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My hometown of Pittsburgh is the third worst dressed city in America according to the new write up from GQ about the 40 Worst Dressed Cities In America. According to the short article:
“The citizens of Pittsburgh…indulge a style that could be referred to as “Game Day Casual” (or “Meth Lab Formal,” depending on your preference.) It stems from their love of a certain NFL franchise and an utter indifference to their personal appearance and what you think of them.”
I personally prefer thrift store chic.
The piece concludes with:
“…there is no city on Earth that can equal the utter sloppiness of Pittsburgh.”
When I asked a random Pittsburgher what he thought about being called one of the sloppiest urban humans in the country he had this to say: “At least we beat Cleveland again right?”
The clowns at the magazine know what they’re doing. They pretty much picked a city from every state in America except for places that will literally never buy one copy of GQ. You know, places like Montana.
As a former editor who’s written pieces like this one, I know how it works. You look at a map and start spitballing, trying to come up with ideas based on first impressions of city names, personal experience, and whatever funny photos you have floating around. Then everyone starts firing out one-liners and writing abstracts until some copy is completed. After that, you just decide which markets you want to really get a response out of and insert the weaker entries throughout.
And the formula works. I heard about this as the local news played in the background one evening last week.
If you look at the rankings (and I wouldn’t waste my time if I were you), you’ll see that literally every style of dress in America with the possible exception of nudist is called worst-dressed at some point. I say this after an extensive analysis that involved me clicking through pictures for 20 seconds. So unless the writers at GQ are nude lumberjacks from Montana, they also fit into their own worst-dressed list which could probably be more accurately titled the ”Cities In Which People Wear Clothes” list.
I’m not surprised that this list is made or that Pittsburgh is 3rd, but the rankings got my attention when I saw who rounded out the top 5. Those cities are Manhattan (#5), Chicago (#4), Los Angeles (#2), and Boston (#1). So all you have to do to increase web traffic is insult the largest cities in America? Why didn’t I think of this sooner? Let me try:
San Francisco can’t get a girlfriend! Ooh, burn. I hope I don’t crash the server.
I planned to mention the irony that Mr. Boston Tom Brady has been on the cover of GQ at least three times, but as I looked at the images in a quick Google search a new question came to mind.
Is this a men’s magazine? Because I’m kind of catching a Playgirl lite vibe.
I suppose I mean that facetiously, but I’ve had enough moments in life where I laugh at the brilliant humor of others only to realize later that they were actually being serious as humans. Then I felt awkward. So now I’m unsure. I think GQ is for guys and assumed that the funny parodies of American cities were created by clever satirists. But now I’m wondering if these people are serious, like elbow-patched professors in a private lounge who actually believe that the rest of the world thinks like them.
I’m gonna need your help on this one, so I’ll leave you with a couple questions. See you after I get back from the thrift store*.
Has anyone out there read GQ?
How does your city/town dress?
*Seriously. Those places are the best 
.
Join me on Twitter @ClayMorganPA
I’ve read GQ before, which obviously proves your point about the magazine catering more to the ladies than the gents…hmmm..strange. I’ve never thought of that before. I’m not really sure what you guys are supposed to learn from it other than how to metro.
Fortunately, since this article was only interested in the States, Toronto wasn’t on the list. Actually, I’m not sure how we’d rank here…we’re very similar to Manhattan (some dress very well, others don’t) so I guess we’d be in the top 10 as well?
P.S. “San Francisco can’t get a girlfriend” – laughed so hard at that.
I’m glad you get my sense of humour (honourary “u” added for you). The fact that more ladies know the magazine than men explains a lot. Shirtless Tom Brady much?
LOVE that you added the “u”! Now you’re starting to spell things properly…
I was just trying to impress you. Glad it worked
Only guy I knew who read GQ was just buying it for the pictures. Then he would give it to his boyfriend, San Francisco, to look over.
A-ha, exactly as I suspected.
Hello, Flashdance!! That sweatshirt is classic!! GQ should give Pitts a little credit.
That’s true, we were innovators in the scissored-up sweatshirt look.
Most “men’s” magazines disappoint me. To look at them you would think every man drank kegs of beer or pints of whiskey weekly and see women as nothing more than sex objects. The REAL men I know are not like that. GQ has no idea what they are talking about.
WIth three young men in my house, I’m careful what reading material is lying around.
That’s right. I’m especially agreeing because by your definition I might make the real man cut.
Could have been more insulting- Pittsburgh could’ve been the fattest…..
We prefer husky. Helpful in those bitter winters.
I live in Phoenix – we give “casual” a bad name.
I was in Phoenix a few times. I remember some casual murders down the street.
Don’t read GQ. My city is very fashionable for about a year or so ago. We tend to get things a little late.
I hear that Amish is trending now. You guys better get on that. Oh wait, maybe that’s just in fiction novels.
The author is just jealous they can’t rock the black n gold n’at. I’ve perused GQ and wasn’t impressed with them either.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the author is a Pittsburgher exhibiting signs of self-loathing.
I don’t think you can use the word “fashion” and “Rochester” in the same sentence. And we don’t even have any major sports teams.
I don’t think. Do we?
Ha, no you don’t. No word on whether you have any minor sports teams either.
