Men Style

Recently I've received some well deserved slack for tailoring many of my "tips" and "guidelines" to men who are typically tall and thin.

It is true, not all men have pseudo-model body types, including me. With that said, not all men look good in slim-fitting suits and skinny ties.

I stumbled across a great feature on men.style.com called "suit your shape", which offers tips for men of different body types. Check it out by clicking HERE.

Hope this helps!

Yours in style, Style Blogger

Spending time in Europe taught me many things. One of which is that American men are obsessed with denim. Everywhere you go it's jeans, jeans, jeans. Some guys only wear jeans, everyday.

Don't get me wrong, I love denim too...but wearing your heavy Japanese selvage denim in the heart of the sticky summer with sweat beading down your brow just doesn't make sense.

Invest in some lightweight cotton pants. Khakis, chinos, cotton trousers, whatever you want to call them. Not only do they breathe much better, but they give you a smarter summer casual look. Pick up (at least) one pair in a medium/dark shade of "khaki" and one pair in navy, these two go with just about anything. Depending on your level of boldness, you can wear pretty much any color you want. I wore my lime green pants ($8 at H&M) the other day and people loved 'em.

As a guide, keep them slim through the leg (tapered or straight), medium/low rise, and about 7-8" width across at the ankle (slim at the ankle is crucial!). Again, if your swagger is turned up enough (and your ankles caught some sun this summer), wear them rolled with no socks or get them hemmed a half inch above the back of your shoes.

The other good thing about switching to these pants, especially for denim lovers, is that it will spice up your relationship once the temperature creeps down in the fall and you and your favorite jeans can rekindle the old flame.

Yours in style, SB

There was a time, a couple of years ago now, when it was cool to wear a military-inspired jacket or shirt with epaulets (shoulder straps) on the shoulders. This time is now passed.



It was a trend, and as with any trend, anybody and everybody jumped on the bandwagon and epaulets began popping up everywhere, including stores like H&M and Zara, which means everybody was rocking these way-overused shoulder garnishes. Even more corny was that these straps began showing up where they certainly didn't belong or make sense, including t-shirts, leather jackets and sport coats, all of which look absolutely ridiculous.



Today's tip: stay away from any kind of sleek, modernized form of the epaulet. Unless you are wearing a vintage fatigue jacket or a classic trench coat, or you are in the military/law enforcement, a pilot, or a park ranger, try to stay away from shoulder straps altogether...most of the time it screams "look at me, I'm hip and trendy!".


Yours in style, Style Blogger.

Reader:

First off I think you have great style and give you the utmost respect for that.

Second... I wanted to know your opinion on what a good casual summer shoe would be. I wear a range of traditional boat shoes, drivers, and I just ordered a pair of white (really off white) Vans authentic canvas sneakers for summer. I hope they will work. Love Chucks and Vans but open to any opinion. What do you think?

Style Blogger:

Sounds like you have a decent spread there between boat shoes, drivers, chucks and vans. I'd say add a classic-looking loafer in a dark brown/burgandy. Something that is versatile enough to go from casual to dressy and everywhere in between. Check out the timeless Bass "Dover", found here. It is your safest option for most occasions.

But as you know by now, I'm not really about "playing it safe". My favorite shoes for summer are suede driver shoes; the brighter the color the better. The downside (which is also kinda the upside) is that they are really hard to find, especially at a reasonable price.

The best ones are made by Tod's and The Original Car Shoe (owned by prada), both of which run around $400 a pair. The Original Car shoe store, found only in Milan and Florence, is one of the coolest stores around simply because they have their signature shoe in basically every color...their wall of shoes looks like the nearby gelato shop selection with colors like Pineapple yellow and Mango orange .

At a more reasonable price ($105), there are these by new shoemaker Born. The red ones are hot, I just wish the laces and stitching were red also.

However, if you are like JD and Jay-Z in the summer of '98 and "Money Ain't a Thang", then here are my two favorite shoes this summer:

1. The Original Car Shoe in Aligator Skin (~$1,800.00):

2. The Mr. Hudson boat shoe/sneaker designed by Kanye West and Marc Jacobs for Louis Vuitton (~$900.00):

Hope this helps. Yours in style, Style Blogger.

Your very own Style Blogger is featured in the September 09 issue of Esquire Magazine, on newsstands now. Check it out!

Also, a very special thanks to all those who voted!

Yours in style, SB

The saying goes "never say never", but I'm saying it here. Never buy something that is not your size just because it's on sale. You will always regret doing this because it won't fit you properly, and as we all know by now, a good fit is key to looking your best.

The one exception is shoes. You can usually give or take a half size, and maybe even a full size if you REALLY want them, just make you are not limping home.

Yours in style, Style Blogger.

The everyman's go-to summer shirt has been replaced. The short sleeved button-up is the new polo.

Not only are they lighter in weight and breathe better because you can get them in poplin cotton (the lightest weight of cotton), but they are more versatile since you can adjust how much skin you want to show by fastening/unfastening the buttons. Plus (do not try this if you are a beginner) they can be worn with a tie or (even more difficult to pull off) a bow tie.

As a side note, for us fashionistos who change often, the shirt doesn't come over hear head so your hair will stay just the way you left it.

As always, it's all about fit. You want it slim through the body (just grazing your sides). Wear it untucked, just long enough to go a couple inches past your belt. The sleeves should be slim and hit about half way down your bicep.

I usually go without a pocket because I like the clean chest look, but having a pocket gives you a great place to put your shades when you walk inside, so it's a win/win.

