“Sport coats are where the well dressed man really distinguishes himself from the pedestrian dresser”.
It’s MANic Monday! And today, it’s All about Sportcoats…and later this week it will be All about Peeps!
Every man can wear a sport coat, but many are unsure what to wear it with. Can they pair it with slacks, jeans, golf shirt, turtleneck? What kind of print works? Tweed, Paisley, Hounds tooth? Must they wear a tie with it? Like most fashion “rules”…there are no rules. Wear what you like, and what you feel looks good…Of course, Using guidelines is always a smart move, if you have No idea what you like or what looks good on you.
• Style is knowing who you are, what you want to say and not giving a damn. Gore Vidal
Some Basic Rules…aka Guidelines, for wearing Sport Coats
* Using the blue blazer as the “corner piece”, the wardrobe should contain as many soft earth tones, tans and blues as possible.
* Classic colors like navy blue or black add a more formal appearance to your outfit.
* Colors like tan and white make your outfit more casual.
* Sport coats can be paired with almost any type of pants. Wool trousers, denim jeans, and khakis are just some of the possibilities that can be expertly paired with a sport coat.
* When matching trousers, black should be reserved for only gray sport coats. After that, use your darker trousers such as browns, grays and navy for your professional wear and the lighter colors such as tan and pearl gray for your more social occasions.
* Pair a light-colored sports coat with dark trousers, such as a patterned tan sports jacket with denim jeans, or a light brown camel coat with dark brown or navy slacks.
The same basic guidelines for shirts and ties with a suit apply to the sports coat, but you can get a little bolder in your selection.
Here are a few Cliff Notes:
* Keep Patterns small and muted. This is a safe rule.
* Bold patterns only after 6 P.M. – I warn against loud, Hawaiian prints. Ever.
* Sport coats have 2 or 3 buttons. Only button the Top button when there are 2 buttons, and button the Top 2 buttons on a 3-buttoned sport coat. When you button all the buttons, it tends to look too constricting. And please buy a size which can be buttoned.
Stock your closet with a selection of sports coats that are appropriate for different occasions. Choose a patterned jacket and a solid color and then pair them with different types of pants, such as cotton twill, polyester, wool, denim or corduroy to dress the jackets up or down. Match darker jackets and lighter pants, such as a velvet navy coat with light gray pants or a dark brown sports coat with light khaki pants. Not sure I know many men, however, who can pull off the Velvet navy coat!
The Navy Blazer
* Navy Blazer – The true cornerstone. Comes with brown or metal buttons…When angling towards the shiny, bright, brass buttons…Think Thurston Howell, III…may Not be the look you are hoping for. But, if you like brass buttons on your Navy blazer or sport coat and not brown or tan buttons, go for it.
This, is, Perfection
• Subtle – again, not loud. Not too bold. Fabulously subtle.
SPRING AND SUMMER
Light weight wools and silk and wool blend work nicely. Also include your cotton and linen blends for a sophisticated look on a warm summer day. When selecting shirts and ties, always complement the Main color in the coat
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FALL AND WINTER
Wool and cashmere are great Fall fabrics. Herringbone and Hounds tooth patterns work well in fall weights and should be treated as solids.
The right shirt (J. Hilburn, of course), accessories and footwear can pull your sports coat and trousers together. Take the time to experiment with colors and styles of ties, shirts, belts and shoes to find a look you find pleasing. (ehow.com)
Men’s fashion “rules” and guidelines are sooooo easy…Men can Always look fantastic!!
And speaking of rules…I found this little nugget, and just had to share, as it’s humorous (and I like humor) well-written ( as I sometimes believe I can pull off), and quite tongue in cheek…And since I’m not all about Rules of Dress, but have specific ideas of what I like, I enjoy what this gentleman, make that young gentleman finds appropriate. (Courtesy of www.thefineyounggentleman.com)
Rules of Men’s Dress
All style is relative. Some people will disagree with what this blog dictates is good style, and this blog would most likely disagree with them on what they think is good style. As you can imagine, this results in a situation in which there is no single list of men’s dress rules that are comprehensive and absolute. The following are a set of rules that The Fine Young Gentleman stands by. There are some rules that are immutable, such as the one that a man should match the metal of the bit on his loafer with the buckle on his belt with the metal on his suspenders with the buttons on his blazer with the metal of his cufflinks. Then there are some rules that have exceptions, such as the rule that a man’s socks should match the color of his pants. The Fine Young Gentleman’s rules are derived from a variety of sources including tradition, classic rules of men’s dress, common sense and personal taste.
