Modern Menswear Kit: Available Now!

Posting the blog here to facilitate discussion.

REDEFINING LONDON CLASSICS
Discover New Styles with The Sims 4 Modern Menswear Kit

The Sims™ has always been a creative destination where players come to express themselves, discover new experiences and play with life.

To further empower players to find new and expressive paths to self-discovery, and to deliver on the promise of providing more contemporary menswear options, The Sims worked with the British Fashion Council - a not-for-profit organization supporting British design talent and championing responsible and creative businesses to further strengthen British fashion around the globe - to Simify an up-and-coming menswear brand and help stretch style boundaries with its next fashion kit, The Sims™ 4 Modern Menswear Kit.

Welcome to The Sims’s virtual closet, Stefan Cooke.

https://i.imgur.com/1spOrJw.png

Helmed by Central Saint Martins graduates Stefan Cooke and partner Jake Burt, the award-winning, London-based label - named after Cooke - is un-defining traditional menswear. “We’re taking quintessential menswear items and repurposing them, whether it's through textiles or silhouette,” explains Cooke.

“The brand is about redefining masculinity,” continues Cooke. “We always try to be authentic, and without excluding anyone. We’re about redeveloping and refining old ideas, but making them incredibly modern, and pushing that idea to the point that it transcends things like gender.”

For The Sims 4 Modern Menswear Kit, Stefan Cooke worked with The Sims team to bring a wide-range of new-age menswear to players and creators around the globe. Consisting of 23 pieces, all of which are Simified recreations of real-world Stefan Cooke collections, the garments range from the traditional to the revolutionary, masculine to effeminate, and fusions of them all. There’s jackets, trousers, suits, and shoes, as well as some of the designers’ favorite pieces, including the Stefan Cooke Wool Varsity Coat with Skirt, a design that perfectly encapsulates the evolution of modern menswear.

https://i.imgur.com/4fu9Fdn.png

Alongside the dynamic shapes and silhouettes, fabric is another quintessential Stefan Cooke characteristic. The former brings us deeper into the boundless future of menswear, while the latter pays homage to the familiar classics.

“Each material was carefully hand-painted to emulate the texture qualities by doing somewhat of a caricature of the details,” explains Vincent Joly, Senior Art Director for The Sims. “Exaggerating the shapes and controlling the contrast to not look too busy or photorealistic, at the same time not reducing the details too much to lose the essence of the fabrics. Each piece was tuned to find that sweet spot.”

https://i.imgur.com/S2c8dzM.png

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Burt and Cooke are not just looking forward to seeing their styles democratized and digitized, they’re also excited for the self-exploration that their kit will inspire, both within The Sims and in the real world.

“I hope people become more explorative with what they're wearing, especially if they're guys,” says Burt. “I think it's a good thing if people feel more comfortable and unafraid to wear what they want to wear.”

“Fashion can be about identifying as part of something, but also as your own person. It’s both for community and individualism,” adds Cooke. “That's why fashion is so amazing. It can be the slightest thing, and it can really change how you feel about yourself or what you want to put across to the world.”

https://www.ea.com/games/the-sims/the-sims-4/news/modern-menswear

*shrug* Meh. It wasn't made for me, but I can use it. Especially for my more androgynous Sims. It isn't as drab as I was afraid Incheon would be, so I can throw $5 at it.

The inspiration.

https://i.imgur.com/L4Co9nY.png

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https://i.imgur.com/U9khFTJ.png

Stefan Cooke Autumn/Winter 2021 Collection
https://pausemag.co.uk/2021/03/stefan-cooke-autumn-winter-2021-collection/

After having lamented - at length (both in and outside of these forums) - the disparity between male, sorry masculine, and feminine CAS asset availability, especially regarding the comparative lack of specifically being able to express male/masculine gender identity I was so happy to hear that Team Maxis had finally amended their lack of equal and fair treatment of men in this game (CAS-wise).

Then I read the official blog about this kit and saw the images... WHAT. THE. BLOODY. PLUMBOB Team Maxis? We have a lot of problems in this game and this is not how you fix them! The outfits/CAS assets chosen for a product named Modern Menswear are absolutely horrible, the equivalent of wearing full body crocs! (yes that is the worst possible fashion insult imaginable, no amount of swearing and raging is going to top that). And to add insult to misery, that blog rather pretentiously assaults the male gender identity by insinuating you can just 'repurpose', 'redefine', and 'redevelop' masculinity by crudely shoehorning in effeminate traits or characteristics like that's something you can just tinker with at your leisure and expect everyone to agree that's a wonderful idea. It's also insulting to the other gender when you dilute and diminish aspects of their gender identity by blatantly incorporating them into the gender identity they are not. It's gender appropriation! At best this kit should have been named 'Modern Gender Neutralwear Kit' so it wouldn't be this disappointedly misleading and subvert expectations of this kit actually being about MENswear.

