Upgrading the typical warm weather College Casual Outfit
Dressing well in college can be tough. Classes and social activities take up a good chunk of time, and if you have a job, well, that’s another commitment entirely. But, a lack of time from all of those things isn’t an excuse to dress poorly — in fact, they’re reasons to upgrade your style. If you’re going back to campus in a few weeks, or you graduated recently, chances are you’ve seen (or will see) guys make some poor, poor clothing choices. Everyone makes mistakes, but those can easily be avoided by switching out common items for some more, well, polished pieces.
In the warm months of the year, it seems for a lot of guys that there’s a go-to outfit repeated over and over, nearly everywhere: gaudy graphic tee or logo tee, baggy cargo shorts, athletic sneakers. It’s an easy, safe bet for most guys to throw on, but if you want to stand out in a positive way, some would say there are better options.
The upgrades are relatively simple, and it’s easy to pick out an outfit that’ll keep you cool in the heat without sacrificing looks. Switch out that graphic tee for a well-fitting polo, preferably something with a bit of color, and boom, instantly more polished. If you’re looking to upgrade your style on a budget, places like Old Navy or Uniqlo have them for ridiculously low prices. The Old Navy Uniform polos are a good buy. Granted, the quality isn’t that of a polo from J. Crew or another higher priced brand, but it does the job just fine in the meantime. Fit is decently trim through the body and sleeves, and they come in a number of colors. No matter the brand, once you find one, it’s a piece that can help you quickly turn things around while you save up for larger style upgrades.
On the shorts front, a pair that hits above the knee while fitting slim seems to be in short supply on a decent number of college guys. Why add all the unnecessary pockets of cargo shorts, even if slim-fitting options exist? For about the price of a particularly wild (or not wild?) bar crawl, Land’s End Comer Chino Shorts (as worn here in these photos), do the trick perfectly, eliminating the pockets and extra fabric while providing another pop of color (especially if you keep the polo neutral).
And on your feet, you want a pair of shoes that’s comfortable enough to make the trek across campus, but clean and simple enough to take you out for a meal afterwards. In the photo, those are Vans sneakers (in the chambray option) from Urban Outfitters. Depending on where you pick yours up, that could be the most expensive part of the outfit (those were something like $60 in-store at the time). But, in a neutral shade, they can be worn sockless and with any color shorts or polo. They can also pull duty with jeans or cuffed chinos, and they avoid the ostentatious logo of some athletic sneakers. All good things, right?
On your wrist, it’s tough to beat a Timex Weekender for casual wear
There you have it. An outfit like this isn’t world-beating by any means; it wouldn’t make any street style shots or end up on the runways, but sometimes, simplicity is better – much better. Heck, wear an outfit like this two or three days a week, switching out the bottom for jeans and desert boots or the like, and there’s a good chance you’ll out dress many of your classmates. Upping your style game in ways like this will catch the attention of your professors as well, and dressing with a more formal bent just makes you feel better, more confident and hopefully, more alert for those 8 a.m. classes. Now, go hit the books.
Beau is a senior editor at The State News, Michigan State’s student newspaper. A #menswear enthusiast, Beau can be found on Twitter @BoKnowsClothes. He aspires to one day own the ‘Bond’ peacoat.
Normally i’m right in step with the writers of Dappered, but on this one – I’ve got to say you’ve taken all the fun out of “warm-weather-style”. Where, oh-where has my color wheel gone?
While I understand that for most college guys, what you’ve suggested (in the image) is largely a step up from the hoopin’ shorts-and-a-tee that filled most of my undergrad summers, I imagine that the readers of Dappered would love polos with a bit more fit to the arms, tapering around mid-section and…again…color.
My unsolicited recommendation?
Banana Republic Heather T’s…Just the right amount of “Don’t care” w/ enough “I’m respectable” to make the ladies swoon…that and i’ve never felt anything softer in my life.
Good choice on the Chambray though…
It may just be that I saw way too many of the image modeled on the right at every bar in West Michigan…where there was little to do, and even less style.
I agree with you that most readers of Dappered would love a better fitted shirt. I think the point of the article is when you are on a budget as a college student (that is, not a Trustafarian), Old Navy, Uniqlo, etc. options are in the budget and look decent but you do give up something in fit.
And the picture shows it. It’s good, but not what I wear now that I am out of college for so many years and in the workforce. But I would have taken what is shown when I was a college student.