1. Thou shall match the metal of the bit on his loafers, belt buckle, suspenders, blazer buttons and cufflinks.
2. Thou need not match the metal on his watch with the other metals he is wearing, however, it is preferable.
3. Thou can wear black shoes with a navy suit/pants.
4. Thou shall only wear black, brown or oxblood (burgundy) leather shoes for business dress. The only exceptions allowed are white bucks. Blue, green or any other colored shoes are inappropriate.
5. White bucks are badass…just like the Honey Badger. 
6. Thou shall match the color of his socks with the color of his pants. As an exception, socks can be matched to something worn above the waist such as a man’s shirt, tie, pocket square or suspenders (braces in the UK).
7. Thou shall match the color of his belt to that of his shoes. This holds true in all situations except when wearing white bucks.
8. Thou need not match the leather on his watchband with that of his shoes and belt, however, it is preferable.
9. Thou shall wear a belt when wearing pants with belt loops.
10. Thou shall never, ever, ever use their belt to hold accessories like beepers, phones, Blackberrys, ID tags and/or keys.
11. If pants do not have belt loops they should have side tabs and/or buttons for use with suspenders (braces).
12. Thou shall never wear a tie and pocket square of the same pattern. The sports commentators who do so look like fools.
13. Thou shall not wear a French cuff (double cuff) shirt without a jacket.
14. Thou shall always doubt salespeople and in-store tailors opinions on fashion, style and fit. The stores they work for pay them, not you. Their motives are to sell products to who will buy them, not necessarily to who will look best in them.
15. Thou shall not wear slip on shoes with a suit. In fact, they should be avoided.
16. Thou can wear loafers with a suit, however, this is mostly practiced in America.
17. Loafers are badass, especially those with bits or tassels.
18. Thou shall not wear flat toe/square toe shoes. They should be avoided like the plague. They are cancerous to a man’s wardrobe. They are aesthetically offensive. Their sole purpose lies in showing men what not to wear. Money spent on these would have been better spent on Enron stock circa June 2000.
19. Thou shall only wear patent leather shoes for black tie (semi-formal) and white-tie (formal) occasions. Patent leather is never acceptable to be worn in a dress or causal setting.
20. Thou shall never wear a long necktie for a semi-formal (black tie) affair, even if that tie is solid black.
21. Thou can wear brown suede shoes for business dress. They are elegant and gentlemanly.
22. Brown suede shoes are badass.
23. Thou shall not wear Chesterfield coats, which are typically signified by a velvet collar, with anything of less formality than a suit. They should not be worn with business casual attire.
24. Thou shall not wear a tie without a jacket. If done so, he will run the risk of looking like a waiter at TGI Fridays.
25. Thou shall not wear suspenders (braces) without a jacket. Sorry hipsters.
26. Thou shall only wear suspenders (braces) that utilize buttons, not clips. Again, sorry hipsters.
27. Thou shall not wear a crew neck undershirt when the top button of a shirt is left unbuttoned. When leaving the top button unbuttoned thou shall wear a v-neck undershirt as The Dude does. The Dude abides.
28. Thou can wear brown suits for business dress.
29. Thou shall only wear shirts with white collars and white cuffs with a jacket. These shirts should not be part of a business casual wardrobe.
30. Thou shall leave the bottom button of vest (waistcoat) unbuttoned. Except when wearing a double-breasted or flat-bottomed vest, in which case the bottom button should remain buttoned.
31. Thou should iron the collar of a shirt before wearing it. Creased collars caused by dry cleaning and hanging do not follow the natural circularity of one’s neck.
32. Thou shall utilize a pocket square when wearing a jacket.
33. Pocket squares are underrated, underutilized and most importantly they are badass.
34. Thou shall not wear a back pack/book bag when in business dress, especially when in a suit. Book bags are reserved for casual wear and students.
35. Thou shall not wear a shirt with any type of logo on it in a business setting, including when in business casual dress. These shirts should be reserved for casual wear.
36. Thou shall wear a tie bar at a slant, not horizontal.
37. Off color shirts with a white-collar should have French (double) cuffs, regardless of whether of not the cuffs are white or the same color or pattern as the shirt.
38. Life is more fun in a tuxedo (dinner jacket).
39. Thou shall never button all three buttons of a three button jacket. Sometimes the top, always the middle and never ever ever the bottom.
40. Thou shall wear over the calf socks as opposed to crew socks whenever possible. For they are far superior in both form and function.
41. Thou shall not wear a solid black suit for business or professional activities. Save it for formal events and funerals.
42. Style is a state of mind.
And yes, I believe he used the term “badass” three times. I find this hilarious…but many of the rules/guidelines are right on.
xoxo,
In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock. Thomas Jefferson
