Wearing a Formal Shirt Casually and Getting Away With It
A men’s formal shirt is one of the most flattering articles of clothing in your wardrobe, but wearing it every day can be hard to pull off if you don’t work the right job. Men’s formal shirts come in a variety of colours, styles and fashions, but depending on which one you choose, you can actually wear it almost anywhere.
First, usually it’s a good idea to choose an expensive brand of shirt. Even if you can only afford one or two shirts, it’s better than purchasing 6 cheap ones and having to throw them all away a year or two later. Quality feels and fits better, meaning it will look great no matter what.
Style Yourself Informally
The first rule of pulling off a men’s formal shirt in a casual setting is to dress and style yourself informally. Don’t sleek your hair back, put on a tie or wear dress shoes, this will make you look much too formal. Instead, try your favourite sneakers such as Converse or Vans (although avoid running and walking shoes), leave your hair as messy as you like (to an extent) and go from there. Before you walk out the door, look in the mirror. If you look like you’re about to attend a meeting then you haven’t styled your outfit casually enough.
Wear Jeans Not Trousers
While it’s true that trousers are an excellent bottom for men, they do tend to look more formal than jean’s, khakis or shorts.Unfortunately you should almost never wear men’s dress shirts with shorts, unless you’re talking about men’s slim fit polo shirts.
Try pairing a men’s formal shirt with a pair of jeans to get a unique look that you can change with the colours or patterns of a shirt. For example, striped men’s slim fit shirts with jeans will create a slightly fun yet casual look while black slim fitting men’s formal shirts will be a little more polished and a little more formal. You can really choose the look you’re going for and go from there.
Choosing the Right Material
A black silk men’s slim fit evening shirt is going to look formal whether it’s paired with a tuxedo or a pair of Bermuda shorts. While it might look incredibly out of place in the second setting, it will still be noticeable that it’s formal.
The trick is to choose your men’s dress shirts so that they go well with what you plan on wearing. Some men choose to purchase denim button down shirts, others choose to go with stripe or checked men’s formal shirts. In either case, adding colours and patterns is a great way to reduce the formality of the dress shirt and make it more casual.
For example, a solid colour men’s formal shirt in green will be a great deal less formal than the same shirt in black. Men’s slim fit shirts with checker patterns are the least formal and therefore the easiest to wear on an everyday basis, but are often not suited to everyone’s tastes.
The men’s formal shirt is flattering, versatile and can be purchased for a wide range of prices online and in stores.
Mark French is a frequent contributor for Pako Lorente UK and has written many articles pertaining to all things regarding fashion and mens wear especially on such subjects as making the best of your look throughout the seasons with mens formal shirts and their accessories.