GQ isn’t a bad magazine, but it isn’t great. I snot surprised about da ‘Burgh, but the other 4 are shocking.
FYI- San Francisco isn’t looking for girlfriends.
Not shocking. Just pick cities that have every type of person in them and you can classify them as anything for purposes of getting recognition.
Nope, I’ve never read GQ.
My biggest fashion quandary is whether to wear the black jeans or the blue jeans.
Haha, I know what you mean my friend. It takes a lot of effort to care about fashion as much as I’m “supposed” to.
My daughter reads GQ, don’t know what that says about their demographic, but she loves it. Incidentally we live outside of Chicago, so that doesn’t say much for the style here, but I do believe thrift store chic is an appropriate term.
Now I understand why they go by GQ. Maybe it stands for Guys Quit Reading. Oh wait, they’d need an R in there. I’m glad someone appreciates my fashion stylings.
I’ve never read a copy of GQ, although I did flick through one once.
I think my city (Brisbane – affectionately referred to by some as Bris-Vegas or Brisneyland) is pretty fashionable in general, but then there’s the suburban breakdown that sweeps from posh pretentious to shabby chic depending on where you go.
From my American perspective, everything in Australia is really cool. I’m down with Crocodile Dundee fashion or 80s outback. btw, congrats on getting Freshly Pressed!
Thanks man. it was a really nice surprise! The 80′s outback look is still alive and well and you’ll always be able to buy a crocodile-tooth hat here. Just make sure the drop-bears don’t get you while you’re exploring!
My metro area barely made the list (at 39), but then again, we get a unique blend of overweight gangsta wannabes, Goodwill chic, stained clothes, and amateur singer/songwriters. Me? I wear whatever I want to, and if someone complains, I just go all Mr. T on them.
I pity the fool.
Nice debunking of this wardrobing disaster. I don’t know how they could dream of insulting your city what with losing sports team’s logos (little nod to my Packers) as your main offense?! Doesn’t sound like too bad a diss to me. But wouldn’t it be great if they had to include photos of the author here too, and not a headshot, but like a polaroid pic of how they dressed for work that day, no make up artist and airbrushing? That would be lovely. This kind of article chalks up to the same kind as those “happiest places on earth” articles. Madison usually makes the list and it has something to do with bike riding. Really? If I bike ride in Madison I’ll be happier than the other billions of people living on this planet?! Which of you are coming to help me pack?
Hey-o, Jess is on the board with a big dig from Pack town. Wow, you win a couple championships in forty years and here comes the insults
We were just feeling greedy what with more Super Bowls than any franchise in history. We also have Hines Ward who managed to win DWTS and teach kids the dangers of drinking and driving all in one summer. Maybe I’ll try that bike ride though.
Random comments:
-Your funny is on fire. Love this post.
-You mean people still read *magazines*?
-”I asked a random Pittsburgher” made me howl. I don’t think this was supposed to be funny, but it created some nice images. Think Jay-walking, but without the Conan vs Jay side-taking thing.
-Winnipegers, though lovely people, can often be spotted wearing the Winnipeg Tuxedo (jean jacket with identical colour jeans).
Now excuse me. I have to go iron a crease down the centre of my jeans.
I think I type and erase as many comments to you as you do for me. I’ll just say thanks for calling my funny on fire
And yes, that random Pittsburgher was supposed to be funny. Making up stuff usually is for me anyway. Enjoy that denim.
Crazy. GQ may have some folks talking about their magazine here on your blog, but it won’t result in my frequenting the GQ columns. I agree that they found some pictures and paired some words with ‘em. Curiosity drug me over there. I only hadn’t heard of 2 of the cities. If it were truly about worst-dressed people, there would be more obscure places. But like you said, they’re trying to boost readership, and picking on a town of 300 people wouldn’t help their cause much. Not that they’re really helping their cause anyway.
I fully support thrift store treasure hunting.
Yeah, it really is a pretty easy topic to slam dunk. I guess the Cal, PAs of the world won’t get their due
I actually have looked at a GQ magazine while I was sitting at the hairdresser’s. When he sits me under the heater for my highlights to do whatever it is they are doing in that tin foil, I tell him, “Bring me your trash.” He returns with People, Us, and, that day, GQ. But I don’t remember the articles. I only looked at the pictures.
Thanks for the inside scoop on those lists. I always suspected as much. And they clearly didn’t visit Boulder, Colorado. Boulder is populated with trustifarians trying to look like bohemian artists so saying they dress down is something of an understatement. They spend a great deal of time and money trying to dress down, as a matter of fact.
Love this blog, Clay. Thanks for the laugh. Go thrift stores!
Dressing down the right way is expensive for sure. Welcome to the world of hipsters. “Trustifarians” is super.
Sometimes I’ve wondered who writes these articles like this. Now I know!
Great post.
I’ll have to make this short. I have a thrift store to get to (and I live in NYC).
Haha, happy hunting.
I don’t read GQ, but how in the world did a city in Texas not make the top 5? We are so behind the times down here….we still have big hair!
That’s really surprising that not one Texas city made the list. Maybe the boss lives there
Maryland and DC were nowhere on the list. Score! My fashion sense must rock.
