We spend the majority of our working lives at the office, so your work outfits would most often be the biggest section of your wardrobe. Depending on the type of work you do, and the institution you work for, your dress code can either be very rigid or completely free. It may also be quite formal or entirely casual. Depending on the rules you can still be quite playful with what you wear and still have your own identity, unless of course you have a company uniform.
The Suit
When working within a corporate company or a formal business a suit is an absolute must, particularly when sealing that deal of a lifetime or for an important interview. . There are a few important basic rules that should be followed when trying on and buying your new suit.
The place to start would be the
cut of the suit. If you are not sure what cut will suit you best, try on many styles so that you can compare and find one that best compliments your build. The European cut would be the most popular, because it is more fitted and tends to accentuate the structure of your body, where as a looser cut can sometimes swallow you up particularly if you have a small frame and doesn’t always look so flattering.
Next you need to look at the
fit. When trying on the jacket you need to check that it feels comfortable across your chest, back and shoulders when the buttons are done up. To determine the perfect length of the jacket you should be able to curl your fingers under hem of the jacket. The length of the arms should end at your wrist bone allowing for no more than an inch of your shirt showing. The length of the trousers should not cover more than half of your shoes and when you sit they should not pull up at the front.
Grey is back with a vengeance and has always been a traditional
colour for a suit.. There are so many shades of grey available, from the more pastel grey right through to dark charcoal greys. The darker option tends to be more versatile meaning that you really could add any other colour shirt or tie without it looking inappropriate. Other popular colours are dark navy and black with navy being the most traditional.
When choosing the
fabric for your suit, always stick to natural fibres and you will never go wrong. Polyester and synthetics are an absolute no because they don’t last as long. 100% wool is by far the best option because it’s warm in the winter and cool in summer.
Whether or not you want to get a
waistcoat or not is really up to you. The waistcoat has made a major comeback.. For a really individual look, get yourself a pocket watch, that you can pull out of your waist coat pocket, it’s an impression people will never forget. Although technology and the latest gadgets are all the craze, it is still human nature to pine for some thing nostalgic.
The Shirt
Shirts are pretty much an easy item to get. You can really play around with the colours and patterns that you want. Always have your plain colours such as whites and the more pastel shades. But depending on the occasion you can always make an impact with a bold colour. These colours will always change depending on the season, so it best to spend a little less money on them. The full plain colour is always your best option, but there are a number of patterns out there. Once again the pin stripe is popular, but there is also quite a few check patterns coming through. For meetings its better to stick to the plainer pastel shades such as pinks, blues, greens and of course white, and stay away from neon’s and other loud colours and patterns. The last thing you want is everyone being distracted by an overpowering shirt and them spending half the time trying figure out whether that really is the corner of a palm tree peeking out from under your jacket.
For very formal occasions, wear a dress shirt with cuff links. Keep the cufflinks quite plain but good quality. A great pair of cufflinks can finish of an attire superbly and really make a statement of wealth and understated style.
The tank top or sleeveless pullover
Another great item to wear with your shirt for around the office is a tank top. It has made a comeback and it’s not just for the office geek. Being both fashionable and practical as a way of keeping warm, the tank top is a great slightly less formal look. Plain colours such navy, blue and purple which incidentally is huge this season, work well but a popular pattern at the moment is the Argyle diamond pattern otherwise stick to the plain or striped versions.
Shoes
Shoes have the ability to completely transform an outfit, and the most import thing is to make sure they are always clean and intact. There is nothing worse than someone in an immaculate suit and a pair of dirty old shoes.
The shape of the shoe is important, we have seen the chunky square fronts, the more traditional round toe front and the extremely pointy. Currently the trend is to have a slimmer fit and absolutely no chunky rubber soles, a thin leather sole is best. If you can pull off an extreme point then my all means do so, but the most comfortable and fashionable look is to have the slim rounded toe. The square front is a lot less prominent theses days but, if you feel more comfortable with this shape, make sure it’s a slim fit and the depth of the front is not too high. Another important thing to remember is your socks. It is best to match the socks to your shoes, there is nothing worse than seeing a pair of bright white socks with a dark suit and dark shoes.
Whether you wear ankle boots or shoes is really down to what you feel most comfortable in. Boots however are the craze at the moment and of course more practical for winter.
Accessories
Always team up a great dress belt with your suit. Look for a simple good quality leather belt with black being the best colour. Keep the detail on the buckle to a minimum, the simplicity will speak volumes in this instance. You also don’t want a bulky buckle particularly when your suit jacket is closed because it will create a distortion at the front.
With regards to ties try to match the tie up to your shirt and sticking to pastel colours. It’s advisable to keep them quite plain, because they give a more sophisticated impression. If you do decided to opt for a pattern then make sure the colours are quite similar and that you don’t have two vastly contrasting colours together such as black and white. Another option would be to opt for a woven pattern which would make more of a statement of texture but still more exciting than your plain colour, plain woven variety. Last of all an absolute no no is having a cartoon character of any sort walking across your tie, unless of course it’s a gift from your kids.
From the SimStylist team.
Other Guides For Him:
