Photo: jm3 / Flickr

If you think sandals with socks are a good idea, this is for you. A recent survey by a UK money-saving website found that while Americans are the world’s worst dressed nation, we Brits aren’t far behind. And people from the Midlands have the worst dress sense in the UK. Fashion crimes listed by the survey include the strangely popular socks and sandals combo, exposed beer bellies, men wearing tight trunks, women in thongs, sunburn, logo overload and football tops on men. Be honest – you’re probably guilty of at least one of these fashion faux pas.

The worst of the worst

The research, by DiscountVouchers.co.uk, polled 600 UK tourists, who agreed that tight men’s swimming trunks, thongs on women, sunburn and wearing too many logos are the worst possible holiday fashion crimes. A third of people polled think women in football shirts is a very bad idea, while 20 per cent think the same applies to men.

According to the poll, residents of the Midlands and Birmingham have the UK’s worst dress sense, followed by people from Scotland, the North East, Essex, Manchester and the North West. And the best dressed travellers in the UK hail from Yorkshire and East England.

Fashion by nation

Photo: Marv! / Flickr

The poll revealed that Brits think Americans are the worst dressed nation of tourists – because of their proclivity for loud shirts combined with socks and sandals. A bad idea indeed. The Germans and Greeks didn’t fare well in the dress sense department, either. Italians were voted the best dressed, closely followed by the stylish Spanish.

Gender wars

When it comes to which sex commits the most fashion crimes, men outnumber the women. A full 83 per cent of people (92 per cent of whom were men) said that men dress worse than women do. Men, however, are more likely to buy new clothes for trips abroad, with 43 per cent of them going shopping before getting on the plane. That doesn’t mean they’re shopping smart, though. Over half of male respondents admitted wearing holiday gear that was five or more years old, and a full 68 per cent of women could care less about trends, too.

Top holiday fashion tips include making a trip to the shops before you leave home, always wearing sunscreen, and chucking out the socks if you wear them with sandals. We hope it goes without saying that you should never be seen in a mankini, see-through swimming wear, or trousers that look like they’re something out of Miami Vice.

Tags: Fashion trends