No word on what the authors make of Pop Tart boxes as purse accessories for you.
I haven’t read GQ. I prefer hippy chic personally, favoring flowy tie-died skirts, “reconstructed” shirts, and handknit whatever I made that needs to be worn.
I don’t know how to characterize my city’s (Memphis’) style because there’s so much diversity. We range from big hair and gaudy purses to “Wal-mart Splendor” to solid gold grills and boxers visible through jean waistbands clinging thighs for dear life. Maybe “tacky” is our fashion word?
Thanks for reading and commenting. I’m with you. Most cities have so many different types in them. You really can’t pick just one fashion. Although Pittsburgh is pretty close to being the same.
Check you out, Clay, all fresh pressed. Woohoo! Congratulations! *throws confetti* Great job!
Thanks Piper!
YAY!!! You’re Freshly Pressed!!! You deserve it!
Thanks my friend
I am a woman (28) who occasionally reads GQ. Mostly because I worked as a stylist for several years. That said, I grew up in Pittsburgh and wear my so called “sloppy” (though I buy kids sizes) jerserys proudly.
Now I live in Nashville where we are supposed to know what we’re doing (being music industry and all) and yet most of the men wear what could collectively create an all out city-wide “Ed Hardy was here” graffiti art piece. Not good.
I think every city has its own style, its own well dressed and not.
Great post, and congrats on being Pressed*!
*I was last week. It’s a blast!
Thanks Kimberly. Being Pressed is fun for sure.
I have never read GQ before. I’m in Utah so we here all dress like POLYGAMISTS, covered from ankle to neck! Just kidding.
But I must say, the majority of Utah-ns dress very modest and stylish. Girls wear cute layered tops (never spaghetti straps unless its with a cardigan or sweater), stylish knee-high boots during winter, and fitted jeans while the guys wear plaid/collared shirts on normal days but dress pants/coat/tie/shiny shoes for the day of rest. Layering your clothes is a popular thing here (the Mormon community likes to stress that “modest is hottest!” while the rest of us just smile/smirk in our trailer trash tank tops and flippy floppies.
Modest is hottest. That’s great. Utah makes it easy to have fun I guess.
lol..wierd that they made that list.. i dont think there is one city in the whole country which can be stated as the best dressed city..
All I know is that in cities where the weather is your enemy, being either warm or cool (temperature cool, mind you) is more important than being stylish. Let that guy live through August in an East Coast city and then talk about how terribly the natives dress. When you are slowly turning into a 7lb raisin in a soaked t-shirt, who cares who designed your shoes? They probably melted off your feet ten minutes ago. Same with winter — if I were in center city Philadelphia in February, I’d wrap myself with a rotten buffalo pelt if it would keep me warm, and chances are my shoes got sucked off my feet in the 23″ tall pile of slush in the middle of Broad and Market.
Mind you, this is why I don’t live on the East Coast anymore.
Why is Cincinnati not on there???
Austin was on that list and I fumed about it for about a day until I looked around me and saw everyone in Longhorn t-shirts and flip-flops. But you know what GQ?? It’s freaking hot here. You try to get by in stilettos and weather inappropriate designer duds without dying of heat stroke. I call bollocks on GQ.
YAY for Freshly Pressed!!!!!!!
Did they really have to make the sideline at the Missionaries? Missionaries are in Provo for two months, three max so they don’t even make up the general population of Provo. Interesting that they would consider the entire city devoid of style because of one building of missionaries. Other intentions maybe?
Like I said, these lists are just about quick laughs. Thanks for reading.
I don’t read GQ, and my wife would say it shows. I wonder how the south fares, probably not good. I mean seersucker is still worn my men of a certain age in the dog days of summer here.
Ha, yeah I’m fine with being out of the GQ loop.
ugh. boston “style” is for sure ugg to the maxx. don’t look at me, i just live here.
Ugg to the max makes me happy. Most 80s sayings do
You may be right, but Pittsburgh really IS full of slobs who look like they don’t give a damn about how they dress! Of course, many other cities are, too.
Every city has all kinds right?
Congratulations to you on being Freshly Pressed. I have many thoughts on this, most of which I would not be able to express in a manner that would not offend someone, although no offense would be intended.
I find it in poor taste to compose a list of “worst” anything. It’s just so mean-spirited, but that seems to be the American way these days.
And, again, yay, you for the FP!
Hey, thanks Hippie! Great to hear from you. Satire is what it is eh?
Woot! Nashville made the cut! Oh wait. This is one of those things where you’re all like “I win! I WIN! I lose?” isn’t it? I still don’t see a problem with Nascar shirts and a well-gelled mullet.
Ha, Pittsburgh will be on the forefront of bringing mullets back someday I think.
good writing. thanks for posting. welcome to see my blog.
Thanks for stopping by.
interesting blog…hehe…
Ha! Nice post. I live in Boston and was surprised to see that we made the #1 spot, but I figured the editors are all Yankees fans, so they probably just wanted to get their digs in where they could.
Anyway, GQ is a strange magazine. I was able to get a bunch of free magazine subscriptions in lieu of using airline miles that I acquired, and I picked GQ without knowing much about it. As a woman in her 20s, I was perplexed by it. Is it for women? Men? Straight men? I’m not sure. It seems to cater to a more feminine type of guy. The whole publication is full of mixed messages!
