Get Down & Dirty with Unconventional Egyptian Brand 'Wear Ugly'

‘Coyote ugly’, ‘butterface’, ‘plain’ - all socially constructed terms that diminish the value of something by systematically categorizing them as unattractive. Commercial art is often obligated to adhere to conventional appeal, and nowhere is that more blatant than in fashion. After all, who wants to wear ugly? As it turns out, this local brand does. ‘Wear Ugly’ is looking to take a bite out of the eye of the beholder and spit out a clothing line that goes by its own rules.

“We want to redefine the word ‘ugly’ by proving that there should be no rules in creating art and things can be messy yet pleasurable to the eyes,” founders Mohamed Elabby and Noor Taher tell #SceneStyled. “We believe that the word ‘ugly’ is so subjective and each person has a different perspective for it and no one should be deciding what is ‘ugly’ or not.”

Not to be confused with kitsch fashion, the basis for their design inspirations draw from things people would generally find messy and disorganized, like unfinished scribbles or drafts.

The result is an all-neutral streetwear line that lends from Long Beach style and pairs it up with Tokyo-inspired urbanism. Their aesthetic very much exudes a cool-cats-only kind of ugly, as opposed to actual outfit poison. It’s a delicate line to tread, but we think they’ve managed with their own kind of grace. You can shop their designs at wearugly.shop