I do agree that a good quality t-shirt can just be as good as a polo shirt for this setting.
Good points though.
I think that guy lived in my dorm. In four years that poor bastard never got laid.
Those are some beautiful calves…
Makes me not miss the broke-w/-no-money days of college even less, but it may be worth noting that J.Crew knocks an extra 15% off of pricing if you’ve got that student ID. (And if you sweet talk the attendant at the counter…they may just add it on top of the current sale. (It’s been done…although i’m not sure if she was supposed to.)
This! And BR does it, too.
A great option that I feel like a ton of people overlook are the JCP polo’s. They’re still in stock in the one by me, and I would assume in a number of stores across the nation, and for $12-$15/pop, they are definitely within the budget and are great fits.
I think that polo is a bad example. The graphic tee seems to fit better, at least to my eyes. The fold and rise on the front of the polo looks very unflattering to me.
Given the choice between those two? Choose the tee. As we always say, fit is most important!
Yeah, not feeling this one at all. If there’s an improvement in the second outfit, it’s going from a 2 to a 4 on a scale of 1 to 10.
I think one thing missing is a bag. As a student you always have to carry books around, so finding a reasonable backpack or messenger bag is equally important as anything you might wear.
Many would consider that an achievement.
The shoulders are too narrow. If he buttons one button, the seams would start retreating up onto his shoulders.
Sparty on! -2002
The title & image are totally confusing me. Which is better, ‘THIS’ or ‘THAT’? You say to trade THIS for THAT, so THIS, must be better, right? But in the image, THIS is shown as ‘less than’ THAT. So, do you want me to trade for something more sucky?
I think the first look is better for a college student. It fits the college student look. The second look just screams, “I’m someone’s dad.”
I can’t recall the name, but I remember seeing a movie once about a washed up, unmotivated trust-fund child wasting away his days drinking expensive booze and sailing around Manhattan with his spoiled friends. Throughout the film they were all clad in clothes that looked almost exactly like what you’re suggesting here. Frankly I just don’t like the look. It gives off a ‘better than you’ vibe while not actually looking good. But of course that’s just my opinion. However I’m also with the others on fit. Sloppy.
I think some people are missing the point of this article. It’s aimed at college students who would like to up their appearance by a few steps. If you want to look like a regular college student who is indistinguishable from 95% of the other guys in your class, the cargo shorts and graphic tee is the way to go. It’s the default setting for most guys, and (for me) that observation was confirmed when I visited my alma mater a few weekends ago. I think what Beau is trying to do here is demonstrate that you can tweak that formula and look a little sharper without spending more money than what you would otherwise. As for the color palette, what’s pictured above is a template; you can easily swap different colors in and out based on your taste.
You can do it just think it through buddy. Trading the t-shirt and cargo shorts (This) FOR the polo and lighter shorts (That). Just in case it’s too confusing there’s a less-than sign to help you along.
College is one place where I’d say cargo shorts can be worn. What to wear in college is not only a regional thing, but it can actually vary from college to college. Students at Kansas State dress differently from students at Brown. College town kids dress different from urban commuter campuses. The above outfits: one looks like a college kid; one looks like a soccer dad. It’s college. The end-game [for a straight guy] is girls, quantity not quality. Herd mentality. You wanna fit it, not stand out sartorially.
I’ll politely disagree. In a market saturated with diploma-seeking mouth breathers in graphic t-shirts and cargo shorts, you’re going to achieve your maximum potential by standing out from the rest. Whether your end-game is finding a partner (male or female) or landing a job, being well dressed is one key to being successful. While I don’t think the second outfit is really flattering, I do think it’s a step in the right direction. That’s not to say you need to wear a three-piece suit to class…but you never know when you’ll meet Mr. or Mrs. Right or Sir Paysalot Employer.
Step up your everyday game. You’ll be amazed at how much more attention you’ll receive when you look and feel more positive.
When I’m out running errands on the weekend or after work during the summer months, most of the men I see who are of the age where one could reasonably assume they could have grade school-aged kids are wearing outfits closer to the one on the left above. In most cases, not a graphic tee, but definitely cargo shorts and athletic shoes. So in that regard, I think referring to the look on the right as a ‘soccer dad’ look isn’t accurate. I think the bottom line is that if you’re a college kid and dress like one, no one will bat an eyelash or care. If you’re a college kid who puts some effort into your appearance, you will attract attention from like minded people.
