Live Action Getup: Conversation Starters

A walk in the park, a good book, and your cute dog are the perfect ingredients to meet someone new on a day in early spring.

By Chris Scott / Additional Writing By Andrew Snavely / Photos By Chris Scott

men's spring style inspiration
Hamilton Watch

Chris Scott

Chris Scott is a scuba instructor, photographer, and writer living in Chicago. He graduated from the University of Louisville with a degree in Anthropology and a focus in underwater archaeology. He spends most of his time trying to figure out ways to see the world without having to spend any money.

Wade Miller

So I’m still pretty new to Primer, but I totally have to say I love these Get-ups. I’ve been using a lot of them as inspiration. In fact, my wife often tells me now that I’m better dressed than she is.
- http://www.primermagazine.com/ Andrew
  
  That’s so awesome!! Welcome! 🙂 let me know if you ever have questions or need help with anything.
Daniel

I kind of feel like this whole slim pants thing is a fad and will expire after a while. I love the getups, and for the most part, timeless styles are displayed (which is awesome). But, I find slim pants on every getup to be a little questionable. I understand you can get the same look with a fit that suits the person better. But why all of the slim pants love? WHY?
- http://www.primermagazine.com/ Andrew
  
  Hey Daniel! Do the pants look too slim to you? If I had called them straight leg would you have assumed they were? Leg opening comes down to personal preference, realities of your body, types of shoes you wear, and like all clothing, fads too. Just 10 years ago we were wearing wide leg jeans that we were walking on the backs of.
  - John
    
    Ahh the days of Levis 517’s, which I had to size up from my once 32″waist to 33″ to allow for my wrestling thighs, then have the waist tailored in a bit so they didn’t stretch out and fall off. They were slim fit too, just flared for boots. Now, we have slim straight with stretch that don’t look stupid (look up Levis 517 stretch). It’s a great time to be alive 🙂
  - Daniel
    
    No, I don’t think so. I’m a pretty slim guy myself and I almost always wear straight fit. And they aren’t baggy or anything. I like them to fit my thigh and be straight below the knee (as they are designed). If I wear anything slimmer, it just doesn’t feel right. It’s not comfortable, through not tight, it almost feels like treading on girl-pants territory. Maybe it’s just me. Maybe I just have skinny legs 🙂
    - John
      
      It used to be that the sexiest non-genital part of a man were his legs. The ladies are actually in favor of the shorter shorts for guys, so it makes sense that they like the slimmer jeans on us. But you should wear what you want.
      I dislike the current slavish trend of wearing white canvas sneakers, so I wear black ones and all is well.
      - Daniel
        
        So, what you’re telling me is, I’ve been keeping my sexy legs from the world all of these years?! I guess I’ll have to do something about that.
  - Daniel
    
    Andrew, okay so here’s what happened:
    
    I ended up picking up a pair of slim Hollister chinos, slim Dockers 5 pocket pants (both from earlier getups on your site), and a pair of cool green Hurley slim pants I happened upon at Marshalls. Wore them all over the weekend. They are really starting to grow on me. I’m slim with thinner legs so it may suit me better.
    - http://www.primermagazine.com/ Andrew
      
      That’s awesome! So excited to hear that. I think you’ll find soon enough your older pants now feel too wide. 🙂
- Eric
  
  I have been wearing them for over 10 years…That’s a really long fad. I hope to god baggy pants don’t come back it was an awful look.
- Nick Welsh
  
  I’ve been wearing slim/skinny pants for about 5-6 years. That’s longer than a fad. In my opinion, slim is better for everyone. Hasta la vista bootcut!
- Christian Naylor
  
  I definitely think these pants aren’t too skinny.
  
  When pants look painted on, they’re much too slim. The jeans above are great. These olive pants, not so much.
http://thisblogisaboutmusic.blogspot.com Kyle

The only problem I have with this getup is the dog. It’s adorable, it’s a chick (or really just person) magnet. BUT, a dog isn’t just an outfit accessory. If you are thinking of getting a dog or a living breathing thing of any species, you need to KNOW that you will take care of it, for it’s entire life. Creatures aren’t jewelry.

