Lloyd rants about "designer" flim-flam

In this, I draw the viewer's attention to a niggle with the use of the word 'designer' when applied to an object for sale.
www.LloydianAspects.co.uk

[@brendanjohnson4931]

I think I'd pay more for a pair of glasses that came from a meteorite.

[@brachwolf1297]

But what am I to do if all of my clothing isn't covered in expensive logos?

[@leifvejby8023]

+TheRandomStuffMedia LOL Just wear it. Blue jeans and white t-shirts will do the job too, won't they?

[@brachwolf1297]

***** But then how will people know that I spend my money on having fancy pictures on my clothes?

[@leifvejby8023]

TheRandomStuffMedia They won't. People will think "poor sod", and not relieve you of your rolex and your iPhone! ;-)

[@lebulle4544]

+TheRandomStuffMedia Go on vacation with all the money you saved

[@studyinsteel5186]

+TheRandomStuffMedia Embroider the names of large financial companies into random parts of your clothing.

[@islamispeace333]

I must say, sir, that truly was a rant worth recording and, by all standards, Amazing.

[@MadHatter42]

Maybe it's because I'm an unfashionable doofus, but I often find "Designer" clothes to be terribly boring. I prefer to find much cheaper and more unique clothes at thrift stores.

[@Stettafire]

Indeed, in the UK we have charity shops where people donate clothing and then other people buy the clothing and the money goes to charity. I find buying clothing which more or less fits and then repairing it is not only dramatically cheaper, but results in a more unique look. Also when it comes to smart clothes like shirts, I only wear them once in a blue moon so I keep them nice and neat and then i can wear them for many, many years without a problem.

[@АлексейСалихов-з4ч]

At least the "designer" label is technically true, as opposed to some others like "exclusive".

[@Stettafire]

Even then, you'll be amazed at how often these ''designer' labels are made up and come out of the same warehouse as the cheaper stuff.

[@Liggliluff]

@@Stettafire But as both Lindybeige and Алексей Салихов said. These "designer" labels aren't made up, but misleading. They are designed, that isn't made up; but everything non-natural is designed. - But yes, the ones marked as designed can sometimes be produced the exact same way as those not marked.

[@jauntyangle5667]

Exclusive is technically true if you don't have enough money?

[@oiausdlkasuldhflaksjdhoiausydo]

As a professional designer... You're 100% right. Yep, "designer" as a selling point is bs and diminishes the value real design.

[@cygnuz2012]

As myself and others have said in this thread tho, you can generally rely on the designer clothing to be well made and long lasting, as opposed to the cheap stuff which seems to disintegrate within weeks of buying it.

[@lindybeige]

Yes, glow-sticks. I'm sure you're right. I panicked. I shot ten videos in one hour, each one in one take without rehearsal, and slips like that are the result, although I prefer it that way (usually - sometimes the amount of umming and erring I do is a bit embarrassing).

[@joegillian314]

What Lloyd is referring to is actually the concept of what economists call luxury goods, which is an item that exists only so that rich people can show off how much money they have. Disgusting.

[@kevinsullivan3448]

Exactly. Back in the day I used to buy Levi 501s because they fit well, were comfortable, and lasted for years; and they cost $20 a pair (in 1989). Meanwhile I knew people who were buying Jordache and other 'designer' labels and paying $60-100 a pair for jeans that wouldn't last 2 years. Only a morons or a self important buffoons pay more for cheap shit and non-designer products.

[@the1exnay]

I prefer the term veblen good, as the term luxury has multiple meanings and can cause confusion. In fact just earlier today i referred to cigarettes as luxury items, obviously using the term differently than what you are. Hmm, makes me wonder if i should have called cigarettes a different word that’d be less confusing, but what word conveys well that an item has almost no practical application.

[@cyrushutchinson3916]

Firaro have you come up with that different word?

[@maxpayne2574]

Yes and in fact the fancy cars and all the designer stuff is likely why those people are deep in debt and must have a constant steam of new income to maintain their "lifestyle" so they are truly poor.

