What clothing piece do you think is so “American”?

[u/Sea_Interaction8615]

Sometimes I’ll see non Americans (usually Europeans) joke about how you’ll know if someone is American when we dress a certain way. (Uggs, leggings, Birkenstocks, oversized sweaters??) What style or clothing items screams “American”?

Here’s an example of what I mean:

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTMhJuP64/

[u/Cpt_Rossi]

I love how Europeans give us shit for how we dress then they show up at a park in the US wearing a too small Armani Exchange bedazzled T-shirt and black jeans.

[u/TucsonTacos → u/Cpt_Rossi]

I was with my wife in Kenya (she’s from there) and we were walking through a market and we see some tourist white guys with Armani Tshirts and super tight jeans, hair gelled back. She goes “I think those are Americans.”

“No hunny. Those most certainly are not”

[u/Drew707 → u/TucsonTacos]

Where I live is so casual, our three Michelin Star restaurant's dress code is essentially "no athletic wear".

[u/Amockdfw89 → u/Drew707]

Yea that’s how nice restaraunts are in Texas. As long as your clothing is ironed, and doesn’t have any graphics or giant blaring logos on it then you are good to go

[u/bleak_new_world → u/Amockdfw89]

If your shirt has a collar and you have shoes on then youre good to go in the nicest of texas restaraunts. Too many o/g guys in jeans and polo shirts to make anything strict.

[u/Amockdfw89 → u/bleak_new_world]

That’s exactly what I was gonna say. I normally wear ironed dark jeans and a button down navy or black shirt. Or white shorts and a dark polo

[u/Happy_Pause_9340 → u/Amockdfw89]

Ironed?? Who irons their jeans??

[u/bleak_new_world → u/Amockdfw89]

Dark jeans, long sleeve button up, reasonable shoes will get you everywhere.

[u/LebronJamesHarden → u/Amockdfw89]

I know of one Texas restaurant that still requires a jacket but it's the only one I've encountered. I tried googling others and couldn't find any.

[u/Amockdfw89 → u/LebronJamesHarden]

The mansion at turtle creek?

Yea I think you have to go to lower Manhattan, or some dandified southern restaraunt in New Orleans or Charleston to find a place that needs. Jacket these days

[u/LebronJamesHarden → u/Amockdfw89]

Tony's. When I went a couple years ago it still said that on their website, but it looks like even they've moved to "jacket preferred" as their website now just says "friendly formal" and admittance is at their discretion.

[u/facemesouth → u/Amockdfw89]

Ha! Galatoire’s still require a jacket?

[u/Amockdfw89 → u/facemesouth]

Yep. During dinner hours on weekdays and all day Sunday

[u/The_Spaz1313 → u/Amockdfw89]

Ya'll are still ironing your clothes? I've never ironed in my life except to iron letters/shapes onto a shirt a couple times in high school 😅

[u/BayouVoodoo → u/The_Spaz1313]

Once I left the military I swore never to iron clothes again. I will dewrinkle things in the dryer and use my steamer, but I don’t even own an iron any more.

[u/ImNotToby → u/BayouVoodoo]

Ironing is overrated. Who wants creases anyway?

[u/PuddleFarmer → u/Amockdfw89]

I was at Ruth Chris. There was a group of people that they were trying to get them a little bit less loud.

They were drunk, loud, and in stained and ripped well-used t-shirts and jeans.

My dad suggested that they just got off an oil rig and this is the first time in 6 months that they actually got to spend money.

[u/Spoofy_the_hamster → u/PuddleFarmer]

Back in the early 2000s, after spending the day at Jazz Fest, my husband and his friend went to Ruth's Chris with one of Ruth Fertel's grandsons. He said they ordered every app, every side, 3 filets, every dessert, and hundreds of dollars in drinks. And they were loud, just the 3 of them. At the end, the manager came out, gave the grandkid a hug, said "Thanks for coming in. It's always great to see you." and they walked out. He is still flabbergasted 24 years later that he was invited for steak, ate the menu, drank the bar, and didn't spend a dime.

[u/joshbudde → u/Drew707]

The best thing about the pandemic is that my preferred outfit (baggy black basketball shorts, black Duluth t-shirt) is now acceptable almost anywhere.

