I once watched someone get ate up on an Ivy type forum for wearing lambswool instead of Shetland.

Not the wrong color. Not the wrong fit.

The wrong sheep.

The response was disproportionate. And it made me think about why certain aesthetics produce militant purists.

Whatever aesthetic you subscribe to, these tend to become rule-based cultures.

Over time, they develop their own standards and forms of correctness. There are canonical garments, fabrics, and even decades. Eventually there becomes a “right” version of almost everything.

And once a “right” version exists, someone is always lurking ready to point out when you got it wrong.

This makes sense, if you accept that clothing is a language with rules.

The next logical step is enforcement.

If Shetland means authenticity then someone wearing the wrong knit isn’t just off , they are violating the culture. And when people build identity around culture, they naturally start to feel protective of it.

I also suspect something subtler is happening too.

The more rules you internalize, the more self-conscious you become. Then you start self-monitoring:

• Is this correct?
• Is this historically accurate?
• Is this true to the tradition?

That internal pressure has to go somewhere and often it goes outward. Often on minor tailoring critiques, nitpicking proportions and roasting people online. 

It’s easy to mistake that kind of vigilance for good taste, but it’s probably just a reflection your unresolved anxiety.

Additionally, having a sense of humor can be difficult when you’re anxious.

That’s something I’ve noticed too. These spaces tend to be oddly humorless. There’s little play. No lightness.

Probably because play threatens structure.

If clothing is treated as some type of heritage preservation, deviation probably feels dangerous.

But if we think of clothing in terms of how it feels( weight, drape, movement), then lambswool vs Shetland becomes a sensory decision, not a moral one.

In the end, fabric is just fabric. You can prefer one without policing the other. 

And nobody gets eaten alive over sheep.