Hopefully the next few kits will be: The Sims 4 Stylish Menswear Kit, The Sims 4 Cool Menswear Kit, The Sims 4 Much Needed More Men's Underwear Kit, The Sims 4 Manly Menswear Kit, The Sims 4 Sexy Menswear Kit, The Sims 4 Smart Menswear Kit, The Sims 4 Casual Menswear Kit, The Sims 4 Fabulous Menswear Kit, The Sims 4 Athletic Menswear Kit, The Sims 4 Clubbing Menswear Kit, The Sims 4 Punk Menswear Kit, or maybe, you know, The Sims 4 Actual Menswear Kit! All of these would have been better than this... "modern"? menswear kit!

Addendum: Dragons! Unrelated to any 'wear' kits. Please! If not for me than for any other simmers that want dragons :p

Stefan Cooke Enters the Metaverse With a Collection for The Sims

Stefan Cooke is shaking up the metaverse monopoly with a new collection for The Sims. For just $4.99, players of The Sims will be able to purchase 23 pieces of the brand’s menswear. The Stefan Cooke pack spans seasons, bringing the label’s holey knits, jeans, and tunics into the virtual world of the game. “What I’m excited about is that it will really be a different customer,” says Cooke, who designs his namesake brand with Jake Burt. “It will be really interesting to see the reaction of people who are not in fashion. Will the collection change their minds about menswear? Will they try it out?”

Stefan Cooke’s venture into virtual isn’t only notable because it’s an independent British brand staking a claim in the metaverse, but because the brand continuously pushes the boundaries of what menswear can be, showing skirts, knee-high boots, and elegant blouses on the runway alongside classic tailoring. “I think that’s why The Sims wanted to partner with us,” says Burt. “It is committed to offering a more forward-thinking idea of menswear and defying norms.”

Turning the IRL into the URL came with design challenges. The Stefan Cooke team met with designers at The Sims biweekly for almost a year, fine-tuning the details and hand-painting textures so that its crocheted sweaters and miniskirts look as true to life as possible. When Cooke and Burt showed up at an early meeting with ideas for show stopping, over-the-top looks, they were surprised to learn that The Sims players want “wearable” garments—yes even for their virtual selves. “We picked the craziest stuff because we thought players would want to wear showpieces,” explains Burt, “but hearing that Sims players could have hold-ups about wearing something too dramatic in the game, I realized that mindset of our physical customers applies to the game too. People want to feel comfortable and like themselves.”

The expanded reach of The Sims—the game boasts 30 million players—will bring awareness to the young designers and their work, but the partnership isn’t just a marketing exercise. To Cooke and Burt it’s a way to connect with a new generation of fashion lovers and customers. “Seeing a customer engaging with the brand and wearing the brand who maybe couldn’t afford it before—I think that’s really exciting,” says Burt.

“I think this is where fashion is going, really,” adds Cooke. “Customers are everywhere; you just have to make sure that you’re appealing to as many different ones as possible. I hope that the future will be full of cool 13-year-olds in Stefan Cooke!”

https://www.vogue.com/article/stefan-cooke-the-sims

Thanks for that last post simgirl1010, I hadn't read that one before.

“It will be really interesting to see the reaction of people who are not in fashion. Will the collection change their minds about menswear? Will they try it out?” This one had me laughing and snorting :D

"I hope that the future will be full of cool 13-year-olds in Stefan Cooke!" And there we have it, the intended/expected/desired? demographic for this game. /sigh :(

They put out a menswear kit then promote skirts/feminine clothes...yikes...this is one kit im def not buying. Its not even cultural skirts like kilts or sarong, which id appreciate. My male sims do not dress like women and never wear womens clothes. It has no use in my game. And so many simmers have been BEGGING for masculine clothing because the game is catered to womens clothing and the team just poured salt in the wound. There are so many threads asking for manlier clothing or activities.

If you give me a London EP, I might.....might give you my 5 bucks for this kit. My sim has settled down in HOB, this kit is too modern for living on a farm :D

Well, this was definitely not to my liking. I thought "more men's clothes, neat" but I have actually never seen anyone dress like this. Also... maybe it should be localized? Because no Gen Z or Millenial guy I know dresses baggy, at all. Where is the designer from?

"simgirl1010;c-18009417" wrote:
https://twitter.com/SimGuruNinja/status/1460671363316813834?t=0qki6ufRHvwy3jqJQO8csQ&s=19

https://twitter.com/SimGuruSoph/status/1460675172143296513?t=x3LrD02PDEln3Wq8h9HNyg&s=19

Ah. Yet ANOTHER pack based on England / London? AGAIN?