[@Minecraftrok999]

Do you know what's even more disgusting? Semi poor people wasting their money on clothing from Lacoste, Gucci etc. pp. just because they want to look wealthy.

[@xxxmurray]

Those are glow sticks.

[@lindybeige]

In Britain, there are 'premium' beers. I do not know what this means, and suspect that no one does.

[@lindybeige]

It's one of the basic food groups.

[@lindybeige]

'An hilarious comedy', 'an hotel', and ' an historian' are all considered correct by many. My parents have taught themselves to drop the H in 'hotel' to sound posher. It all depends on how much you pronounce the initial H.

[@rorke6092]

can't flimflam the zimzam

[@daniel117100]

Where can I get one of those designer pebbles?

[@lindybeige]

The trouble with standing there is that I am lit entirely from one side.

[@lindybeige]

I have a problem with pieces of paper with concentric circles printed on them in my flat.

[@frankgon4]

Somebody had a bad day at the Mall.

[@kireta21]

You don't say. Last time took me HOURS to find shop selling classic blue jeans, that were actually classic cut and one shade of blue.

[@TheRadioactiveFX]

I feel tempted to start buying expensive 'designer' clothes and cut out the logos.

[@FurryAminal]

"Designer" is an attempt to claim that something is exclusive without it being elitist. Note: I am an elitist, so I'm not worried about that word, its just that huge swathes of society don't like it (which is kind of part of the point of 'elitism' isn't it? The masses don't approve).

[@yetanother9127]

+FurryAminal I always understood it as just the opposite; elitists don't approve of the _masses_; that's what makes them elitists. Your mileage may vary.

[@frederf3227]

It's a bit rich for complaint about abbreviation detrimental to understanding from the country that coined "would that it were." Long hand for "designer" would be "designed by a well-respected and notably talented maker." Kind of lets all the air out of your soccer ball.

[@ismetyalimalatli7581]

As an industrial product designer, by education, I cannot agree more with you. Keep ranting! Ranting's good!

[@LeeRaldar]

Designer wear often has a logo or other emblem on it representing the manufacturer for which the consumer pays considerably more money, shouldn't it be the other way around where the manufacturer pays the customer to become a walking advertisement for the product or do consumers generally just not think things through?

[@LuaanTi]

+Lee Wardle Of course not, people use those to advertise themselves. See, I'm better than you, because John Dandy designed my shoes. Oh yeah, wail in despair, ye unworthy!

[@olliephelan]

Its the *word* "designer" that hes saying is unnecessary and silly . Generally , if I can afford it , I buy an expensive pair of shoes and a cheap pair (for working or around the house ) . I bought cheap pair of camel type boots for 45 . After a few weeks ware you could see that the inside of the soles were plywood . Water-logged after about 10 weeks That wouldnt have happened with Caterpillar

[@typillers6037]

I'm not alone on this!!!!

[@DeepPastry]

Those looked like glow sticks. An awesome creation of the US Navy. Originally they planned on spraying the battlefield with the two chemicals from aircraft to light an area up. But instead they designed a plastic tube holding one chemical, plus a much more fragile tube inside that holding the other chemical. A quick bend cracks the inner capsule and mixes the two chemicals and pow, a stick that glows for hours and hours.

[@loqkLoqkson]

As an engineer (electronics), I can accurately say that most functional objects are engineered. There is design that goes into it, but they are often made and designed by engineers. Designers are artists, not engineers. They are hired to make something look pretty in a way most engineers just aren't capable of, and haven't been trained for. From my perspective, most things I design work, whereas things, even those same things after a designer has had a go at them are randomly rearranged so that, although they still work (more or less) they look nicer, or, sometimes, just more random. Standard PC case and parts have been engineered. Apple cases and parts have usually been designed. Alienware is what happens when you design a PC case.

[@michaeldougfir9807]

Greetings from California. Let me say, I quite agree. While I have not quoted your "designer" rant, I have certainly paraphrased it many times. One of my pet peeves is "one size fits all." No. I want something that fits me. ME! And I want it made properly.

