When the excitement of new trends begins to wear off, you often begin to wonder how so many men could have such similar outfits. Perhaps you regret buying yours and consider giving it away.
Well, at least you got a taste of the item when it was the in-thing and can now focus on collecting clothing items that will outlast the buzz of a new trend. There are a few signature pieces every man should have. These are what you wear whenever you want to impress with your style, get a masculinity boost, or just look powerful and maybe authoritative.
First up:
A power suit
The power suit typically comes in dark colors. Navy blue, black (for black tie occasions), grey, brown – those are the shades to work with. What makes the power suit so classic is how it frames the body, bringing out your masculinity, draping your shoulders, outlining your arms.
Wearing a power suit makes you appear manly and powerful. Best of all, it looks good on men of all sizes, heights, and shapes.
The power suit only works if it fits right. Pick a perfectly fitting suit that will flatter your silhouette. The most important places to check for fit are the chest area and shoulders. If you’ve seen a man whose suit was droopy around the shoulders you understand why such a look isn’t acceptable.
Keep the waist just right; not too tight and not too loose. The jacket length should end right at the bottom of your bum curvature. If you’re taller than average, ensure that your jacket is long enough to cover your bum area. The jacket length should be about the length of your knuckles. If you’re a little on the short side, the jacket can be slightly shorter.
The jacket sleeve of your suit should end ¼-1 inches above your shirt. If you’re tall, you want to show a little more of the shirt to create some balance. Pick a jacket that ends an inch above the shirt. If you’re short, go for a jacket that ends between ¼-½ inches above the shirt. If you show less than that or too much shirt it may look tacky.
The sleeve length is usually easy to adjust. If you get a good fitting suit with a sleeve that’s too long or too short, simply have the sleeve length adjusted. Don’t leave a great suit over something that’s fixable.
Keep the trouser length just right. Have the trousers adjusted so that the back/calf side of the trouser rests just above the heel of your shoe. Adjust the bum area so that there is no extra material bunching up around that area.
The material of your suit matters a lot. If the material isn’t of good quality, you can be sure the suit won’t drape very well around the shoulders. While expensive materials like silk, wool and cashmere are out of reach for many people most of the time, you can make do with more affordable options like cotton and linen for casual suits, velvet for dinner parties and other formal occasions, and worsted yarn for the office and basically anywhere else.
Whichever material you pick for your suit, ensure that it does not have shine. Any shiny appearance on a suit gives it a cheap look.
Fitting dress shirt
Your power suit needs an equally good quality shirt to go with it. Your shirt should be well-fitting.You don’t want a lot of excess material around the arms, shoulders/neck, and sides of the shirt. A shirt design that looks great no matter your body size is the modern/contemporary fit. Wear it with or without a jacket. It looks equally good.
If you’re a little on the slim end, choose the slim fit shirt design. It’s a fashionable look that shines with or without a jacket. If you’ve got a bit of weight around your middle section, the classic fit shirt design is more ideal. It has a good amount of extra material and allows you to move comfortably.
Have a number of perfect-fitting shirts in neutral shades to go with your suits. White, light blue shades, light brown shades, pale purple and pink hues, pale olive hues, light greys, and pale greens are all good choices.
- Ensure that the color of the shirt isn’t bright.
- Always match the color of the shirt to the color of the suit for the sharpest look. A dark brown suit paired with a light brown shirt looks great. Likewise, a charcoal grey suit paired with a light grey shirt is a good look.
- Choose shirts in breathable fabrics such as cotton where possible for enhanced comfort. Go for blended fabrics for the best drape.
Quality ties
Pick colorful ties to go with your suit. Have ties in different colors so you can create a different look with your suit each time you wear it. When you have a dark-colored suit, you can pair it with any number of bright ties.
Top color choices for ties include red, purple, and blue. As you get the color right, any pattern on the tie will look great. Striped ties are a classic that makes you look important. Small multi-patterns are also great.
Neckwear
This refers to all other forms of neckwear apart from ties. The most common of these are scarves. Men’s scarves are not only a great add-on to accessorize any look, they also subtly draw attention to your broad shoulders. If you’ve been working out, this is a look you’ll particularly enjoy.
Woolen scarves, silk scarves, infinity scarves are all top choices.
Headwear
Classic wide-brimmed hats, baseball hats, beret hats – all kinds of men’s headwear are acceptable. You just have to wear them stylishly.
Hats can be worn with every style of clothing, from suits and smart casual jackets, to informal outfits, and sporty outfits.
With these classic pieces, you can step out and into any occasion in style. You only need three pieces of each for a start, and you can mix and match them any way you like. That’s why you pick them in classic, neutral colors.
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