How to Wear a Formal Shirt For Men?
Wearing a formal shirt is a skill that you and I need to learn. Otherwise, we run the risk of looking sloppy and unpresentable in many cases. Yet, unless you enrol in a finishing school, this is one life skill you have to learn from trial and error.
But fear not, for we are here to make that easier on you with curated tips from professionals in India, wives who help their husbands and sons dress, and the internet to help you wear a formal shirt the right way.
It's In the Tuck
Renowned mental health professional and psychiatrist Dr. Ranjan Ghosh says you can go without a tuck if it’s the right shirt, but most experts on wearing a dress shirt would tell you to tuck it into the pants and wear a fitted shirt. This gives it a sleek look that says you are up for the day ahead of you.
And truly, a tuck can say a thousand words. Don’t believe us? Just see how changing the tuck can turn your formal shirt casual. Oh, and do remember, while every dress shirt is a formal shirt, not every formal shirt is a dress shirt, stylistically speaking, and hence you need to dress accordingly.
Yet, a tuck isn’t everything. For example, you can look at the image the positioning of the buttons on your shirt covey.
The Line is the Look
The advice for formal shirts for men dress shirt is often to line your shirt button with your pant button and belt buckle. This is known as the gig line. Yet, the gig line isn’t always the best, according to some, as it ignores the natural centre of each piece of clothing.
For a formal shirt, whether or not you choose a gig line depends on whether you are wearing a tie, a waistcoat, or keeping your top buttons open and how fitted the shirt is. At the end of the day, we would say it’s up to your sense of style and professionalism whether to keep a gig line or line up the buttons with your centred belt buckle alone.
There’s one thing though, that our experts and everyday folks agreed on. And that is a formal short always has…
A Stiff Collar
Adjusting your collar properly is one of the first things a person needs to do when wearing a formal shirt, especially a dress shirt. Different collar styles also play a role I how the shirt looks on you, fully buttoned up with a tie and without a tie.
To Tie or Not to Tie
Some would argue that for the most formal look, you must have a tie, but many tend to skip the tie these days. If you do wear a tie, you need to know the different styles of tie which goes with different shirts and keep your collar button closed. If you decide to skip the tie, you can leave the collar button open.
Yet, before you pick a tie, there’s something you must know about shirts, especially formal shirts.
Stripes and Checks?
We asked people like Mrs. Ritu Roongta who help their partners and family members dress in formal shirts every day on what they consider an appropriate formal shirt. Here’s what we got. Wear thin stripes for wider stripes that come across as casual shirts.
If you wish to wear checks, go for smaller checks with less colour variation, otherwise, you run the risk of running casual. Unlike say, with skipping your cufflinks.
Are Cufflinks a Must?
Many people we have met are under the impression that cufflinks are a must for a formal look. Except only French cuffs actually allow cufflinks. Not all formal shirts have French cuffs, though. Which means that cufflinks cannot be a must for formal shirts. Simple as pie.
Formal shirt wearing sounds like a Herculean task but it can be fairly simple. Once you have worn the shirt though, how do you style it? What colour pants do you wear? And what materials should you go for in a formal shirt? To know that and more, stay tuned for more blogs from the sustainable formal shirt store- The Formal Club.
Also Read: Finding the Right Colour: How Undertones Can Help You Pick the Right Formal Shirt
