn or stained to wear

78. Do you like to smell a certain way?

Clean

79. How does how you dress play into your ambitions for yourself?

In no way whatsoever

80. How does money fit into all this?

It doesn't
I take home ~£1220k p.a.
I spend under £150 p.a. on clothes
(Actually, thanks to working from home for the past six,seven years i haven't needed to buy anything new for about three years

81. Is there an article of clothing, a piece of make-up, or an accessory that you carry with you or wear every day?

For work, white shirt, navy trousers

82. Did anyone ever say anything to you that made you see yourself differently, on a physical and especially sartorial level?

Yes
(Which is why I'm here)
A few weeks ago a friend asked "I have to know, why do you always dress so terribly?"
And my other friends (some of whom I've known for 10-20 years) all said stuff like "Oh, that's just the way he is" "He's always dressed like that" "You'll get used to it"
Which means I've been dressing terribly for twenty years without knowing it
When I asked them what was wrong with how I dress they said stuff like "It's just that you have really bad clothes" "Nothing fits" "You always look terrible" "It's all awful. Just awful"
:(

83. Do you remember the first time you were conscious of what you were wearing? Can you describe this moment and what it was about?

As above in Q82

What’s your birth date?  Where were you born and where do you live now?

30/10/1964, born Essex, live Surrey

Say anything you like about your cultural/ethnic/economic background.

I don't understand the question

What kind of work do you do?

Freelance Project Manager

Are you single, married, do you have kids, etc.?

Widowed, no children

Please say anything you like about yourself that might put this survey into some sort of context.

Apparently I dress terribly
I don't understand why or how
I need some help

How do you feel after filling out this survey?

Nothing

← Go back