Yeah I bet the messages are mixed! I had some fun with this piece of theirs but would never be into reading them regularly.
Loved this post. My city made that list as well (Salt Lake) and while we probably aren’t on the cutting edge of fashion, the GQ analysis totally sounded like it was made up without ever actually having visited the city. I so very much enjoyed this response to the article. Very worthy of being Freshly Pressed!
Rebecca {hearts} Salt Lake City
Thanks Rebecca. Yeah, the list definitely is not about actual knowledge. Just a ratings ploy.
Any fashionable person has read GQ. I live in Simi Valley which is just on the outskirts of LA and I swear, people will stare if you’re wearing Jeffrey Campbells like they’re foreign objects. That’s why I retreat to the streets of LA where people get me. Nevertheless, I’ll dress in Free People everyday and know I’ll look better than everyone in my school and town who basically have no fashion sense.
I’m guessing Free People isn’t available in thrift stores, but I’ll make sure to pick up a copy of GQ before my next fashionable peeps of Pittsburgh convention
So arbitrary! I’d like to nominate my hometown with population 1,000. Oh wait, that would go against everything we just discussed, haha.
Ha, right on Nick. Thanks for reading!
Yet ANOTHER featured post on Freshly Pressed. Clay, you totally rock the house! So proud of you. Summing it up, GQ’s loathing for the inhabitants of our state is relentless. I just read a clip on how they slammed Penn State. Who goes down next? Philly? As long as there are thrift shops in Pittsburgh, there will be creative citizens, who know how to pull together a hip wardrobe. Wait a minute…That’s you! I’m right there with you, my Salvation Army brother. Keep me updated on your zombie project.
Thanks Carla. Great to have you here and we can totally rock the thrift store style!
great post
Austin style is just more laid back… we cant wear all the layers and things that other ppl can wear because its too damn hot. Even a belt is too much sometimes… plus we’re always dancing at concerts, laying out at the pool, on the lake, etc. People in austin live outdoors, so of course we dont have lots of great fashion…
Yeah, the need for clothes in 100 degree weather makes clothing a real problem. Been feeling the same thing this here all summer.
Looks like nude farmer from Iowa is an option for best dressed, as well.
Ha, right on.
Clay, I fully support your thrift shopping ways. If thrifting is wrong, I don’t want to be right. Congrats on being Freshly Pressed!
You know it Leigh! Glad you get me
If you want a real mens magazine go read Motocross Action, although im sure that alot of people would say that motocross may have the worst style of them all (id have to agree).
The thing that those editors dont realize is that Pittsburgh is coming around as the BEST dressed here real soon. All you have to do is look around at Celebs clothing to see that the 80s are coming back. GQ will have to eat their words because the good ole PGH is all about the 80s-90s casual wear.
That’s right. We are so wrong we’re gonna be right!
so i looked at the list, and here’s what i think…they missed my town. des moines, ia. some truly heinous wardrobes make their way around this town. from hillbillie to skank. but it seems to me the towns that made that list are large cities…melting pots of people. it’s places where it’s more acceptable to express your individuality without care. so i say f*ck the list. there are tiny towns in iowa that smoke boston.
http://www.icouldntmakethisshitup.wordpress.com
Yeah, they definitely wanted to go after the biggest places.
People dress in ways that suit the economy that they are living in. If you are in a place where commerce, smoke, and mirrors rule, then you’re going to need a manicure. If your income is set and you did not have an image to maintain from a previous career, then it does not make sense to splash out. I tell my clients in Europe, South Africa, and Asia that most of the time, the bad fashion in the US is literally just from lack of choice in the marketplace. We get factory outlet and sweatshop leftovers.
Yeah, I’m pretty sure the heavy majority of people around the world really don’t care about being fashionable.
They couldn’t have been serious, they left out Tampa Florida and all of Alabama.
Hahahaha Heidi, I love this comment!
Ha, yeah they left out a lot of places. Thanks for reading.
Loving the comments everyone. Can’t wait to go through them all when I get home.
I read that article when it came out (online) and I was laughing my way through it. Not only was my hometown of St. Louis on there (sweatpants city, apparently, to which I could only halfway agree) but was shocked at the main cities who topped the list. Manhattan and Boston? Really? You make SUCH a good point about dropping “high profile names” to get ratings/traffic/readers. I never thought of it like that! Also, it kinda skeezed me out that magazines spitball their way through these concepts and just “make sh** up,” to put it bluntly. Excellent post, congrats on being Freshly Pressed!
Thanks Zoe! And congrats yourself. We get to share FP honors this weekend.
P.S. I love how your theme is full-screen. It made me go theme shopping – AGAIN.
I do not read GQ so I’m not sure what cities are on the list. However I’m grew up in Green Bay, WI and I would think there is a good chance of this city making it on the list.
Yeah, the Packers fans could’ve been targeted too. Maybe they were. I didn’t really read.
In Washington State the most read “magazine” is the monthly “REI” catalog.
Now, there’s a place that does have some stuff I like. Tx for commenting.
So where is Baltimore on the list? We have a LOT of amazing looks!
