Deja & Ramon Take On the Air Jordan 5 Retro “Top 3”
Making a top three in any category is tough, but when a sneaker looks this good, you tend to trust it.
Introducing the Jimmy Jazz Backstage sneaker of the week: the Air Jordan 5 Retro “Top 3”. In case you haven't heard, this highly anticipated release combines three of the Jordan 5's most beloved colorways to create the ultimate Jordan Retro.
On the third weekly installment of our video series, our resident Sneaker Scholar, Ramon, gives you an in-depth preview of the latest drop from Jumpman, and our Fashion Stylist, Deja, helps keep you on the cutting edge with some behind-the-scenes professional styling tips.
Style 1: Jordan Sticker Crew Tee + G-Star Air Blaze 3D Skinny Jean
Style 2: MJ Classics Matchup Tee + Jordan Jumpman Tricot Shorts
Every Outfit Starts with an Emotion
How do you build your outfits every day? Here at Jimmy Jazz, we feel that it's all about emotion. How do I feel, or more likely (as I'm always vaguely angry at being awake in the morning), how do I want to feel throughout the rest of my day?
If I have an important event (like conducting a celebrity interview), I want to feel confident, prepared, and put-together. If I know I'm going to be going out (to brunch, a bar, a club, etc.), I try to take the fashion risks I've been putting off. If it's going to be a long day (like whenever I'm on a shoot), I mostly just make sure I'm dressed for the weather and comfortable.
But how do you determine the emotion of an outfit? Well, it's really all about schemas (the mental categories we subconsciously create). What kind of people (in real life, on tv, etc.) am I trying to emulate, and what kind of clothes do they wear?
If I'm conducting an interview, I prefer my clothes to be freshly cleaned, fit-to-form, and relatively monochromatic. Why is this? Well, let's think of the most put-together professionals in pop-culture. No matter who you imagine, they're all wearing some kind of suit. So I want my “important event” outfit should evoke that same calm, powerful, and in-control image.
To be clear, this doesn't mean I'm wearing dress pants, a tie, a collared shirt, or any formal wear at all, it just means that my shape should look similar to that sleek, James Bond-style silhouette.
The same thing applies to all the other activities we engage in. If I'm going out, I want to wear something inspired and exciting, but that doesn't necessarily mean crazy colors or patterns (in fact, for me, it never does).
Typically, as I tend to suffer from time-period nostalgia, my “inspired” outfit is just whatever contemporary clothes I have in my closet, combined in a way that elicits the style of whatever earlier decade I'm currently into.
For example, maybe my going out playlist has recently been heavily infused with early '90s hip-hop. Then I'll utilize some loose-fitting, color-blocked pieces of apparel.
But no matter what, in everyday fashion, function has to come first. Hats keep your hair in place, sneakers keep your feet supported, and belts keep your pants from falling off. These uses shouldn't be overlooked. Instead, start with function, then move onto an emotion, and then make it fit your fashion sense.
Because unlike celebrities at the Met Gala, most people don't have a team of stylists and make-up artists to keep our one-time-wear designer outfits looking right. So if you're not comfortable in an outfit, don't wear it. Even if you look good, you won't feel good, and that's what the point of style is anyway, right?
I guess it's just like the old adage goes. But the fun part is, what looks (and feels) good is entirely up to you.