[@archis84]

I understand the value of word ''designed'', that it comes in limited numbers and is some sort of unique compered to the others. If one walks in shoes that others can't have or buy, then he will draw more attention -> will describe the ones status.

[@lindybeige]

Could we not find a use for them in ice-cream mines?

[@ReScqAkaPantee]

In fact the example with the 'deisgner' frames is brilliant. In fact, more than half of the frames sold worldwide (and nealry 8 out of 10 sunglasses) come from the same company - Luxottica. And they put labels on it like Ray Ban, Oakley, Chanel, Prada and Michael Kors aso. But it´s all the same company and, yes, also the same "Designers". And as fancy as their labels are their price tags. www.quora.com/Why-do-people-say-that-80-of-Eyewear-brands-are-made-by-Luxottica-when-there-are-many-other-manufacturers-suppliers-besides-them

[@Homunculas]

prada frames are 2-3 times the price of michael Kors and 2-3 time the quality, just because they have the same parent company does not mean they are manufactured to the same standards, when you but a cheap no name frame you're getting a frame that the optician probably paid no more than ten dollars for then sells for 50-75 dollars making a 500-750 percent profit, whereas the "prada frame likely cost the optician 120-150 dollars and will sell for 300-350 dollars 300-350 percent profit. If you ever ran a business it's all about percentages in the long run.

[@tomardans4258]

There are designers who just stick the logo in unremarkable eyeglasses, and then there are designers who create eyeglasses like no others. I have a pair of Gautier mechanoid glasses (all knobs and sliders and threaded rods), and a pair of Linberg titanium wire glasses. I wear both all the time. I bought them in 1994. The optician still fixes them for free. (Though they rarely need anything)

[@UnbeltedSundew]

I was hoping this was going to be a rant about bad design. However, this subject is just as good :)

[@lindybeige]

No, I have things _lying_ around my house.

[@catmo6448]

In response to another video about suits - just thought, UK national costume - the wooly jumper, not a bought jumper but a hand knit jumper with optional cuff ribbing and pattern.

[@janikmalkovich6222]

i like ice cream too

[@joanagomes1898]

me too

[@cyrushutchinson3916]

Joana Gomes me too!

[@IndigoGollum]

A few months ago I learned that designer sprinkles.

[@maxpayne2574]

Thank you Lindys mum for all you do. Yes and in fact the fancy cars and all the designer stuff is likely why those people are deep in debt and must have a constant steam of new income to maintain their "lifestyle" so they are truly poor.

[@virshirevirshul3083]

What I learned from this video: designer rocks are special.

[@bleda7612]

I love his rage in this video.

[@taitungknight]

Very amusing! And of course, you're quite right. I think every time I am tempted to say the word "designer" (not that I am), I'll say "pretentious" instead.

[@DieFlabbergast]

Worst of all is the Intelligent Designer Universe!

[@davidvanau3182]

Stay awesome, Lindy!

[@Blue.Diesel]

Designer just entails that more work was put in to making the product. One thing is just shitting out a shit that people can put on. Another thing is spending time, making it look good by print or colors, making them fit better, and using more expensive materials / techniques to make them.

[@SgtKOnyx]

oddly enough this video directly impacts the one two previous

[@SgtKOnyx]

in the rant playlist

[@matthewamer713]

His example of non-designer glasses 'appearing' from chance, and how stupid that sounds, is basically the point that non-creationists try to make when saying there is no designer (god). Its obvious that glasses being made by chance sounds unrealistic, so why is it that for something infinitely more complicated - life on earth - it is widely accepted that there was no designer and life simply happened by chance?

[@muraalia]

Laughed so hard I'm in tears. You're brilliant!

[@malgremor85]

I usually remove "designer" labels on garments, especially if on the outside. I'd be embarrassed to seen flaunting someone else's name. By the way, I just acquired my first beige shirt. I'll think of you whenever I wear it....