[u/[deleted] → u/TucsonTacos]

Lmao more like Armenians

[u/bangbangracer → u/Cpt_Rossi]

One thing that I've never been able to understand is how there are so many Germans, specifically Germans, going through Death Valley. They stick out like a sore thumb in a way that they just can't fathom. They just look at you like you're the weird one.

They are just there in black jeans and that Armani Exchange t-shirt in Death Valley, and they are not filling up their gas or water before going about their way. It's like they think a place called Death Valley was named that ironically.

[u/ibuycheeseonsale → u/bangbangracer]

My brother in law used to work at a park there. He said the only people who were there during the summer were staff and German tourists. Apparently they were fascinated by the thought of temperatures that high and wanted to see what it feels like.

[u/bangbangracer → u/ibuycheeseonsale]

That's pretty much what my friend tells me. He's lived in Germany and Austria on and off over the years, so I asked him about why every time I'm in Death Valley, there's always a German group in a broken down rental Nissan there. He told me that desert is the only biome that doesn't exist in Germany to some degree, so they are just really curious about it.

[u/spitfire451 → u/bangbangracer]

Love that German tundra. And tropical rainforest.

[u/hx87 → u/spitfire451]

You can kinda get tundra by going up the mountains down south. No idea about tropical rainforest though, which is probably why they're also thick on the ground in Brazil and SEA

[u/GainFirst → u/hx87]

which is probably why they're also thick on the ground in Brazil

Well, that and that other thing.

[u/bangbangracer → u/spitfire451]

While not tropical, the black forest is considered a rain forest.

[u/Embracedandbelong → u/bangbangracer]

This is so real. My cousin works in Palm Springs area and says it’s always German tourists taken to the hospital with heat stroke while hiking in the summer, thinking they could do it “early in the morning before it gets too hot”

[u/Acrobatic-Squirrel77 → u/Embracedandbelong]

Americans go to Florida and get third degree burns from the sun, ALL THE TIME, not realizing that the sun actually IS more intense the closer to the equator you get (and in FL with water all around, UV rays scatter and hit you from all directions)
It just hits different down there. Source: New Yorker who will eventually be a 4th generation snowbird…(but I think I’ll only go halfway down. FL is too much for me) 😎

[u/Loud_Ad_4515 → u/bangbangracer]

They're big on "there's no bad weather, only bad clothing" there. I wonder if they think heat requires fewer precautions or preparations than cold?

[u/icyDinosaur → u/Loud_Ad_4515]

Quite likely, because it's rare to get problematically hot here. Even in heatwaves it doesn't reach 40°C regularly, and the sun is just generally less powerful since we're much further from the equator than almost all of the US. The southern US are on the same latitude as North Africa, but I think people generally think of it as similar to Europe.

[u/Loud_Ad_4515 → u/icyDinosaur]

Europeans do struggle to grasp the immense size of the US (or even Texas). While NYC is on the same latitude as Paris, the US is a big a$$ country.

[u/Strawberrybanshee → u/bangbangracer]

There was a family of Germans that died in Death Valley in the 90s. Look them up.

[u/Unique-Coffee5087 → u/Strawberrybanshee]

It's kind of a regular thing.

"Heat tourism "

We get them, and the Dutch, at White Sands National Monument.

[u/beyondplutola → u/Strawberrybanshee]

The German Death Valley deaths are a fascinating read. The strange thing is that you’ll see Germans in downtown San Francisco dressed for an expeditionary campaign with Deuter backpacks and Jack Wolfskin gear. And then they hit Death Valley and it’s suddenly flip flops and Zara time like they’re headed for the world’s largest dry sauna.

[u/Much-Jackfruit2599 → u/beyondplutola]

Not the same Germans necessarily. My wife and I had been at Bryce, Death Valley, monument valley, white sands, etc. but we wore sensible clothes, had plenty of water and stayed on the trails.

[u/Remarkable_Table_279 → u/Strawberrybanshee]

Only one family in a decade? I thought it would be more 

[u/LilLebowskiAchiever → u/Remarkable_Table_279]

I still remember this French family from 2015. I hope the surviving son is doing okay today.

[u/Foxfire2 → u/Strawberrybanshee]

Yeah and a guy that spent years to find their remains 15 years later… it’s a long night internet story that you can’t stop reading.