I’m sure Pittsburgh guy would be happy to beat Baltimore as well
The problem with the article is that the title is misleading. It claims to list the worst-dressed cities in America but only lists cities within the United States. No cities in South America are listed nor in other North American cities.
Indeed.
What!? Baltimore isn’t even on the list? Somebody call John Waters!
I do read GQ while at the salaon and I’m a mid-twenties gal from Seattle so you might be spot on!
I have to say that I don’t see much of Seattle in flannel. Instead, we have one group who is into trends and labels and the other who won’t wear anything that may have been compromised ethically.
I agree with you – the article was weak.
Oh yeah, Seattle has plenty of hipsters who wouldn’t be reading too much GQ. Thanks for reading!
Hey,congrats to you and the ‘Burgh on being Freshly Pressed!
Thanks limr! Appreciate it.
I must say that this is a very funny subject to think about. I’m from Germany and I never thought about if the people in Frankfurt are better dressed than everybody else in the country =)
I think that the styles are changing and so are the people. Maybe your hometown willl be dressed better in a few years =)
Yeah, it’s just a random subject to get a bunch of content out of. Thanks for reading.
This is a good post
I actually like it
Glad to hear.
Don’t feel bad, Boulder was the #1 worst and I live there! Not a lot of metrosexuals around here. Hahaha!
The funny thing is people spend a lot of money on those casual clothes. Hey at least we are the fittest!!!
Great article!
Thanks! You’re right about how expensive it is to look like you don’t try to be fashionable
I have read GQ once..skimmed through might be more correct. And honestly, I feel like they are concerned with things that the majority of men are not. I am (not really by choice) still stuck in the Texas panhandle so the majority of men around here dress like this>>
http://villagerpublishing.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/3.Coors-Cowboys-1-06252011.jpg
Seriously.
Yeah, GQ is not for most men. I’m sure their readers are very happy.
My city is a bit more casual. I think it depends on age, social group, and what side of town you’re on.
No doubt. Thanks for reading.
Clay, I just saw that you’ve been Freshly Pressed again! Congratulations. Maybe with some of your prize money, you can go out and buy some decent clothes.
Thanks Todd. I’m waiting for that check. Funny how much traffic GQ gets through this post partly ridiculing them.
It’s pretty bad anywhere here in Texas too, especially in the summer! Congrats on being Freshly Pressed!
I live just north of NYC (and as a journo know that half that shit is made up. People think otherwise?!) and am not at all impressed by how many NYC men dress…You’ve got the Wall St. power crowd; the hipster look; the tenured professor I-don’t-have-to-give-a-shit-anymore. Yawn. Very few men seem to have the imagination or chutzpah to rock their very own style.
A Big Name Author who lives in my town and can surely afford a little better wears nothing, ever, but black sweats. This is stylish?!
Hey, I haven’t read GQ in ages but I’ve been to Pittsburgh lots of times. Congrats on the Freshly Pressed!
Hey now. Just read the rankings and I have to say that the comment about the Zumba pants in Buffalo, NY is completely false. Actually I wonder how they arrived at this list. Did they personally travel to each of these cities? Apparently not, because as a Buffalonian I know what happens if you dare speak negatively of the Bills (be what you say true or not).
Meh, just getting worked up over nothing.
But the Jersey Shore thing, good show.
I live in Cambridge, and I can attest to the advanced state of “badly dressed” here. But, then again, I am from New York
GQ takes itself seriously about 50% of the time. Most of the articles are publicity-based for random people/projects, the rest are fluff. But, as someone who lives in Manhattan and has more than a few relatives living in Pittsburgh, I’d have to agree… Pittsburgh dresses “differently” than NYC.
Being from Montana, I feel I should correct you. I have bought a GQ and then used it as the base of a rather large bonfire. The smores were very well dressed, thank you very much.
I live in Omaha, which came in like 32nd on the list. They compared us to Kansas as state the Nebraska longs to be more like including in how they dress. And I can honestly say that we dress nothing like Kansas and Kansas dresses nothing like what they say. And might I say that they cannot compare the cities trends to what they say about men’s trends which the article clearly identified most with. AndI don’t know a single man that dresses in over-sized clothing unless they’re dancers. Nebraskans are more like Pittsburgh in their we only wear sports gear fandom. I love the Huskers and when football season rolls around, were all in the spirit. Not to mention Omaha is an interbred city from all over the country. Its located right next to a military base. So what does that say about the rest of the country and every other Major city in the United States. We all dress badly.
great post. These cities definitely require a fashion police
Whoa! GQ is harsh! I work at a thrift store, so I’m definitly on your side.
I am just glad the city I live in doesn’t even make the cut. Does that mean we dress really well? Columbus, Ohio? lol
“I’m pretty sure there’s a lot more to life than being really, really, ridiculously good looking. And I plan on finding out what that is.” – Derek Zoolander.
@ Gravity shifter. Hahahaha!
Was Wyoming on the list, Clay? I’d describe our style as “uncluttered.”
Well done on Pressed, man.
I didn’t waste my time looking, but I imagine Atlanta, Ga was somewhere on the list. Congrats on FP
This is hilarious – two of the nicest places I’ve ever lived are on the list – Portland and Santa Fe. San Diego is a great place to visit, and I’m sure those poor poor residents of Maui are really dismayed.