I’m sure you didn’t mean any harm by this article, either. I just wanted to add my two cents!
- Joe H
  
  I had the same thought when reading the article, Kyle. I’m also sure no harm was meant, but “optics”…
- http://www.primermagazine.com/ Andrew
  
  That’s not how we meant it at all, c’mon now! Did you see the link about why we think owning a dog makes you a better man? Besides with a face like Winston’s are we just supposed to not include him in the photos? 🙂
  - Allen Mackey
    
    Including the dog in the photos is fine, but listing the dog in the breakdown of the Getup really comes across as though the dog is just an accessory and is a little too Paris Hilton.
    - http://www.primermagazine.com/ Andrew
      
      You think we’d really do that on Primer? We’re promoting people adopt rescues from organizations via the link as well as encouraging men to expand themselves by taking on the responsibility of pet ownership. Give us some credit!
    - Christian Naylor
      
      I strongly disagree with what you’re saying. Primer in no way suggested what you’re saying, and the only reason you’re thinking that is because of Paris Hilton and other celebrities
- vide13
  
  dude, I know what you’re saying but I thought it was funny and cute and obviously a joke, it made the text mouch more lighter then just “wear this and wear that”. relax, I am sure that dog don’t care 🙂
TheSeizure

Meeting new people with winston the corgi is straight up cheating.
- http://www.primermagazine.com/ Andrew
  
  Haha! Smoke ‘me if you got ’em!
Adrian

Broscience: No matter how fresh you’re feeling in those knockoff persols, sunglasses make you less, not more, approachable. eyes are important. why turtle?
- Allen Mackey
  
  I agree on this. Although, I’d say that reading a book makes you even less approachable.
Logan

Big fan of the getups, It’s perfect for inspiration and potential looks.
The only issue I seem to have is that I’m taller (6’4″) and finding the right fit is difficult for me. To make matters worse I live in a smallish town with not a lot of great shopping, so buying online is almost a must. Anyone have ideas or are their articles on here that i’ve missed that can help a taller guy work towards a better wardrobe?
Thanks again!
- Chris Scott
  
  Funnily enough my model in these photos is also 6’4″ haha. Unfortunately I have no insight beyond that but he is just wearing Levi’s in the right inseam for him and the shirt and jackets are mediums.
  
  Now that I think about it a bit more I know that both J Crew and J Crew Factory offer a lot of their clothing in a Tall size.
  - Logan
    
    Hey thanks for the response! Medium is not long enough for me.. in fact, large isn’t either for the most part but the higher the size, the wider the shirt.. which turns them into boxes on me. I’m really looking for a good tall shirt in slim sizes which is where it gets tougher haha
    I’ll take a look at what they offer at J Crew in those sizes though, thank you!
    - http://www.primermagazine.com/ Andrew
      
      Have you ventured into tailoring? It’ll make your life a lot easier!
- Zack S
  
  Gap, Banana Republic, and Old Navy sell most of their styles with a tall option. I’m about 6’2 and have a longer torso and these sizes seem to work well, but you won’t know until you try it on. I’ve definitely returned my fair share of clothing because they were too short or too long.
what the heck

another great sinatra book to check:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Way-You-Wear-Your/dp/0060931752

well done here.
- http://www.primermagazine.com/ Andrew
  
  thanks for the rec!
Wyatt

Hey Andrew, any idea when we will see an urban get up again?
- http://www.primermagazine.com/ Andrew
  
  Yes! There are a few in the works now. 🙂
anónimo

So this isn’t a question about the clothes, but I would like to know what to tell my barber, to get my hair cut like that.
Paden

Hey Chris and Andrew, I have a really hard time trying to find things that go together. I’m one of those guys that are like sure black shirt, blue jeans, black shoes great lets wear that since we can’t figure out how to match rust colored shorts to any of the shirts you own. Any solutions out there that have something like “buy these items, here’s how to match them all to one another”? I see the capsule wardrobe stuff but most of the time they are missing the part about “here’s how it all goes together”. Been looking at apps to do this with my current closet but can’t find anything web based or on android.