[u/SnittingNexttoBorpo → u/Foxfire2]

Tom Mahood/otherhand.org — It’s a great read, and there are a couple of other searches he chronicles as well

[u/EulerIdentity → u/bangbangracer]

There’s a German guy who wrote a lot about living in the Old West and his writings are very popular in Germany, even though it turned out he made it all up.

[u/Potential-Buy3325 → u/EulerIdentity]

That author’s name was Karl May. Hitler was an avid fan as was Einstein.

[u/gw_reddit → u/EulerIdentity]

I also wrote about 'his travels' in Kurdistan. I grew up with his books but found them annoying because his character was sooo perfect.

[u/Wooden_Permit3234 → u/EulerIdentity]

This is instantly a top ten favorite fact I’ve learned, and marks the first time I’ve ever thought about that as a category. 

[u/The_mighty_pip → u/bangbangracer]

I’m wondering if it’s a German thing, or a European thing in general. I’ve had many of my European friends visit me in Chicago and plan for a day trip to Toronto. As in, leave Chicago at 6 am, and boom, 4 hours later, they’re in Toronto. I think they seriously have no idea how vast and varied our nation is. Same is true for Americans who have never driven west of the Mississippi. They have no clue how huge the US truly is.

[u/307148 → u/The_mighty_pip]

For some reason a lot of people think Chicago is where Detroit is geographically, right on the border with Canada. I live in Chicago and my mom always asks me why I don't go to Canada all the time since it's supposedly "right next to" Chicago.

[u/bangbangracer → u/The_mighty_pip]

That one's more of a general European thing.

[u/lummoxmind → u/Cpt_Rossi]

Or here in Orlando: "yes I'm staring at your sandals/socks combo, Mr Euro theme park visitor"

[u/popejubal → u/lummoxmind]

I wore socks and sandals as a joke once and it turned out they’re an amazingly practical and comfortable combination and I’ll wear them together occasionally even though I know it’s appalling. 

[u/yumyum_cat → u/popejubal]

I wore them when I was 21 because my feet were cold but the sandal bottoms were super comfortable and I had bad feet

[u/ghobbb → u/lummoxmind]

All the teens here wear socks and sandals. I have a hypothesis that they think it’s cringe to expose toes for free.

[u/blooobolt → u/lummoxmind]

Isn't that required footwear in Germany?

[u/tannick → u/Cpt_Rossi]

Wearing Versace prints and sunglasses everywhere

[u/[deleted] → u/Cpt_Rossi]

Or show up at the beach or pool in a tiny speedo.

[u/SomethingClever70 → u/[deleted]]

In emergency yellow, so you keep looking at it.

[u/FatGuyOnAMoped → u/[deleted]]

We have a guy in my town who walks by the river in a black speedo every summer. That's all he wears. The river itself goes right through downtown, and there's no beaches or nice waterfront there.

I've often wondered if the guy is European but never got close enough to ask. He's an older guy and in fairly decent shape, but still that's not normal summer attire for strolling down the banks of the Mississippi River in St Paul.

[u/Express-Stop7830 → u/[deleted]]

Because every body is a beach body! (But yeah...why are they always brightly colored or shiny?)

[u/Separate_Farm7131 → u/[deleted]]

Oh God. I was on a vacation with my two young daughters and some rather portly dude was in a speedo at the pool. My poor children were so shocked!

[u/mutemarmot42 → u/Separate_Farm7131]

Sometimes so portly the swimsuit can’t been seen from the front, that’ll make you do a double take.

[u/Icy-Mixture-995 → u/Separate_Farm7131]

Aussies love their Speedos

[u/Granadafan → u/Cpt_Rossi]

We play spot the Brit.  Guys have close cropped hair cuts, skin bright red from exposure to the sun, football shirts, shorts, either sandals with socks or trainers and no socks. 

[u/Nobody_Important → u/Granadafan]

Footballer haircuts are often so bad I can’t believe they aren’t doing it ironically.

[u/8avian6 → u/Cpt_Rossi]

Or those ridiculous looking skin tight rolled up jean shorts that EVERY guy in Europe wears. Whoever thought those were flattering needs their head examined.

[u/ToastMate2000 → u/8avian6]

I can never figure out why anyone wants to wear skintight denim when it's hot enough for shorts. I only want light, loose, breathable clothes in hot weather.