I’ve never read GQ and now I never plan to start. My summer attire – t-shirt, cargo shorts, flip-flops (never a fanny pack) – is probably representative of Sacramento when it’s 100. I’m thoroughly unrepentant.
Congratulations on your entertaining post being Freshly Pressed.
After having spent an extensive amount of time in Boulder and Nashville, I am surprised that they only got #40 and #39. Clay, don’t worry, I have been to Pittsburgh and I assure you that there are more than two other cities worse dressed.
Also, about #18, the weather is NOT good in Austin (it’s freaking HOT and humid). But hipsters or not, the Austin kids have sexy taste. I don’t give a #$%^.
GQ obviously wants their issues to sell like hotcakes.
I’m from #1 Bosotn. We all thought it was a hoot and wondered what the GQ folks were on! I could defend Boston by saying they must have seen only tourists, but that would be unfair to the tourists. Never read GQ.
I used to live in a community that could only be described as “worst UNdressed.” Guys, sometimes you really need to keep your shirt on, no matter how hot the weather.
Great post!
What kind of man allows a magazine to dictate what he wears? Who the f*#k cares what GQ thinks about his style? What kind of man properly engaged in life spends much time worried about this s&#t?
http://www.theassassinbug.com
I enjoyed reading this post… Great report.
Dressing stylishly depends on your taste more than on your purse!
I think Melbourne fashion is more dependent on whether you live in the city or in the suburbs.
I simply don’t have a “style” outside of rural redneck (discount brand jeans and nerdy t-shirts). I guess i’m so poorly dressed living in West Virginia that we don’t even count as dressed in a fashion sense.
Manhattan is not a city. LOL. NYC is a city. Maybe it’s the graduate in me that’s screaming to point that out. That’s a laugh.
Has anyone out there read GQ? I think GQ is like the high style US Weekly or People Magazine. GQ’s problem is people only read it when there are pictures of their fav celebrity, or they don’t read it at all. They just take the pics out. Haha.
How does your city/town dress?
There are over 97,000 people in my city of Albany, NY. The truth is you can’t give just one big answer to that many people. There are alot of hot dressers and there are alot of hot messes. Haha. But you can’t cap em all in one group.
I love the Huskers and when football season rolls around, were all in the spirit. Not to mention Omaha is an interbred city from all over the country.
I used to read GQ. I never subscribed, I’d just pick it up when someone I found interesting was interviewed. GQ stands for “Gentleman’s Quarterly” so, yeah…it’s for men. It’s kind of the Male equivalent of Vogue.
Loved your research methods. Great post.
This article is hilarious. Thanks so much for illuminating the fashion rankings.
How about worst dressed small towns in America. The competition would be extremely tough, but my hometown Navasota, TX would win. The best dressed are Meth Lab Chic, and worst dressed look like they are homeless, but none of them actually are.
Your post is a hoot! I had heard Austin (my home town) was on the list, but had not read the article. (I have to say GQ was spot on about Dallas—they, not Austin, are all hat and no cattle.)
A former Pittsburgher myself, I don’t take any offense to assertions made in GQ. Rather, the article reinforces my assertion that journalism is dead (or at least mortally wounded). The article is just another example of why I don’t read magazines. They’ve devolved from interesting, well-written articles, essays and information into a series of contrived lists made up at the whim of the “author” and interspersed throughout the advertisements that make up the rest of the filler between the covers.
Good spot – and good call about what you found in GQ.
I don’t think it matters what town you live in, there are going to be lots of people wearing Kmart clearance rack specials, and then a select few who look like they just stepped off the runway, even if they’re just getting the mail.
Our little Burgh has been getting a lot of attention, lately. I’d say any press is good press. (Then again, maybe they are right. I dressed in black and gold every day for the whole two weeks leading up to the Super Bowl….HERE WE GO STEELERS!)
Thanks for calling out these morons. I remember a few years ago when a similar magazine (may have been GQ but can’t remember) came out saying that my city is the stupidest city in America. They’re justification was pretty absurd. I don’t think I’ve ever read one full GQ article in my life!
Inability to spell is one of the symptoms of idiocy…
While the grammar may be horrid, what word would you be referring to?
I relish the stylistic freedom of living in Pittsburgh. It is a great thing to be able to walk out of the house and be comfortable in paint stained jeans and a wife beater or in five inch heels and a bizarre thrifted 80′s dress or in a full on hipster style outfit or the latest in cutting edge fashion. All of these things are met with savoir faire by steeler fans on the street.
I think you absolutely correct about the “choose a city and mock” formula. My city is large, so the clothing depends on where in the city you happen to be. Could be gang-chic, could be business-chic, could be suburban-chic…or even thrift-chic. Yesterday I saw a girl riding a bicycle with neon pink hair, a long printed tee, and patterned tights. Not sure what style that was!
I don’t believe for one moment that 18 people contributed to that article. What? All of them overuse the word sartorial? Great post.