I agree with the sentiment behind this article, but execution could have been better, mainly with the polo. There have been comments that the upgraded outfit (polo and chino shorts) look too much like a dad and not enough like a “college kid”. First, ever since ~20, I was never seeking out ways to be labelled as an anything “-kid”. However, that’s just me, and while I definitely wasn’t going for a look that anyone would mistake for “soccer dad”, I preferred to dress less like a teenager and more like a young man. In this case, a better-fitting polo (IMO, arms, placket, and torso drape pretty poorly; swap for BR Luxe-touch, perhaps?) would inject a little more youthfulness into the look, but either way, I don’t see it as a “soccer dad” costume. On a different note, am I the only one who irons out wrinkly shorts??
Dead on Marshall.
I’d give Marshall Lilly’s comment below a look. You may be missing the point a bit. You have to start somewhere. This is the somewhere, and I think Beau did a great job.
Thanks. Who knew that this was the post where we’d cross the everything is criticized Rubicon.
Let’s not get too fit critiquey. It’s a post about upgrading basic college style.
“diploma-seeking mouth breathers in graphic t-shirts and cargo shorts”
Thank you for this, reading that instantly got me out of a bad mood.
I’ll be that preppy (former) frat guy: this is what most of us have been doing for decades… welcome to the party, Geeds.
(Posted in jest, but the underlying point remains that this moves toward preppy staples from the current college attire trends)
Crap! Knew we shoulda drawn a map!
Low-level inference for the win! (this is meant as a compliment, BTW)
They’ve always done it to me, no sweet talk necessary.
Why did I not know this sooner?! Thank you, sir, thank you.
I wouldn’t put Uniqlo and Old Navy in the same category at all. Price wise yes, style wise hell no. When’s the last time Old Navy collaborated with the likes of Jill Sander or Michael Bastian?
No disagreement with your overall point, but it seems that many of us here don’t see the changes as much of a step-up. If it’s a step in the right direction, its a baby step and I don’t think it’s going to do much at all to distinguish you in the eyes of your future spouse or your future boss.
Just to be clear, the author of the article put them together, not I.
Now for me: Neither Old Navy or Uniqlo fit me so I could care less if Salvatore Ferragamo rose up from the grave to design for them. As long as they keep using the same standard patterns for their cutting, I won’t buy anything from them. Michael Bastian polos from Uniqlo? Didn’t fit me.
It’s like JCP and Wooster, the Target collaborations, and the Fashion Star products. None of that stuff was any good for me and my body shape. So I could care less about the designer.
Great post Beau! Any way we could get a level 2 of “dressing better in college (with a budget)”?
One piece of advice if your wanting to achieve the manly prep look.
Just dress like Paul Newman.
Also on side note, a quick question, in the land of classic canvas sneakers I personally am a low top converse Chuck Taylor man myself. (In the classic white or natural canvas. Simple and versatile or GTFO), are there any other alternative that you all have found to work that aren’t vans? I just can bring myself to wear them.
So Beau, revisiting this after a nap (and some solid comments below) i think it’s safe to say that you stirred up enough impassioned grads to be considered ‘worth reading’
Thus would suggest you should post again-soon.
Sincerely, “the guy who once thought xl South Pole jeans and a white tee where acceptable attire.
I agree with CHoov, you should post more steps, the Internet demands it.
I’m a big fan of the PF Flyers Center Lo, or, Pro Keds Royal Lo. Both have treated my feet + knees much better than Chucks for some reason. Not a ton of support, but better support. (Now, why they don’t use the “w” in “low” is beyond me…)
What about a good bag to hold the laptop and notebook?
On that note, I think it would be hilarious for some Dappered readers who are far enough away from their high school or college years to send Joe some embarrassing photos from way back when. I’ve got some great ones of me with hair down past my shoulders and JNCO jeans that I’m sure would get a few laughs!
Guess that guy missed out on all the hoes and sluts and probably is settling rather than mingling like a frat boy.
Filson 256/257 looks equally good with an outfit like that and with a suit. And it will last forever.
What Joe said plus I would add white or black jack purcells and tretorn nylite. Well and plain white vans authentic – they look good as is, but if you replace laces with leather ones, it will give you less athletic and more cool casual look. http://youhavebrokentheinternet.blogspot.com/2010/07/vans-199-leather-laces-much-cooler.html
For those of us that can’t afford a Filson or Barbour bag on our budgets, you could probably pick up a canvas messenger bag from Target (currently in store, on clearance in the mens.)