Here are three brands who made a nice cut (at three different price points):

Theory ($225)

American Apparel ($52)

H&M ($24.99)

Don't get me wrong, the polo is not dead, never will be, this is just a much needed way for men to switch up their limited summer shirt cycle.

Yours in style, Style Blogger.

I recently did an interview and was asked to fill in the blank: "A man can never have too many __________".

The answer is white dress shirts. Here's a secret of mine: although I change outfits all the time, sometimes a few times a day, and wear some off-the-wall stuff, I wear a white dress shirt probably 3-4 times a week.

A fresh white shirt is the perfect blank canvas to base your look around, it can be layered with basically anything, and it pops beautifully under a suit or jacket of any color. If you're ever not sure what color shirt to wear with a suit or tie, go with solid white. It never fails...so long as you keep the red wine in the glass and the red lipstick on her lips (or anywhere but on your collar ;)

Yours in style, Style Blogger.

I often get asked the question "How can you tell, by looking at him, if a guy's suit is expensive or not?". My answer is usually "Who Cares? If he looks good, he looks good...it's not about price tags". BUT, there is one thing I always look for when I see at a stylish guy in a suit: working cuffs.

Most off-the-rack suit jackets/blazers have 3 or 4 buttons on the cuff (the end of the sleeve) which are only decorative - they do not serve any function. These buttons do not open or close since there is no hole for them to fasten through. They are made this way in order to allow the sleeves to be altered (made longer or shorter) according to the buyer. After all, not all men are created (physically) equal.

However, if a suit is custom made, either "bespoke" or "made-to-measure", since the sleeves have already been measured to the perfect length for the wearer, the cuffs will be what is called "working cuffs" or "surgeons cuffs"; where the buttons can be opened and closed. This may not seem like a big deal, but it does allow you to effectively roll up the sleeves of your jacket when the times (or your style) call for it - which is one of my favorite looks right now, especially on an unlined cotton jacket.

A working cuff:

Now since most guys aren't interested in paying $1,500+ for a custom-made suit, here is a little secret of mine... When you get your sleeves adjusted to your ideal length (which is MUCH shorter than most tailors will suggest - tell them you want at least 1/2" of shirt cuff to show) you can also get your cuffs opened (granted you are seeing a decent tailor) for a small fee ($20 - $25). You can also add or remove buttons if you wish. I usually wear 5 working buttons on my jackets because I'm 6'2" with long arms and because I love to be different. As a side note, I'm working on designing a jacket with working buttons all the way up to the elbow - should be interesting.

Now I really didn't want to share this part, but what the hell... You can also customize your jacket by choosing to insert a grosgrain ribbon of your choice into the sleeve gusset - a popular look right now with high-end designers like Thom Browne who often puts his signature Red/White/Blue stripe in his jackets. Typically you need about 12 inches of 7/8" ribbon, but talk this over with your tailor to make sure he can do it and you pick up the right size. Any good fabric store should have a ribbon section with a good variety of colors/stripes/patterns/etc.

The coolest part is that the choices for grosgrain ribbon are pretty much endless. You can try to play off of a color in your jacket, go with a complimentary color, or go with something wacky like smiley faces or the way-over-done skull and crossbones monogram.

Wearing your jacket sleeves rolled up is a great look, but leaving a button or two unfastened at the end of your jacket just to show that you paid alot for it, as many wall-street types do, comes off a little asshole-ish. With that said, I still do it sometimes :/

Thanks for reading. Yours in style, Style Blogger.

Hey all. I'm back. The trip was incredible. My boy Ryan and I had some great times, learned alot, did alot of thinking/self-reflection, and (the good news for ya'll) it inspired me to bring my blog to new heights. Thanks again to all of those who sent emails and comments while I was away, responses are on the way.

As my first post back, I'm going with one of the most popular features, the "Tip-of-the-Day".

Buying a quality timepeice can be a tricky investment, 1) Because it will (hopefully) last you many years and 2) Because it could potentially break the bank. Here's a little trick that can help you make the most out of your wristpeice.

You only need one watch. Keep it simple and classic (no deep-sea diving instruments or drag-race stopwatch features). Keep the face a neutral color (white or gray are your best bets). And keep the case a medium size (from 36mm - 40mm) - small enough to look classy under a shirt/suit cuff and large enough to look cool when wearing it casually with a pair of retro J's. As an example, here's a pic of the Montblanc Timewalker that I wear:

Now here's the secret. Invest in one of these:

It's a watchband replacement tool which allows you to easily (with a steady hand to avoid scratches) remove the wrist band from your watch and replace it with another, granted your watch has standard spring pins (most do, but look into it to make sure). It only costs $4.95 here, a small price to pay to turn one simple watch into an accessory with unlimited options.

Some people pay a watch repair man to change their band, but doing it yourself not only saves you time and money but it also allows you to change your band according to your outfit, making it a much more versatile (and unique) accessory. Here is a good video describing how to change your band:

The Watch Prince is a great place to shop for affordable bands, just make sure you know the width that you need (measured in mm, typically 18-22). Start with the essentials:

1. Black Alligator and Brown Alligator. The dressiest band, looks great with suits and ties...remember to match your skins (see Tip-of-the-Day May 4 2009).

2. Black Rubber. Wear it when the times call for something casual or when working out/running.

3. Striped Ribbon. Perfect for the summer, when things get a little more casual and brighter in color.

Once you have those basics you can start experimenting and putting your own spin on it (all with the same watch!). For example, check out my man Kenyatte Nelson, Esquire's Best Dressed Real Man 2008, playing with color and accessories:

Thanks for reading. Much more to come. Yours in style, Style Blogger