Over the past half century, the dress shirt has gone from being an undergarment to a prominent figure in many outfits. This is one of the reasons why it is available today in so many styles, colors, and patterns. Whether one’s style is chinos or a suit and tie, shirts are an essential way to expand one’s wardrobe.
The style of the shirt largely indicates the intentions of the wearer. A shirt with a button-down collar, left chest pocket, plain front, and single-button cuffs indicates comfort, while a shirt with a turn-down collar, no chest pocket, front pocket, and French cuffs indicates formality. The beauty of modifying a shirt style is that you can tailor it not only for the occasion but also to complement your unique features.
shirt collars
The collar of a men’s shirt is the most important detail of style, both in defining the level of formality of a garment and in how it flatters the wearer’s face. Button collars are the least formal and most versatile; Looks great without a tie but can also support a tie and a blazer, jacket or sport coat combo. On the other hand, the wing collar is intended for formal wear and should always be worn with its accompanying parts. It is the least versatile collar, its sole purpose being to indicate the highest level of the dress.
Most men’s dress shirts feature some sort of pointed collar, but there’s plenty of room for variety here. While a standard collar looks good on most men, those with narrow faces do better with slightly shorter faces, and round faces carry much higher points than long collars. As a general rule, the greater the angle between the short sides of the collar points, the more formal the show. Spread collars, which leave a wide opening between them, take large tie knots well. The roughly cut edges of the collar form a straight line above the tie knot; This is the most formal collar arrangement. The exception to the parallel between spread and formality is the tab collar: here small tabs of fabric extending from each side connect behind the tie knot, holding the collar close together and sticking the knot out for a subtle, no-nonsense look. A contrasting white collar, in any style, with or without matching white French cuffs, is a fashionista’s favorite. While it certainly elevates the suit and tie above the masses, let the wearer be warned against it if it is not able to equal its reputation.
On most decent dress shirts, the collar points are kept straight by means of collar supports. These 2- to 3-inch tapered splints are inserted into the holes on the underside of the collar after ironing, and removed later for washing. Besides the plastic shirts that come with most shirts, you can buy them in brass, silver, and even ivory, but their materials have little bearing on their function.
Shirt cuffs
Barrel cuffs, which are standard on most dress shirts, come in a variety of styles, and are never a bad choice except for the most formal of occasions. The common variety has one button; Cuffs with two or even three buttons are somewhat more artful. French cuffs d rigor For formal wear they look good with a suit but are always optional. A button at the sleeve opening helps keep the sleeve closed during wear and can be opened to iron the cuffs; It’s optional, but it’s just about everywhere.
shirt pockets
The traditional left chest pocket adds a little depth to a dress shirt, especially if worn without a jacket and tie, and can be useful for holding pens, tickets, and the like. A shirt without pockets can look a little cleaner with a coat and tie, but since the coat covers the pocket, the difference is minimal when worn with a suit. As with most things, simplicity equals formality, so a shirt without pockets is the ultimate in style.
Shirt front and the placket
The standard buttonhole is a strip of fabric that rises off the men’s dress shirt in the front with stitches down each side; This is what most casual shirts and many t-shirts have. In more modern French dress, the edge of the shirt front is folded, creased, and held together only by the buttonholes. This cleaner front further sharpens formal dress shirts; However, it should not be combined with a button-down collar. There are also hidden buttons and, as the name suggests, hide the front buttons under a fabric wrap.
Return of the shirt
The backs of men are not flat; So we use pleats on the back panel of the shirt so that the fabric hangs down from the yoke (the piece that covers the shoulder blades) and conforms better to the body. There are two common types of pleated shirt back styles: box pleats consist of pleats spaced about an inch and a half apart in the center, while side pleats are located midway between each edge and the center of the back. While the former is more common on fitted shirts, the latter conforms better to the actual shape of the back, and thus fits better on most men. A well-customized shirt can be cut and sewn to fit the wearer perfectly without folds, and this makes it cleaner and easier to iron. However, many men prefer to wear pleats even on their shirts to order.
monogram
A man may choose to initialize his shirt, usually on the edge of the breast pocket or on the hem of the shirt. The monogram originated as a way to identify one’s shirts at a commercial laundry, much like writing a child’s name on the label of one’s jacket. Recently, as the shirt has taken on a more prominent role in men’s clothing, the monogram has appeared as a way to subtly express the care a man took in obtaining his clothes. While large, glowing letters certainly do more harm than good, many men enjoy the quiet display of their initials, usually in a similar color to the shirt’s shirt.