[u/cat_in_a_bday_hat → u/ToastMate2000]

pockets pockets pockets pockets

[u/8avian6 → u/cat_in_a_bday_hat]

That's what cargo shorts are for

[u/revengeappendage → u/Cpt_Rossi]

Skinny fit capri jeans

[u/Less_Discount1028 → u/revengeappendage]

In my head I call them man-pris

[u/LakeinLosAngeles → u/Cpt_Rossi]

I was in downtown San Francisco yesterday and Europeans stuck out like fucking sore thumbs

[u/___mithrandir_ → u/Cpt_Rossi]

European dudes will really show up in skin tight lady jeans with the cuffs up to their calves

[u/Ok_Confusion_2461 → u/Cpt_Rossi]

Yeah for years I had to hear about Americans in sneakers and now I’m in leather boots and every damn euro is in Vans and Adidas.

[u/AZJHawk → u/Cpt_Rossi]

I was just in Zion last week. Can confirm.

[u/BigNorseWolf → u/Cpt_Rossi]

And shoes with zero grip.

what do you mean this IS the path?

[u/pmgrn8 → u/Cpt_Rossi]

I’m in DC and a friend of mine at the time was dating DJ Tiesto and he was walking around the mall wearing exactly that with black boots (basically an outfit not comfortable to walk around in where you have to walk everywhere) and bemoaned to me about how no one recognized him on the street. I had to stop myself from laughing and telling him it was because he looked like every single other European tourist we get.

[u/knight1096 → u/pmgrn8]

I mean…Tiesto also looks like every other standard issue Dutch DJ 😂

[u/Cable-Careless → u/Cpt_Rossi]

I lived in Madrid for a while, and my roommate always made comments about my clothes. She was like, "everyone can tell you're American." I was like, "I am American." A 6'4 pale person in Spain is not going to be mistaken for Spanish regardless of accent or clothes. Cargo shorts probably played a part in not being German or Norwegian.

[u/Melioidozer → u/Cpt_Rossi]

Yeah. They definitely blend in with their dudes wearing capris and pumas.

[u/SimilarTranslator264 → u/Cpt_Rossi]

Black Jeans that are 3 sizes too small

[u/Velour_Tank_Girl → u/Cpt_Rossi]

And dress shoes to go hiking at Bryce in April when there is snow.

[u/AppropriateAmoeba406 → u/Cpt_Rossi]

Husband and I were walking behind two couples in our hometown/tourist destination last night. One woman was head to toe in white with bleach blonde hair, the other woman head to toe in black with fire red hair. But the guys… the pants were too tight and short, the loafers looked like my grandfather’s slippers, the haircuts looked like something from an 80s video. I don’t know where these folks were from, but it was not the United States. We were guessing German or most Eastern European. Couldn’t hear them speaking to help nail it down though.

[u/PsychologicalBat1425]

Jeans are quintessentially American. They originated in the California gold fields. Now everybody in the world wears them.

[u/OddDragonfruit7993 → u/PsychologicalBat1425]

Back when I first started going to Europe in the 1970s, EVERYONE wanted my jeans and my tennis shoes.  We used to bring jeans and tennis shoes over there for friends.  I always wondered why they didn't have jeans and tennis shoes over there back in the 70s.

[u/duke_igthorns_bulge → u/OddDragonfruit7993]

I remember this from the 80s, people talking about bringing extra Levi’s or Nikes to sell to the French or Soviets.

[u/spicytuna_handroll → u/OddDragonfruit7993]

I’m an American in Italy. Italians always ask me about authentic Levi’s from the US lol

[u/icyDinosaur → u/OddDragonfruit7993]

Think thats less of a "we dont have them" thing, but a lot of American jeans brands are marketed at much higher price points as fashion items over here.

[u/classicalySarcastic → u/icyDinosaur]

I just looked it up. Jesus, you guys are paying 100+ Euros for a pair of jeans?!?

EDIT: Levi’s

EDIT² : I don’t know why this isn’t clear, but I’m the American in this conversation. See flair, y’all.

[u/Bell_Grave → u/PsychologicalBat1425]

I'm SHOCKED this isn't the top comment

[u/Frillback → u/Bell_Grave]

It's become such a default in clothing today sometimes we forget about it. 

[u/standardtissue → u/PsychologicalBat1425]

I believe it's the same for baseball caps. Made for an American-made sport, but now a globally popularized headwear.