[@fenlandghost993]

The question is - why does advertising work? I am a designer. I however know that my entire career and what pays for my house, food, wife and my daughter's (I have two so I didn't put the apostrophe after the 's') insatiable desire to fit in and impress their friends. Fortunately I am a structural display designer rather than a marketer (I probably would have shot myself as marketer = estate agent in my book). I sat in a jaw dropping meeting some time ago as highly paid 'agency types' explained the look and feel concept of the first ever vibrating male disposable razor.... I physically had to stop myself mentioning the tack they were planning on the female variant. I digress, What the f* is a mood board? What possible reason is there for the existence of Satchel & Satchel (this was deliberate). But I bet you knew who I was talking about.And that's the point, sadly. We are lost.

[@stumbling]

And let's not call everything, "product", while we're at it.

[@malbolt]

"Designer...... I don't know what those are"😂

[@xslithsx]

He seems SO ANGRY in the video, and then he turns around and says he likes ice cream. Crazy brits.

[@_Mentat]

The whole point about "designer" is that the designer is named. You will never know who designed non-designer things (excluding mum's sweater of course). When someone puts their name on stuff they have skin in the game; they have to make them better, out of better materials, because they will be judged.

[@NicGiollaMhichil]

Victor Meldrew- in the making 😄

[@CZProtton]

Those things were lightsticks, the ones you break, shake and then they glow.

[@BigDictator5335]

*picks up glow sticks* "I don't know what those are." lol

[@HerrSchnitzel1911]

Well, I wouldn't look at it that way, because it all depends on the materials used, quality of the machines and processes, workers etc. So, there are expensive things that are rubbish, and there are cheap things that are great, there's no golden rule. But, in my experience, more expensive things tend to be better made and more lasting than cheap ones. I once bought sneakers which cost about 30 Euros, and they fell apart after two months. The 100 Euro ones I still have, two years later.

[@WakarimasenKa]

yes the "designer" craze has gone overboard.. but before it did... We had stuff that was engineered for functionality and stuff that was designed to have the same function and at the same time look and feel and do all sorts of stuff better or simpler. Designer furniture are not just for sitting on.. they are for looking at too.. Of course now its gotten to the point where when you look at all that expensive stuff you have you get a negative reaction, because of all the money you spent

[@jorlok_zander]

I know, I'm talking from a wrong year here, but... I usually prefer buying shoes from a certain label. Honestly, I hate labeling and things, so I always try to get the model that has little to no indication. But the whole reason I get those is... Quality? You see, where I live we do have markets that sell non-branded shoes and things. Lots of it. The thing is... When I buy those, I can not be sure at all if they will last. Maybe they will, maybe they won't, who knows. But with branded ones, you can actually stick to a certain model or smth, and be sure that the design is indeed good. And the price range is not insanely different. Buying 1 pair of branded shoes still costs less that 2-3 pairs of non-branded ones. Maybe I'm thinking it through the wrong way, but, I would rather spend an amount of money for the time I know a thing would last, than risk wasting even more money.

[@cygnuz2012]

Agree, actually just made the same comment myself, could have just replied to this one instead.

[@VicariousReality7]

Everything i own is difficult or painful to use, and they all say they are ergonomically designed

[@oakdew]

These rants are great public service announcements.

[@shanewright2772]

Designer sweater as opposed to a sweater that was just cobbled together. I also delight in the term ''architect designed home". All well and good, but I really want to live in a home designed by an auto mechanic or a professional golfer. To hell with polite convention.

[@ianpeden2906]

Now please have a rant about "limited edition" foods, such as meat pies.

[@theasbwilson1994]

Designer implies that it has been designed by someone well respected and acknowledged to be a designer, or at least approved by them the large scale fashion industry. In the same way just because I could talk about history it does not make me an historian, however if I were a lecturer on history then, yes, I could sell myself as a historian.

[@52684]

Good rant

[@stonehartfloydfan]

Dead right my friend .. That tearm drives me nuts

[@PsylomeAlpha]

the main reason I usually end up buying "designer" glasses is because I have a watermelon for a head, so most glasses don't fit, and when they do they usually cost fifty dollars more than the cheap ones. of course, WHY a couple of machined bits of wire and/or plastic cost as much as a 3DSXL is the _mystery_. p.s. mystery was sarcastic, if you couldn't tell.

