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George: I have 15 vests.And this one you have on now. How would you describe it?
It's casual. I have some similar ones in lime green, black, blue, navy blue, and button up. And then some of them are by Williwear.Williwear?
Will Smith, the designer, not the singer. There was a different Will Smith that mattered back in my time.

I don't think so. He passed away.OK. Tell me about some of your favorite vests.
I have six or seven favorites that I wear. One of them is embroidered in black and it can be really high-end, depending on how you wear it. Then there's one that's gold-colored, some printed stuff… What I'm wearing now is Patricia Fields, another fashion artist from the 80s and 90s. I still have this one in gold, too. When I was going to school it was always about the vests and the embroidered shoes and the big bow ties and you had to have a Gumby going on.What's a Gumby?
The hairdo! It's like a slanted hi-top fade. Back then it was always about Kid 'N Play, so that translated into all of my clothing.

They're easy. You can dress them up or down, depending on where you're going. And you know, it's better than wearing a blazer. Blazer's can come across too formal. The vest is always a nice choice.When did your vest obsession start?
High school. I still have a picture of when I was 19 wearing one. I was so proud of this mustard colored vest, it was a kind of shiny material. I wore it under a tuxedo. I had the tie to go with it, a handbag, and the vest was just sticking out a little bit. I've always gotten a lot of compliments on my vests.
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I think the fact that I can still wear them is amazing. I'm 40 years old and still wearing the same vests I wore when I was 19. I guess that means my stomach hasn't gotten any bigger! It's kind of cool.

Actually, there are two. One of them goes with a custom-made outfit that I bought six years ago at the SS music festival in New Orleans. They had different vendors there and this one woman made clothing. So she made me a three-piece outfit with a shirt, jacket, and then added a vest to it. The vest is in a paisley print with a nice sky blue color, kind of shiny. I only wear that on really, really special occasions when I want to look completely different.What would a special occasion be?
Like a company Christmas party where you don't want to wear a blazer but you want to give that flavor. Or I would wear it to something really special when I wanted to stand out. People stand out in so many different ways. They develop their own style. I'm kind of a mix between retro and something new. I'm trying to fit into the skinny jeans but still bring some of the 80s and 90s stuff, bring it into the era of Nike sneakers and Air Force Ones and mesh it together.
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That's one of my Williwear vests. It's embroidered. Every time I wear that one people just look at it like, "Wow."What's embroidered?
Wagon wheels. It's all blended into the vest in one color so it's all black, but if you touch it you can feel the different texture of the wagon wheels through it. It's a six-button vest.How long have you had that one?
I've had it for over ten years. I haven't given that thing up.Sounds neat. Thanks for sharing!ELLIS JONES