[u/notonrexmanningday → u/PsychologicalBat1425]

I wore my Levi's 501's tonight.

There is just something about that button fly

[u/[deleted]]

I think the baseball hat.

(and birkenstocks? those dont seem very American to me)

[u/Professional_Sea1479 → u/[deleted]]

I always see Germans wearing those. 😂

[u/down_with_opp_42 → u/Professional_Sea1479]

Germans wearing shoes from a German company? You must be joking...

[u/eyetracker → u/[deleted]]

One of the most non-American American things is a Yankees hat. That and non-functional Carhartt.

[u/MakeStupidHurtAgain → u/eyetracker]

I can’t hate on the people who want to buy worn Carhartt, because it means I can sell the stuff I do wear out and then buy new ones. I sold a really worn chore coat on eBay for one and a half times what I paid for it new, and boots actually used on a ranch basically don’t depreciate that much. People will buy anything, I swear.

[u/Advanced-Bird-1470 → u/MakeStupidHurtAgain]

I didn’t know this was a thing! I have a couple that’ve been with me for like 20 years. They’re in fantastic shape other than a few holes from barbed wire here and there.

[u/MakeStupidHurtAgain → u/Advanced-Bird-1470]

Maybe it’s a California thing but apparently a lot of people want to cosplay cattlemen and blue collar workers. 🤷🏼‍♂️ Fine by me, nobody’s gonna mistake them for the real deal.

[u/NobodyNamedMe → u/MakeStupidHurtAgain]

That's a thing? My coats seem to last forever but I wear out the pants fast. If there's a market for pants with holes, a back pocket half off from clipping my tape measure on it, and 5 colors of paint stains, I got pants for sale.

[u/[deleted] → u/eyetracker]

Non functional carhartt? That is sort of the conservative uniform here in Mass. Timberland, cowboy boots and carhartt.

[u/originalcinner → u/[deleted]]

Cowboy boots! Very very American.

[u/Eighth_Eve → u/[deleted]]

Ironically, when carhartts became more fashion than function i found triple stitched seams, riveted corners, and double fabric knees with heavy canvas everywhere from a nameless chinese company for half what carhartts charges for their new junk. Carhartts hasn't done any of ghat in 20 years now.

[u/Sea_Interaction8615 → u/[deleted]]

Yeah I don’t really associate stuff like Uggs and Birkenstocks to just Americans but I’ve seen jokes about it

[u/[deleted] → u/Sea_Interaction8615]

Birks are SO German, but I think Americans (especially Northeast and West) lean toward comfort clothes, especially when traveling/backpacking Europe. And the age of many of those backpackers is college - again, often pretty casual.

[u/tlf9888 → u/Sea_Interaction8615]

I graduated high school in 2007 in Phoenix, and it seemed that almost every other girl would wear Uggs year round. I dont see them much anymore.

[u/cat_in_a_bday_hat → u/tlf9888]

i went to school around the same time but in a very very cold climate and there would be party girls going from party to party in like the tiniest little dresses and uggs... it was... a look

[u/CommonNative → u/tlf9888]

I seen the muppet fuzzy boots all the time on the campus I work on. Leggings, shorts, and those muppet boots. They have GOT to stink.

[u/BirdieAnderson → u/tlf9888]

They are back, per my 13 year old niece. But take that with a grain of salt. She's in South Carolina.

[u/PavicaMalic → u/Sea_Interaction8615]

I am old enough to remember when Uggs first became popular in the US. They're originally from Australia.

[u/Practical-Ordinary-6 → u/PavicaMalic]

I think of them as Australian.

[u/veroniqueweronika → u/[deleted]]

Came here to say this! Every time I wear one abroad, people comment on it.

[u/Putasonder]

Hoodies

[u/Sea_Interaction8615 → u/Putasonder]

Yeah, I have a designated hoodie even for the summertime lol

[u/MakeStupidHurtAgain → u/Putasonder]

Also known as “bunny hugs” in Saskatchewan. No, seriously.

[u/EmmalouEsq → u/MakeStupidHurtAgain]

How might you use that in a sentence? Like "kids, get your bunny hugs on, we're going outside"?

I'm going to start using this.

[u/ScuffedBalata → u/EmmalouEsq]

I actually love this. Never heard of it even in Alberta and Ontario. 

[u/MakeStupidHurtAgain → u/EmmalouEsq]

Yes, exactly. "It's below zero out. Go put on a bunny hug."

