Welcome to Oster & Austere - What it Means to Define Your Style

Welcome, friends.

I hope you're as excited as I am to begin this journey. This is my first foray into blogging, and I'm sure that this will prove as much of a learning experience for me as much as I hope it will for you. Obviously, the learning I will be doing will be centered around figuring out how this platform works, and you will be learning how to carve out your style, but they are both learning experiences, nonetheless.

First, a bit about me and why I decided to start this blog.

Beginning in my later teenage years, I grew very conscious about the way I dressed. Although most of my peers - and almost everyone at that age - weren’t entirely concerned about what clothes they put on every morning, for me, it became an obsession. It began when my parents offered to buy me my first made to measure suit after I had done exceptionally well on my midterms one year. With such an expensive purchase on the line (the suit I was considering started at $900, and with options, became considerably more expensive), I was determined to make as much of an informed choice as possible. I began scouring the web, researching various materials, construction methods, and what makes a good suit.

My entire life, I had worn mainly black suits, as many men do, and I was shocked when I learned that black is a terrible first choice for a suit. Not only is it more challenging to pair with many accessories, such as ties and shoes, but it is also a color that was historically reserved for evening wear, and some see it as inappropriate for everyday wear. It also has the significant drawback of aging quite quickly.

The biggest drawback with black suits is that it doesn’t really allow for much expression. Most people who dress in black only do so because either they want to dress like everyone else, or because they see some celebrity wearing it (one might present the argument that black is slimming, but any dark suit, such as a charcoal or navy, solve this problem with equal aplomb). Obviously, that means that you aren’t forging your own style path at all, which is precisely what I wanted to do, and it’s also what I intend to assist you with.

I eventually settled on a three-piece suit (consisting of a matching jacket and trousers, in the same color, weave, and fabric, along with a matching waistcoat/vest) in a mid-gray. Looking back, it probably wasn’t the best choice for a first suit, but it was mine. Going with a made to measure suit afforded me the luxury of choosing every detail, from the lapel width and type to the mother of pearl buttons I picked, along with many other details. When I was finished with all my customizations, I could say that this suit was genuinely one of a kind.

After I had finished with my suit decisions, I was presented with another conundrum: which shoes to pick. This led me to another, equally massive research phase, but this time focusing on what makes a quality shoe, the different styles and types of shoes, and how to combine them.

This continued for quite a while. Replacing your entire wardrobe is not an easy task, as with every new purchase, you realize that this no longer matches that, and before you know it, you have racked up a huge bill and are overwhelmed with information. Don’t allow this to deter you; take it slow, and build your wardrobe with the staples before branching out and buying more advanced items. You’ll quickly find yourself with a collection that suits you, is appropriate for the environments in which you find yourself, and is a personification of your inner self.

One thing you’ll quickly learn is that purchasing clothes that you love can become addicting. Once you’ve bought your first high-quality suit or beautiful pair of shoes, you immediately start thinking of the next one. That isn’t to say that you don’t appreciate what you already have, but rather, it’s that you want to have as many combinations and different looks as possible.

I quickly learned what I did and didn’t like. Once I cleared the initial hurdle, it was much easier for me to choose different clothes that suited me, my personal style, and the different environments that I was in. I could look at an article of clothing and quickly determine where or whether it would fit into my wardrobe. My hope with this blog is that I can provide you with the resources and knowledge so that you can do this for yourself.

I have no intention of telling anyone what they can and can’t wear. I believe it’s far more critical that you are as informed as possible so that you can make the best choice for yourself. Through this platform, I will share with you many of the fundamental basics of menswear of which you are likely unaware. I will also be providing initial impressions and reviews of items I buy, guides and articles on how to combine and style different types of clothing, and we will delve into the history and construction methods of all the clothes we commonly wear today. Once you have all these tools at your disposal, you can then begin the journey of developing a style unique to you.

It’s going to be a wild ride, and I really hope you’ll be in it for the long haul. If you ever have questions or suggestions for a topic that you want to see discussed, do not hesitate to place a comment asking for it. This community will only be as good as those who participate in it.

One more note about the name: Oster is an abbreviation for my last name, Ostreicher (which means “The Austrian” in German). It’s just far easier for most people to pronounce. Austere means severe or strict, but it also has connotations of someone who dresses in a simple - yet elegant and sophisticated - manner.

Farewell for now.