See here for more that I like: http://www.gq.com/style/wear-it-now/201010/man-bags-purse-briefcase-satchel-messenger-bag#slide=1
Please tell me you had that little flameboy icon too…
Joe. I think this needs to be a post. some Before/After shots might just prove Beau’s point.
I like this article because it follows the rule that you should dress for the occasion, even if that occasion is four years long. When the bar is so low, like it is in college, it becomes far too easy to overdress, which we all know is just as bad as underdressing.
Recently, IMO, Dappered has forgotten the statement on the right-hand frame that says that style is AFFORDABLE. Brand obsession is the worst point of the #menswear movement. This is a move back on the original path. A man can look fantastic with gear from Walmart, Target, and other lower price options. The key is fit and style. I would love to see more articles like this and perhaps detailing ways a man, without much means or time to troll eBay and thrift stores (although those are good options) can look his best.
I hear you John. But there’s been a serious shift on the retail side in the last year or two. Old Navy used to sell AWESOME blazers. Now? It’s hard to find a decent, not-chopped tail/too long arms/goofy 2-buttons on the sleeves/cruddy material blazer at big brother GAP. Old Navy? Out of the blazer game.
Again, I hear you, but… best bets for $75 or less, dress shoes under $200 (and more than a few picks under $100), the J. Crew Factory Thompson suit testing, best looking watches under $100, Bonobos for $40, $50 Spanish Made shoes… yes, there are lots of splurge items mentioned, but there really seems to be on average less affordable, yet quality made goods up for purchase.
Maybe blame the wharrrgabling snobs in the comments whenever something accessible and super-affordable is mentioned? I don’t know. But honestly, it just seems like the pickins are more slim as of late.
Thanks for the feedback. I totally here you. But know that once every couple weeks I take a spin through Kohl’s, Macy’s, and Target just for the hell of it, and I just haven’t been seeing much lately. Trust me, I wish I was.
I personally would suggest a sport shirt as an alternative to the suggested polo if you want to mix it up a bit. Old Navy has some at nearly the same price as the linked to polo, including some linen-cotton blends. You get a shirt that has a bit more color, breathes better due to the looser weave, and won’t have you mixed up with a member of the university’s ROTC if you wear it with chinos (I’ve seen this happen). Another benefit is that it’ll teach you how to iron, an important skill for everybody to possess.
Additionally, I think that whether or not wearing a polo instead of a graphic t-shirt during spring through early fall quarter makes you stand out as a notch above really depends on your campus. Some campuses are more casual than others, and there are different levels of formality depending on the program you’re in, such as business. Furthermore, if you are at a large state school such as Michigan State or the University of Washington, you might just look like a member of Greek Row.
Just remember, to paraphrase Joe, that you should never speak poorly about those who don’t spend the same amount of time as you do on your personal style.
Do you really think wearing non-cargo shorts and a polo is overdressing?
… no. And that is why “I like this article.” It is a simple improvement without being overdressed. If a college student blindly followed other articles on this site, he may find himself wearing a three-piece Indochino suit and Allen Edmonds monk straps. It may look great, but I would comfortably call that overdressed for college.
Maybe it was on threads, but there’s not a lot of $488 blazers walking around these parts.
per the Ed Garments… haven’t heard of them, but is yours this one? http://www.amazon.com/Ed-Garments-Buttons-Breasted-3500/dp/B008KXZIU6/ref=sr_1_2?s=apparel&ie=UTF8&qid=1375894850&sr=1-2&keywords=ed+garments
And is it all poly? I’m with you on the brand obsession though. I think the vast majority of us here aren’t hooked to brands either. Thus, the almost universal dislike for logos.
I spent some time in the military, then returned to use my GI Bill to go to college and have found the transition awkward. Besides the usual civilian transition issue, college campuses in particular seem to be their own little bubble of space and time. This article is well written, it was difficult to strike the balance between massively overdressed and juvenile when I first began college after my service. Great job.
Oh man, my college “uniform” was pretty much jeans and an untucked button down with a pair of white or black Sambas, and I was considered someone who dressed nice. The bar is pretty low, but then… what other part of your life do you get to look like a bum? Still, there are limits, and wearing pajamas to class shows you’ve given up on life.