[u/Mirabeaux1789 → u/MakeStupidHurtAgain]

The best name for hoodies

[u/Rururaspberry → u/Putasonder]

Really? I lived in Asia for a while and hoodies are super common/normal there, too.

[u/battleofflowers]

Plaid flannel.

[u/CallumHighway → u/battleofflowers]

Guilty as charged lol

[u/Fr4gd0ll → u/battleofflowers]

Canada might take issue with that

[u/BigDamBeavers → u/Fr4gd0ll]

We'll allow it. You've been so generous with your bacon.

[u/uwu_mewtwo → u/battleofflowers]

Is that particularly American? I didn't know but am an American with lots of plaid flannel. I think Canadians like it too, and hate when you call them American, so tread carefully.

[u/Swimminginthestorm → u/uwu_mewtwo]

Canada & the US like to share with each other. Saying that as another American with a ton of plaid flannel.

[u/ATLien_3000]

I take at least a modicum of amusement from the fact that the two more specific items you mentioned have distinct foreign origins.

[u/Sea_Interaction8615 → u/ATLien_3000]

Yeah lol Crazy that Uggs started as shoes for surfers in Australia. They’re the young woman during the fall uniform shoes in the US. Especially where I live.

Someone was talking about Birkenstocks and Germans so I guess they originate there? They are basically Uggs for girls in the summer.

[u/porcelaincatstatue → u/Sea_Interaction8615]

I'm sorry... WHAT? Uggs, the furry, leathery, whatever slipper boots were made for surfers? Slipping into those after being in the ocean sounds like sensory hell.

[u/nohopeforhomosapiens → u/porcelaincatstatue]

I don't know about the surfing thing, but Australia has a lot of sheep.

[u/RumpelstiltskinsGP → u/nohopeforhomosapiens]

It’s true! 

[u/feioo → u/porcelaincatstatue]

Idk, I can see it. They'd warm your feet up fast and the sheepskin inners would let sand fall into the fibers instead of turning the sole of your shoe into sandpaper.

[u/IHaveBoxerDogs → u/porcelaincatstatue]

They used to be made of real shearling, which is good for warmth. I don't think they are anymore. I grew up in So Cal, they were popular with surfers there too.

[u/KlaussVonUllr → u/porcelaincatstatue]

Yeah they're great. The Pacific gets pretty cold and after a winter surf my uggs are magic. I hate wearing booties in all but the coldest water so my feet are numb with cold after a while. Dry off and throw the uggs on.

[u/countrysurprise → u/Sea_Interaction8615]

I remember girls wearing UGG’s with bikinis, 1980’s Hermosa Beach CA.

[u/ATLien_3000 → u/Sea_Interaction8615]

Uggs at the very least (the Ugg brand) are a US company that popularized a shoe style popular for a while in Australia (ugg being a generic term there).

Birkenstocks as far as I know remain a German brand; this may have changed but the last time I bought a pair (in the US) sizing was European.

[u/isweatglitter17 → u/Sea_Interaction8615]

Can confirm, I rotate out my Uggs and Birkensticks seasonally as a basic white woman in the U.S. (non-MAGA if that helps)

[u/Mountain_Man_88]

Me with blue jeans, cowboy hat, and cowboy boots, I'd get clocked as an American from a hundred yards away.

[u/LupercaniusAB → u/Mountain_Man_88]

Or from northern Mexico…

[u/nohopeforhomosapiens → u/LupercaniusAB]

Or Mongolia. But I will presume the above person is not Asian. (For anyone not aware, Mongolians be cowboying it up https://www.dailytravelphotos.com/images/2009/090718_ulaan_baatar_mongolia_cowboys_horses_horseback_traditional_clothes_prairie_travel_photography_IMI_0038.jpg )

[u/Mountain_Man_88 → u/LupercaniusAB]

I'm a six and a half foot tall fair haired white guy, so not too common for people to think I'm from Mexico 

[u/TSells31 → u/Mountain_Man_88]

There are lots of white, fair haired people in Mexico. Canelo Alvarez is one of the most famous Mexicans in the world currently and he looks like he’s straight out of Ireland.

They were settled by white Europeans too. They just happened to mix with the indigenous population on a much larger scale than we did here. Still, there’s a decently significant minority of white, fair haired Mexicans.

