People in Boise tend to blame geographic isolation for the relatively limited variety of fashion choices in the 208. While I would agree with this to some degree (what I wouldn’t do for an H&M or even a Nordstrom in Boise…), I think it’s more the homogeneity of the Idaho populous that’s the cause of our fashion bottleneck. The prime suspect? Pacific Northwest comfort-chic attire that serves as a uniform for many men and women, particularly in the winter months.

First of all, to describe this look as ‘chic’ is a total misnomer. Pacific Northwest winter-wear obviously favors function over form, as in it functionally dehumanizes the human (particularly female) form. Pretty much everyone I know here in Boise owns at least one well-worn fleece garment that should really be put out to pasture. When I say “pretty much everyone”, I am (sheepishly) including myself, as the title of this post implies. I’m ashamed to say that not only do I own fleece jackets and vests, but I’m also the (not so) proud owner of these babies, dubbed the “fiesta pants” by my comfort-chic boyfriend:

The fiesta pants were purchased circa 2003 at a thrift store in Eugene, Oregon during my college years, when my personal judgment was, clearly, not at its best. The details of the pants’ previous lives before I procured them are unknown, and this is probably why the aforementioned boyfriend is convinced that the pants are a host for parasites or some exotic disease that will infect him in his sleep. Rest assured, the pants are confined to in-home use and will not haunt the streets of Boise; however, they have been known to make a public appearance or two. The photo above was taken last December at a costume bar crawl: the pants’ inclusion was welcome and appropriate, and was the last time they were seen in public.

So does Boise exist in a fashion vacuum? Perhaps. But when looks like those pictured above run rampant ’round these parts, maybe it’s an all-out quarantine.

-dau