I retired in September this year and handed the vast majority of my clothes and equipment back in. Except for a few items that I had bought myself (battle vest, boots, Kiffy Zulu, holsters, etc) and kit they don't want back (boots, socks, most things that have been next to your skin), I still have a couple of things including my arctic and desert smocks.
I have to say, I keep my desert smock in my locker at uni as I usually bike in and it's good to have a spare layer available that I don't have to carry. I don't feel like I'm 'sticking out' when wandering around Glasgow as you see a lot of people in military-style and surplus clothing.
You see modern fashion jackets in all flavours of DPM and digicam so, from a distance, it's pretty hard to tell what is genuine. Rightly or wrongly, I feel slightly superior to the 'fashion' end as my jacket has a few stories to tell and still has many memories for me, as does my arctic smock.
So, as society has accepted military clothing prints and patterns and ex-issue clothing for fashion purposes , as long as I'm not dressed head-to-toe in military gear, I don't feel conspicuous - nor do I feel that I'm being disrespectful to my former colleagues in any way. I guess some of my old, well-used bits of gear have sentimental value to me and remind me of some of the things I achieved in my former career.
The military shaped my life in many ways, although I'm proud that I have never lost the ability to think for myself. I am a better person because of my service background but that does not make me better than anyone who has not served; nor does it make me a war-mongering automaton thug.
My service enhanced my interest in bushcraft amongst many other adventurous activities and also gave me opportunities to practice it, usually by virtue of where I was living rather than anything official.
I understand why some people would want to distance themselves from a 'military look' and I don't feel that that is disrespectful. I just hope that everyone enjoys their hobby/interest in their own way. Surplus clothing is often a cheap way to kit yourself out but there should be no 'inverse-snobbery' directed towards those who can afford more expensive clothing and equipment.