THE 2 SIDES OF TECHWEAR? 🤔

XBox vs PS4? iPhone vs Android? Function vs fashion? These are the great debates of our society.
Techwear has always been a mix of the two, but inevitably people have their preference of which side they prefer. Recently it's felt like that preference has split into 2 separate viewpoints. Can't we all just get along?

EDIT: The pic at 1:51 is actually @tabington! Apologies for the error

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"Gemstones"
Instrumental by Homage

[TheAgeratos]

Instead of naming them something completely different, can't we just have two sub categories? Aesthetic techwear and performance/utility techwear?

[SirIzzyBlack]

The concept of techwear is relative. An anorak that can’t store an iPad might not be tech enough for some people. But if that same anorak can hold a hammer and a Bible it’ll be perfect for Amish hypebeasts.

[throughagroundlens]

I'm a techwear God. I wear skin, the most technically useful clothing ever

[canadiansuisei-fan]

People get the wrong idea. Techwear isn’t a subgenre of streetwear, it’s an entire genre of clothing altogether just like business attire, workwear, streetwear, etc. It has its own paths and different turns just like any other type of clothing. People get soo hung up on what is and isn’t “true techwear” but there’s no dictionary definition, if it were that straightforward then everybody’s tech fits would all be the same.

[fargin]

I'm fine with a broad definition, but I try to avoid cosplay.

[thefile]

part of the "tactical" mindset is blending into crowds if neccessary. so in some cases these urban ninja costumes are truly less ninjalike

[moneluve]

Ok so i've bee an active wearer of the japanese street fashion called Elegant Gothic Lolita(egl or Lolita for short) for about 7 years now, I've done my research, worn the fahsion and know my shit inside and out, so I can vouch and tell you how WE handle this type of split in the fashion. We simply have substyles. Some more approved than others but all are typically acknowledged to some degree. The substyle I think is most similar to this "techwear or not techwear" situation is ERO Lolita.

Ero lolita is short for Erotic lolita and it is very different from the modest and very covered "lil bo peep" aesthetic that is the base/core of Lolita. Ero is more comprised of shorter skirts, maybe some fishnets, chokers, more sexy in nature. Yet it still incorporates Lolita specific brand pieces of clothing, staples typical of the base/core fashion like the skirt/dress or the headbows many lolitas wear, petticoats. A major ero lolita staple is going blouse-less(not wearing a blouse under your dress should you be wearing one), it is a must at this point to achieve an ero lolita look. But most will agree it's still a substyle of Lolita, and therefore part of Lolita fashion as a whole, despite it not adhering to the more strict guidlines set for the base style of the fashion.

So what i'm saying is there needs to be a substyle of techwear that doesn't necessarily cater to the base/core og functionality elements that make something techwear, but more of the aesthetic side. As in it pays homage to it's orgins but this new substyle in itself is not base/core og techwear. Perhaps the names "aesthetic techwear" or "future wear". Theres also substyles of goth like "cyber goth" and (begrudingly) "mall/hottopic goth", that couldn't be further from what goth started as, but it's goth all the same and almost everyone in the goth community from what i've seen tends to agree that they're seperate but still share the same orgins/inspo. Tbh, it's actually getting pretty fucking silly how a good chunk of the techwear community seems to be too far up their own elitist asses to come together and apply this very simple solution that's been going on in fashion for decades now. It's going to branch off into substyles and y'all are just gonna have to deal with it and fight to ensure the base/core fashion these substyles come from remains strong and unchanged despite everything happening as a result of it. Grow some balls, draw some lines, but don't stunt the evolution and growth of your fashion just because a dude wants to look like a cool ninja without his underoos being waterproof, ya dig?

Also, DON'T even get me started on how Lolita too used to be a hobby exclusively for the wealthy since Lolita dresses were typically $200 and up and only a few places existed where you could get them, but over time the same very dreaded "taobao shop" many techwear folks frown upon, began to produce high quality Lolita dresses that give the big brands a run for their damn money to the point that big brand stores are shutting down storefronts in 2019 due to loss of customers to the taobao brands. Fashions change and techwear needs to wake the fuck up if it thinks it's immune to that. -Sincerly, A lolita and jfashion veteran who's been in this shit long enough to know where it's going.

[cowboytanaka]

Techwear can go from street ninja to school shooter pretty quickly


just so you know

[ellygeh]

As more of an "observer" and lover of fashion and streetwear, your videos are so awesome and educational! Thank you so much for doing what you do Antwon! All the best man!

[KydeManfred]

For me, I prioritize the visual aesthetic first, and function is second.
With that said though, some of the over the top stuff like knee guard, helmet, extra holsters... Those are too much.

[Cosmopolitm]

For me it means, minimalism, flexible materials, waterproof and Affordable prices!!!

[MrxxUltimate]

I feel like I would get judged heavily by the more technical side of techwear if I ever talked about my fits, considering I get inspired a lot by old scarlxrd and mxdvs.

[tonyyates]

Coming from an outdoor background, it's the material performance first, followed by the aesthetics and "street cred".
I think both can inform the other in many ways, so I'm fine lumping them both together.

[capatinswifty]

the cone analogy was great for this type of fashion.
i got into techwear after seeing acronym clothing, i loved the features, materials and build quality, so from the get go, i wanted a military inspired but still minimal pieces. after two years I've started to buy acr pieces but at the start i was buying cheaper non technical pieces.
From my experience of being on both sides of the fashion style, i believe the divide comes from
the persons budget
how much they value the technical properties and cut of pieces
what aesthetic they are wanting
however if someone wears clothing with no technical properties then i don't believe it should be "classed as techwear " . dark fashion is a better term in my opinion.
though if someone wears the dark fashion style i'll not slate someone for doing so.

[ParanoiaSound]

For me, I got into techwear when I tried to make an unique image for my band, so visuals are a lot more important for us, than functionality.

[eden]

im a huge fan of scarlxrd, but i don't think his outfits are anything remotely near what Techwear actually is. He is more accurately dystopian/cyberpunk clothing.

[culverinn]

As someone who's only recently gained an interest in techwear, I'm still leaning more towards the fashionable exterior; but now that I dive deeper, I find the concept of hyper-functional clothing that leads to a very pleasing aesthetic the most attracting feature of techwear.

[DamianLewd]

Your videos get better and better. Great content, points of view, production and edits.

[자시엘-ls]

Techwear doesn’t have to be black either
People are being too generic with everything

[HubriiisER]

wow, thank you for addressing this point, i was writing a thread on reddit about this exactly XD seeing lots of debates on the FB page too! you are the one i really discovered techwear through, especially for the performance aspect but while I resonate more with the cyberpunk/edgy side of techwear, I always thought that specs were important and I was really bummed seeing that the only brands that were combining both were expensive as hell (i.e. Acrnm, GG and so on...) It's a real problem for people with a tighter budget cause you have to choose between specs with TNF/uniqlo or aesthetic and you end up on Taobao.... anyway, i'm really glad to see that you accept both sides of the movement and like you i really enjoy seeing both sides of the community ! keep up the good content, love your channel man :D