[@HerrSchnitzel1911]

@lindybeige Granted, but Nike in itself is a "designer" brand, therefore it's products can be relied upon (at least to an extent) to last, while my 30 Euro shoes were noname, and the result wasn't very satisfying.

[@LeeLee-pk4ss]

Designer dogs, that one bugs me the most. When I was a kid if a dog was a mix of two breeds or more it was called a mutt and extremely cheep to buy or it was free. Now you put the word designer in front of it and suddenly it's expensive. But in reality you can not reproduce the same qualities in that dog again by breeding two mix breeds together. It took hundreds of generations to create the breeds we have today that's why they cost money. So if I were to breed two corgis together I word get a litter of corgis not true with a mixed breed, there is no standard for that dog. BTW I do like mix breeds and some can be very wonderful companions and pets so don't jump down all over me.

[@Twm532]

It frustrates me when shops try to sell supposedly ergonomically designed products for more than the standard just by slightly changing the shape or adding some form of padding. Just about everything you own is ergonomically designed otherwise it would be difficult or painful to use, adding a gimmick like a curve to it doesn't make it ergonomic

[@johnthehappyjohn]

I have to say you seem surprisingly furious about what's really just an euphemism, like gold-plated sound cables or the difference between an Austin Martin DB9 and an Austin Martin DBS. Despite that, it's tremendously entertining. Lindybeige, what is an 'Oxymath'? I haven't been able to find the definition.

[@IcEye89]

I also happen to like Icecream. A lot.

[@Glimmlampe1982]

after watching two or three videos (again), i really have to say i like your flat. full of cool stuff, airguns, stones, knifes... even a fake chainsaw. thats how one should life ;)

[@KnowArt]

gotta disagree with you for once. Not totally of course. That would be stupid for quite some reasons. But here's my point: You could make a doorknob that would work. And you have to design it to a certain amount, but not so much and pretty everybody can do it. But you could also make a doorknob that is extra fancy and looks nice with your door and your other doorknobs, maybe it even feels better than the others and has a extra spring somewhere inside that makes it go back up again for more than the 5 years that the average doorknob does, you see. It's not about the fact that it is designed in some way, because indeed everything is, but more about with what in mind. To be cheap and do the job or to look nice and do the job a little better.

[@3zan6bel9]

excellent!

[@Homunculas]

I wear glasses and in my experience there are great frames on the market and crappy frames when I buy a frame I hope to get 3-4 years wear out of it, a good designer will not put there name on a piece of crap. same with clothing. buying better quality pays for itself in the long run.

[@chrisgachoka6620]

the thing for this is most people go for designer things to either show off, or show that they belong in the upper class(it's dumb, but when has that stopped people)

[@WilliamDeanHamilton]

What about things called "custom" which are mass produced identically.

[@UnCivilEngineerIRL]

@1:25 - they're called chemlights.

[@soythelubu5389]

that only happens in night vale it appears from the air

[@Palifiox]

Could you please rant about audiophiles / audiofools?

[@paradigmprospector6318]

it's not 'just' a pebble^^

[@sextuspompeius1266]

Its a rock

[@86Corvus]

THe word designer is there to signify that there was a person with alot of expertise on the items looks and function who spent extra tiem to make that product better than the generic run of the mill crap. You can have a logo made by an amateur or even make your own using a generator online but the effect is going to be something horrible as oposed to the designer made logo.

[@slapmagnit]

bravo!

[@RAkers-tu1ey]

yep. everything is designed

[@jeova0sanctus0unus]

That is the pebble from Bloodborne isnt it?

[@themistoklesv]

I like designer ice cream thought...

[@danpit2001]

those things you diddnt know what they were are designer chem lights

[@jngrvk]

wait until you try designer icecream..

[@brandoncowan9029]

In my experience, at least with my spectacles, is that the fancier more expensive brands are usually of higher make and quality. Might not be true for everything, but that is what seems to be the case for me so far...

