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What are you going to wear? Sometimes there’s an easy answer. Sometimes not. Sometimes it’s good to look at a few suggestions then add your own tweaks and ideas. That’s what these are for. All designed to get you in some stuff that’ll make you look and feel great, then get you out the door and off to do things other than thinking about your clothes. Look for these with no regularity. Want to suggest a scenario? Send those in here. Photo: Chris McClanahan
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If you’re hitting a patio for after-work drinks, chances are a stiff breeze might kick up and you’ll be wishing you had on more than a polo. If the afternoon happy hour drifts into an evening out for dinner, you’ll really want long sleeves. A lightly structured or completely unstructured navy cotton blazer is the answer, and the Kensington from Target is excellent for the price. It might need tailoring, but it’ll be a go-to for when you’re relaxed but want to look sharp.
UPDATE: This is now available on the web. Credit wsgm in the comments for the tip.
These are not bright white jeans. And yes you can wear them with confidence. They’re a bit of a hybrid. Look for colors like stone, light grey, maybe very light khaki, in a mid-weight fabric with a rougher texture than chino. That’ll create a nice visual border between the pants and the blazer above. The 5-pockets also keep it real casual, since a dressed-up and pressed pant might look wonky with the very casual blazer. The perfect example is last spring’s BR 5-Pocket canvas pant. A few to consider now, with hopefully cheaper options showing up as the weather warms:
You want it bright enough and white enough that if the jacket comes off there’s a noticeable difference between the off white of your pants and the bright white of your shirt. So no dingy shirts here. Bust out your best white dress shirt if you need to. Keep that collar in line with some wurkin’ stiffs, and feel free to unbutton the second button if that’s your thing. Shirts from left: Nordstrom Trim Fit, Calibrate Trim Fit, Target Merona Ultimate Dress Shirt.
Ciro Lendini seems to be an Italian Made brand on par with the DSW house brands Mercanti Fiorentini and Mike Konos. Italian made, great looking shoes that are of above average quality, and the brand did well during the wingtip boot search. Other options: Last year’s Mike Konos Lace Ups if you got em, or the all but gone Florsheim single monk. Bass Suede Chukkas could work as well.
A bright, striped, grosgrain or web belt might be too obvious here. That and you risk starting to look like you’re following every damn trend ever (hat tip to the double monks). Keep it grown-up, dressed down, and darker but not necessarily all matched up with your shoes. Grey is just fine here. And that old casual brown leather belt that you’ve got? That’s more than just fine here as well. Belts from left: 1901 Nubuck, Martin Dingman.
Not everyone looks good in keyhole style sunglasses. Some look downright goofy. So if you’re attached at the hip to your aviator Ray-Bans or AOs or REs, or even your new-wayfarers, then carry on. These aren’t as aggressive or sloped as some keyholes, but still… these would be for the guys who like to take more risks. Certainly retro without going full bore Clubmaster. Good price for polarized too. There is a small “fossil” branding at the temples.
The Timex is a bit on the small size, and the Citizen leans quite a bit towards beefy. The perfect play here might have been the silver dial / blue hands Skagen, but that’s once again seemingly impossible to find. The Citizen is a bit of a beast, but it’s a stunner. Powered by Citizen’s Eco Drive movement, and the dial is actually a deep navy. More on the Timex with an in-person over here. Citizen photo credit
This is optional. The 5th&B one is obviously a bit of a small-company made in the USA splurge, but the fabric is pretty incredible. (And yes, our pal Barron from the effortless gent is part of 5th&B. But the fabric on these is something else.) Might be too many different shades of blue if you’ve got the Q-dial on. Much cheaper $8.00 version from TheTieBar can be found here.
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