Dressing tip 1: Wear lighter colors

[alden]

Wear lighter colors

For business and formal wear one is obliged to wear darker colors in shades of blue and gray. But in one's leisure time it is possible and desirable to be a bit more flexible with colors.

It has been mentioned that many men tend to wear their coats too long. They also tend to wear colors that are much too dark.

Camel, tan, beige, off-white, and light gray suitings are a great break from the standard somber dress colors. If you are scared off from wearing lighter colors because of colors charts proposed by dressing "experts", do not be put off. The color of the shirt is the key factor in bringing life to your face in harmony with your hair and skin color and not your suit.

Tweeds, especially, should be chosen in lighter colors of green, brown, yellow, orange, lovat, and red. These colors are vibrant. What one wants to avoid is tweed in grays and blues!

If you feel you are stuck in a rut with colors and would like an instant injection of "chic", dress lighter colors!

[Guest]

Dear Sir,

I completely subscribe what you say; I love lighter colors, also for business: for example I think that a lighter grey can do it. I would reserve one, and only one, darker suit for every season for formal events: and I prefer a midnight blue over a charcoal; let the rest be in lighter colors.

Definitely, I do not like dark colors in the morning. Maybe Prince Charles can be of help to us?



Well, when I see him dressing such a suit, I can't resist thinking he is communicating; he is trying to tell us - at least to them which can read this language - something; look, he is wearing a very light color, in the most formal occasions we can think of.

What do you think?

Giona Granata.[/img]

[uppercase]

Yes, indeed, I have a closet full of dark suits, hardly one distinguishable from the other.
I just naturally gravitated to dark over the years as the conservative and prudent shade; it didn't take too much thought. Plus, the dark blues and variations thereof suited my coloring.
But the lighter colors require all together more thought and investigation; I now fully subscribe to stocking up on the the lighter shades but just need to work out what colors work with a darker complexion. Certainly it will be easier to carry off the light colors in a hot , sunny climate for business and casual wear. Indeed, the darker colors actually look out of place in a year round warm climate.

[zjpj]

I think wearing lighter colors is fantastic amidst a sea of black and dark navy suits. Light grays and interesting plaids and herringbones can really spice up a wardrobe.

[Concordia]

Just a few days ago I was breaking in a new charcoal fresco suit-- and we were unexectedly cursed with a perfect spring day in Boston. Felt like I was on my way to a funeral. Weight and cut were perfect, and everything else was wrong.

(Somewhat) lighter reinforcements arriving imminently, but it was a useful reminder not to forget what spring feels like when mired in the dead of winter. It's a little like selecting wines to bring on a December cruise in the West Indies. Such is really best done in mid-July, when you can understand and remember how your palate behaves after an afternoon of swilling iced tgea and salt water in 85-degree sunshine.

[nick]

My reservation about lighter colors is that they do not have the visual effect of reducing bulk, which, for me, is always a consideration.

[alden]

Dear Nick,

Here is another way of looking at the problem you cite. Accept your size. Yes, accept it. Then counterattack with ferocious elegance wearing light colors despite the fact of your corpulence. By hiding behind dark colors you only appear slimmer in your imagination. Be largely and immensely elegant by wearing lighter colors, accepting your size and others will accept it as well. The focus will be on your dashing albeit large figure, rather than your always large but shrouded silhouette.

[edhayes]

a light color that fits a big man well can be very elegant, many big men, for instance, have small feet, and a light suit with light colored shoes will make you look light on your feet instead of just heavy
also, make sure you wear a good pocket square and a good tie as that will pull the eye towards the top and not your middle

[T4phage]

And Spring is definitely the time to start wearing these wonderful tones... dove grey suitings (like Charle's morning suit), beige's, the wonderful 'solaro' like colours with their subtle sheen....

[Alias]

Any suggestions on telling good lightweight summer fabric from bad? The usual rules I apply (firmness and drape) don't seem to apply, since we're talking about light, open-weave fabrics.

[manton]

Any suggestions on telling good lightweight summer fabric from bad? The usual rules I apply (firmness and drape) don't seem to apply, since we're talking about light, open-weave fabrics.

Actually, fresco and heavier linens are quite firm and drape quite well.

I have also had good luck with Lesser Superfine tropicals (8/9 oz) and the Smith Woolens "Gilt Twist," which are 7/8 oz. a but made from highly twisted two-ply yarns. They perform like much heavier cloth. I find they are a little too warm for the very hottest weather, but wonderful on a more moderate summer day.

[Alias]

Any suggestions on telling good lightweight summer fabric from bad? The usual rules I apply (firmness and drape) don't seem to apply, since we're talking about light, open-weave fabrics.

Actually, fresco and heavier linens are quite firm and drape quite well.

I wish I could find that here

Thanks for the suggestions. No one here carries Lesser or Smith Woolens, so I'll have to search out viable alternatives from other firms, including domestic.

[Nexus]

What type of shoes would you wear with an (off-)white cotton suit? In terms of model, material and color.

[Lookingtoimprove]

Nexus,

I think these (linked) suede monkstraps will do just fine...

Mark.

[T4phage]

What type of shoes would you wear with an (off-)white cotton suit? In terms of model, material and color.

A nice spectator in linen and brown leather would be ideal.