[@PsylomeAlpha]

which is why those should cost twenty dollars instead of five, or the designer ones should have an assortment of sizes available.

[@brandoncowan9029]

PsylomeAlpha I do agree that you are paying a lot more for the label and it isn't just because of higher quality. Also, I have never even seen a pair of glasses, prescription without paying for the lenses, that are any way near 20 bucks. Reading glasses are cheap. Actual prescription glasses are a bit more expensive in total.

[@PsylomeAlpha]

Brandon Cowan I know, I'm saying what the prices would be if the government cracked down on price gouging. seriously, it's a couple of bits of wire. even if they're hand made the guys making them are doing maybe five to ten minutes of work on them. either tailor make the frames to the customer's specifications, or stop charging outlandish prices. the cheapest prices I've seen on frames WERE about twenty-five dollars, and that was for kid's plastic frames. those same frames made for adults cost nearly one hundred dollars. now, keep in mind that I'm not even including the price of the inspection or the lenses, and also remember that reading glasses have the same basic principals behind their frames as prescription glasses, whith the main difference between the two being the lenses. a plain pair of reading glasses costs about five dollars, a more ornate pair of reading glasses costs about 20. this is mitigating the cost of the lenses. give me the option to buy a new pair of glasses for every day of the week, or to have one pair for working in the shop, one for food work, one for home, and one for driving and I will buy them all. they're already charging hundreds of dollars for the lenses, why do they need to charge more for the frames?

[@brandoncowan9029]

PsylomeAlpha The guy who makes the frames are not the same as the guy who makes the lenses. That's why they both cost a lot. Both parties want a nice big cut. Also, reading glasses do not last physically for very long, as compared to proper glasses. Another thing is that prescription glasses are usually covered by insurance and so they over charge in order to get more money form the insurance company. Same reason why going to the hospital is ridiculously expensive when it could be cheaper. And as far as the government fixing the prices, that would never happen in America, or if it did it would have to be at the point were no one can even afford glasses, but people can still afford them and so they will stay on price point.

[@MrKINETTIC]

I wish laughs were a currency, that joke would make you rich.

[@Savaril]

What about stuff like real "designer" clothing, where the term "designer" is less just up in the air and more referring to the actual person who designed it (Usually one individual who runs a line of clothing, such as Rick Owens or Margiela) In that instance is the usage okay? The prices of things they sell is ludicrious, but the idea is that you're paying for a piece of artwork to display on your body, (albeit very well-constructed) much like a painting.

[@paranoidude]

Oh look, a designer... Okay, I don't know what those are.

[@MasterGravitron]

It always amuses me when i see some $300 pair of sunglasses that are still made out of the shitty plastic the $20 pair are. If only "Designer" also meant "Extra high quality materials". But 9.9 times out of 10 it dose not.

[@mikefule330]

Oh dear, Lloyd plays semantics and gets up to some antics. We all know that "designer" means more than "designed for the purpose." It means something more like "designed with an increased emphasis on style, rather than function, by someone specific who did art class because they were no good at academic subjects or sport."

[@statingthe_obvious6309]

attach a label to that pebble, a LIndyBeige label, and sell it for lots of money.

[@DreadX10]

+AdvocateVaping QuashMonopolisingRegulation You could add 'hand-picked' to that label and fork in an extra pound or two.

[@omnipresentsnowflake4698]

Do you mean, designer ice cream?

[@InglouriousKenaz]

I love the nice joke.

[@benlamborn5792]

FYI i'm pretty sure those are glow sticks

[@wolf1066]

I'll wear Calvin Klein's name on my clothes the day he wears my name on his.

[@Uhlan_]

Did he ever figure out that "designer" doesn't refer to it being designed, but that it was alleged to be designed by a famous, or "big name" designer? He does get a bit Roseanne Roseannadanna about some things. Never mind.

[@Uhlan_]

He's a sharp tack, even if he doesn't look it.

[@MuradBeybalaev]

Words have their meanings. Use them properly.

[@4nhk066]

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