Yes. It is a great thing to be able to walk out of the house and be comfortable in paint stained jeans
I have read GQ in the past. Generally just leafing through after finding it on the floor at my college friend’s houses. It has some interesting articles and some funny quips. But seriously? This article was hysterical! I currently live in Seattle. I find it to be a pretty trendy place. I clicked on the list to see what I was missing… my favorite has to be Ron Burgundy from San Diego. GQ, are you trying to tell me that everyone in San Diego dresses like Ron Burgundy… I don’t believe you…
Great post, Congrats on being FP
Best dressed city in the world: Auckland New Zealand where the Auckland Philarmonia programme states: “Guests are advised that although there is no dress code for concerts, shoes are recommended.”
First answer – No I never read GQ. Doesn’t GQ stand for Gentleman’s Quarterly? Doesn’t it come out once a month. Why read a magazine written by people that don’t even know the defination of quarterly?
Second answer – I live in the biggest tourist town in Arkansas, Eureka Springs. Have you ever seen how people in Arkansas dress? Have you ever seen how tourist dress? Come down here during Diversity Week, or Mardi Gras or when the Harley riders show up and see how all those tourist dress. I bet we didn’t make the list.
Do I need to say any more?
nope never read GQ but i live in ny and the fashion is really diverse and sometimes strange out there. what i learned from living there though is that fashion can’t really be deemed as good or bad especially if you’re not from the same area as someone else it’s so easy from the outside looking in to criticize
As a resident of Omaha, #32 on the list, I say BOO!!! GQ has no idea what life is like in the Great Mid West. Sure, we have our farmers, and I thank them for their hard work and dedication. I’ve never heard anyone complaining about the Nebraska beef or the corn we produce.
Not every man in Omaha is part of the “farm system.” Some very high profile companies and their exec’s call Omaha home. These men dress in shirts, ties, and suits. They know how to wear a leather dress shoe and accessories to match! Even for a sweltering hot summer evening, at Jazz on the Green, a majority of the men were dressed in much better attire than tattered jeans and t-shirts.
Let’s be real, calling every Omahan a farmer is like calling every Texan an oil tycoon. We may not be fashion forward, but we certainly are not a fashion foul!
We are all oil tycoons sweetheart.
What’s GQ?
Great article! I had no idea LA was number 2! But then again, I can see why lol. Thanks for sharing! I’m new to blogging here and I just love how supportive and creative everyone is! If you have time, could you please check out my blog? http://shecooksandheeats.wordpress.com/ I would love some advice and feedback
Nice post! So Informative…
I like.. And what is GQ by the way??
Nice one. But do consider that it’s not on the dress, it’s on the way one handles it.
Answer 1: I’ve never actually bought a GQ… Flipped through it at the grocery store and absorbed all that was worth absorbing within 90 seconds… it is kind of a Playgirl lite… (and I’m gay, and still not interested).
Answer 2: I live in Nashville. Bleached blonde, nouveau riche, bedazzled, aspiring country singer, trailer park chic is all the rage (and has been for 20 years). We make Pittsburgh look like Paris.
Never read GQ, might have flipped through it once while waiting in the check out line, maybe. Live in Southern Maryland. We have a diverse range of best and worst dressed I would say. Casual mixed with business attire. But I need to add my neighbor could be the star in “People of Wal-Mart”
I like how you write. And I’ve posted this particular article on my facebook page. Now, I’ve only got 153 friends so it’s not like I reach as many people as GQ but, I did insult my hometown on Philadelphia as an intro which may garner maybe 157 peeps
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I’m not really into GQ, but I’m glad your post was in “Freshly Pressed,” because I like it! I live in Orlando, the 26th worst-dressed city. I have to say, I don’t disagree that we’re a poorly-dressed bunch. Orlando is made up of tourists, college kids, and the normal people who can fit between those two groups. Let’s face it, tourists wear fanny packs, and college kids are too poor to dress well. I’ve never been to Pittsburgh, but I’m sure you all look just fine!
I think the reason every style has been picked on is that they’re all written by different people, it’s not a collection of the worst dressed cities, it’s a collection of people that like to complain, some of them with good reason, but there are certainly a lot of whiners.
Los Angeles is terribly dressed. Hit the smaller “towns” and you’ll see ten little Buddy Holly-esque hipsters all in a row, sporting their god-awful American Apparel/yard sale garb that appears as though HoboChic threw up all over them. Hell, I just described the larger metro areas, as well.
I am pretty surprised that the BOROUGH of Manhattan is among the worst dressed in the US.
Sorry, folks, but my hometown has all the rest beat for sheer stupidity of “justification.”
Think on this for a second: St. Paul, MN is badly dressed because F. Scott Fitzgerald, who has been dead for 70 years, had a funny hairdo once.
Some observations, because I really did read the whole thing.
#38 Bristol, CT is only on the map because of ESPN. Suited up ex-pros may be a contradiction, but it’s not enough to pigeonhole an entire town.
#28 When you’re this far north, practicality always outweighs fashion. That being said, there is some really cute outerwear that doesn’t involve three shades of dirt.
#26 Orlando shouldn’t count because it’s the seventh ring of tourist hell. Too-stuffed cargo shorts combined with fanny packs may be deemed to be a necessity due to the horribly overpriced cost of basic needs such as water, sunscreen and Mouse ears by some, but it doesn’t count because no one really lives in Orlando.
#25 See #28.