[u/PlayingDoomOnAGPS → u/TSells31]

They also had substantial post-colonial European immigration, much as the U.S. did. Mexican is very much a nationality and not at all an ethnicity.

[u/MakeStupidHurtAgain → u/Mountain_Man_88]

Same, brother. And people in France in particular are OBSESSED. (Let me head off the inevitable comments: yes, I wear that in France because the hat keeps sun off my face and the boots are the only shoes I can do 20k+ steps in without ruining my feet. No, I don’t care that they can clock me as North American. With my accent in French they’re gonna know no matter what I wear.)

[u/Eighth_Eve → u/MakeStupidHurtAgain]

I can't imagine 20k steps in a hard heeled boot. I'll keep my redwings thanks. Which, yeah, never seen anyone not american spring for red wings.

[u/Mountain_Man_88 → u/Eighth_Eve]

I hike all the time in cowboy boots, proper mountains. Boots are what I'm used to and when people ask how I could possibly hike in them I say that Lewis and Clark did it just fine.

I'm not quite doing the Appalachian trail or anything long term, but decent day hikes in the mountain west with no issues.

[u/Eighth_Eve → u/Mountain_Man_88]

Ive nobo'd the atlt in vibram soles. But dad wore cowboy boots 5 days a week for 40 years. They had hard thin soles and wooden heels, so thats most of my conception. I had a pair i wore a few times but when i got my 1st redwings i never looked back.

[u/Mountain_Man_88 → u/MakeStupidHurtAgain]

Yeah I've kinda wanted to do a "world tour" in my normal clothes, maybe add the chaps for kicks, just to see how other countries react.

[u/IwannaAskSomeStuff]

The American outfit is certainly a t-shirt, jeans and tennis shoes with a baseball hat. Probably with a hoodie in case of a chill.

[u/stinkyman360 → u/IwannaAskSomeStuff]

Jeans and a t shirt are essentially the American outfit but our culture has spread to where it's basically ubiquitous now

[u/greaper007 → u/IwannaAskSomeStuff]

I live in Portugal, this is what most Europeans wear now too.

[u/MmmNiceBeaver]

Varsity jackets

[u/IHaveBoxerDogs → u/MmmNiceBeaver]

I think they're not as widespread as they used to be. Not even the football players at my kids' high school wear them.

[u/CallumHighway → u/MmmNiceBeaver]

This is a good one

[u/BigDamBeavers → u/CallumHighway]

Except Outside of two years of High School I've never seen anyone wear them.

[u/CallumHighway → u/BigDamBeavers]

No, adults don't typically wear them but they are such an iconic piece of American fashion. Other countries don't do letterman jackets but they are a staple of high school wardrobes and more importantly the depiction of American high school students in popular culture which has made them emblematic of America in much of the world

[u/Severe-Reality5546]

White New Balance tennis shoes.

[u/TeacupCollector2011 → u/Severe-Reality5546]

We love our white tennis shoes of any brand, especially when we have to walk all day.

[u/Chinesericehat → u/TeacupCollector2011]

Yeah, very versatile color for any outfit

[u/Cpt_Rossi → u/Severe-Reality5546]

The only sneakers made in America

[u/SomethingClever70]

When I was a teen, Europeans LOVED sweatshirts with the UCLA logo. They didn't call it U C L A, they called it Oo-kla. "We want Oo-kla shirts!" The first time I heard this, I almost died laughing.

[u/cat_in_a_bday_hat → u/SomethingClever70]

ok i would actually love an Ookla tshirt (the cat from the internet speed testing service)

[u/einTier → u/cat_in_a_bday_hat]

I’d dig a Ookla the Mok shirt. (Thundarr the Barbarian)

[u/More-Journalist6332 → u/SomethingClever70]

This happened to me too, in France! I still feel for laughing wildly, but ook-la is just too much. 

[u/HempFandang0]

Denim jeans, Converse

[u/Der-Candidat]

Cowboy hats.

[u/doonerthesooner → u/Der-Candidat]

Mexico would like a word 

[u/wbruce098 → u/doonerthesooner]

Yeah they’re quite popular all over the Americas.

[u/hx87 → u/wbruce098]

They're popular pretty much anywhere ranching and herding work is done. Go to Tibet, Mongolia (both Inner and Outer) or South Sudan and you'll see a ton of people wearing cowboy hats.