#19 There were Guidos (I can say that, I’m Italian) before “The Jersey Shore” made the upper Jersey shore popular outside of the NY/NJ/Pennsylvania tri-state area. Wander a bit further south and you’ll find a more sedate crowd albeit early-bird crowd with their own snark-worthy fashion.
#14 You’ll find two crowds in MV. The residents who hate the tourists but whose businesses survive off the seasonal ferry-hoppers, and the people who pretend they are residents. It’s no coincidence that fratstars in the SEC spend their daddies’ hard-earned oil dollars on Vineyard Vines. What the fratstars and MV tourists have in common is the desire to be what they are not. True New Englanders wear boat shoes because they are on boats, ski jackets because they spend their winters outside, and eat lobster because it’s local. But I have to agree withe the sorbet-colored pants. No man looks good when his manparts are covered by a color my 7-year old would love.
#13 Is it a coincidence that Las Vegas is #13? If you can imagine, the LV crowd is a cheaper and less sophisticated (yet older) version of Orlando. The second highest-percentage of fanny-pack wearers vacation here, only instead of hoarding juice boxes and Park-Hopper passes, the dudes stuff their pockets with quarters for the slot machines and flyers for prostitutes.
#5 There’s a distinct difference between the daytime and nighttime wardrobes, and within the night-owl party crowd, several different “uniforms”. You have the social butterflies and starlets whose Louboutons rack up less than 20 yards between limo and VIP room, the poseur knock-off Barbie dolls in pleather pants who wait in line but get past the velvet ropes an hour before last call, and the wannabe player whose Axe-filled pompadour melts while sweating it out because he unsuccessfully spent his cab fare trying to bribe the bouncer.
#1 Boston? Really? Boston is a pretty diverse place. From the financial district slick-suits to the laid-back college prepsters, from the urban pre-teens shining their kicks on the corner to the club kids hiking up their skirts on the way to the Roxy, from the tourists sporting Tevas and and backpacks in Faneuil Hall to the bow-tied yacht crowd slumming it to get the best Oysters on the Freedom trail, it’s hard to pinpoint a singular fashion statement. One thing they all agree on, however, is that you represent your home team because it’s the proper thing to do.
I’m a fashion stylist and I pick up an article of GQ every now and then to get inspiration, but the article you stated was extremely insulting. There will be people dressed poorly anywhere, but to pick on major cities especially the ones where fashion and style opinions circulate the most through and say that they’re the worst dressed is beyond doubt insulting. I live in Chicago and sure I find poorly dressed people wherever I go, but it seems like GQ has their facts twisted.
I live in San Antonio, TX and let me just say, it if keeps you cool…it works. Nobody really cares about “poorly dressed” right now.
FU GQ! Am I right?
I’m not saying where I live but it’s definetly got it’s weak spots(I may or may not be one of them), sometimes the stuff people wear around here is crazy and way out there or sometimes it’s jeans and a t-shirt(I’m on this side). Some of the stuff I see in some of the more popular stores(like Forever 21) is cute and some is just outright ridiculous. The only thing is people will be wearing shorts and flipflops when it’s raining and heavy jackats and tight jeans in the summer. *hint hint on my location* I’m kinda sad though that I live semi-close to 1 of the 5 worst dressed cities but really I’m not all that suprised. I exit with this very truthful quote, “One man’s deformity is another man’s beauty.” Well that’s close enought to the real quote anyway, somethin’ like that. I might have paraphrased it by going off of memory. I could really care less though about what people wear because say I wear shorts and a tanktop with an owl on it then people in Idaho think I’m nutty but people in CA might see it as normal. Point of the quote really.
LOL..
All I can say is…Yes! Boston is #1! We totally win at everything!
In Raleigh, North Carolina, the clubs and restaurants are trying to make this a fashionable Miami, FL., when we’re a massive college and university city sporting numerous of the aforementioned!? Since students, for the most part, don’t have the funds, desire, or the time to sport high fashions such as might be seen in Miami on any good day, I think the night clubs and the restaurants are, for the most part, fighting a losing battle? I know people judge you for how you appear to the world, but, honestly, it’s not what’s on the outside that counts, it’s only what’s on the inside, right? In my opinion, that reporter that conducted that survey of useless information obviously had nothing better to do at the time!? LOL!
Fortunately I doubt US GQ has heard of my city. I have yet to see the US media refer to any specific place here apart from ‘London, England’. Always gotta give the country, right?
My favourite is when Tyra Banks tells all the next top models that they’re off to ‘Paris, France’…in case they thought she meant that OTHER Paris!
Having bee raised in England and spending all too many weekends in London, I know from what I observed that fashion is created by the wearer there and, it appeared back then, anything goes!?
My wife and I moved to Wichita, KS recently and often comment on the outfits. Wichita is not retro…its still there.
I think that people dress the way they want. We cannot change that.
I live in London and it really does seem like in a big city anything goes. I actually kind of like living in a big city for this reason – I feel like I can wear whatever style I want and people won’t be judging me. There’s always someone weirder!
Boston is #1
Sydney dresses to the left LOL
Hahaha.. To good;)
Thanks again for all the comments everyone. I read everyone but never had a second to reply. Enjoyed your thoughts.
Entertaining post. Thanks!