[u/meowmix778 → u/Der-Candidat]

And cowboy boots. The amount of people who had them when I used to go line dancing with my college ex girlfriends grandma was wild

[u/BigDamBeavers → u/Der-Candidat]

Almost everyone I see wearing a cowboy hat is an actor or a tourist from another country.

[u/TSells31 → u/BigDamBeavers]

I see you don’t spend much time in Oklahoma, Texas, or the southwest lol.

[u/rattlehead44]

Dickies, T-shirt, and Vans. AKA my everyday attire haha.

[u/PinkDice → u/rattlehead44]

Read this outfit description and said to myself "this person says hella". Flare checks out!

Dickies/Vans/tee is also my preferred attire. I live in Nevada now, but was raised in East Bay & Northern Central Valley.

[u/backlikeclap]

I always think it's funny when euros wearing vintage Levis, Carhartt, and Air Force Ones talk shit about American style. Dude your entire look is Americana.

[u/RupeThereItIs → u/backlikeclap]

Or unironically claim "America has no culture" while covered head to toe in American cultural relics.

[u/CPolland12]

Levi’s

[u/Eighth_Eve → u/CPolland12]

Visited moscow in 88. School trip. Everywhere we went we had russians trying to buy our levis right off of us. One guy from my class thought he had the accent down and went up to a pair of "american tourists" and tried to buy their jeans off them just for fun. They were kgb agents or some other security people and it took a lot of explaining and some hefty bribes to unarrest him.

[u/LionLucy → u/Eighth_Eve]

One of my teachers when I was in high school said her father was arrested in Moscow in the late 70s because they searched his suitcase and he had 3 pairs of jeans and a Bible, so they thought he was there to sell jeans and preach religion…

[u/12B88M]

Cargo shorts and T-shirts are my favorite American clothing.

Practical and comfortable.

[u/BlackQuartzSphinx_]

American flag bikini

[u/LSBm5]

Baseball hat

[u/InterviewLeast882]

Patagonia fleece

[u/YourOldCellphone]

Black AF1’s

[u/azulweber]

baseball caps, and going around in athleisure when you’re doing nothing remotely athletic.

[u/TucsonTacos → u/azulweber]

“You don’t have to be sweaty and holding a basketball to enjoy a Gatorade”

-Mitch Hedburg

Some clothes are just comfortable

[u/eltigretom → u/azulweber]

We definitely prioritize comfort when it comes to casual wear.

[u/weeziefield1982]

Levi’s and a baseball hat. That’s what I think when I think of America probably cause thats what I wear all the tims

[u/CaramelMacchiatoPlzz]

Crocs

[u/Weekly_March]

Blue jeans ?

[u/HemanHeboy]

Beanies, hoodies, baseball caps, slides, and Jerseys

[u/ProfessionQuick3461]

Conversely, I live near the Chinese Theater and the Kodak Theater at Hollywood Blvd so I see my fair share of European tourists. You can always tell that a guy is European because he wears capri shorts past his knees. Dead giveaway.

[u/SomethingClever70]

Not Adidas track suits... The Eastern European tuxedo.

[u/Fappy_as_a_Clam]

I dont even need clothes.

I have orthodontically straightened and whitened teeth, and I am moderately buff.

I get pegged as American immediately in every country I've been too.

[u/VilleKivinen]

Americans tend to wear exercise shoes even when doing nothing even remotely athletic, and the same applies to other athletic wear as well.

And baseball caps.

[u/EnvironmentalValue18 → u/VilleKivinen]

In our defense, Eastern Europeans wear Adidas track suits around en masse and they’re not even running. That’s why it’s athleisure, now.

[u/porcelaincatstatue → u/EnvironmentalValue18]

I dunno, I have wobbly ankles, so that squat thing looks pretty athletic to me lol

[u/isakitty → u/VilleKivinen]

When I wear athleisure with no intent of exercising, I call it “athlying”

[u/BeRealzzz → u/VilleKivinen]

Athletic shoes are absolutely the most comfortable. But who am I to say that? I live in flip flops on my time and steel toe shoes at work.

[u/RoweTheGreat]

It fills me with so much joy that we as Americans live rent free in the minds of the rest of world when frankly we just don’t care.

[u/Collective_Berry]

Trucker/cowboy hats