Here, I’ll say it: I’m not a fan of jeans with a sport coat. What could go wrong, right? While it seems to be a staple of #menswear on the Instagram, the type of jeans + tailored item outfit you will run into, out in the wild here where I live, is typically the failed kind.
We all know how in our minds, we give the vibe off that we’re some independently wealthy, middle aged man from Northern Italy, swimming in Sprezzature when breaking up our more formal wardrobe by pairing it with jeans. But as so often in life, fantasies won’t be superimposable with reality. You need to understand the rules before you break them and for a lot of men, their understanding ends at “me go store, me buy suit”.
Some of you have probably already started to suspect of what I envision. If you live here in this region, you have seen it. The archetype that makes everyone who really likes menswear cringe. The used car salesman uniform (I hereby also want to apologize to the used car salesmen for this stereotype). It’s the attempt to look more business than jeans and polo while thinking that a suit looks too serious. It might also go towards insurance or real estate. But I’m getting distracted, let’s nail it down:
- Low-waist jeans (ideally your tummy overlaps your waistband)
- White dress shirt, point collar, cut super roomy (bonus point for showing white undershirt)
- Anthracite or navy orphaned suit jacket
- If you want to perfect the look, square toed, rubber soled shoes that don’t match the color of your belt
This is just a “no”. It belongs into the realm of super tight shirt & suits to “show off your physique” and crazy fashion forward clothing pieces that will have a timeframe of being wearable of 6 months top, just at the other end of the spectrum.
So by circling back to the beginning, let’s look at where we can fix that look:
- Wear higher-waisted jeans
- Don’t wear a jacket that screams suit. Pick a less formal fabric such as linen or tweed.
- Use a less formal shirt. Again, change to a more casual fabric, pattern or texture; maybe consider a collar button down shirt.
- Wear a casual shoe that fits with the style of your outfit, swap the black cap toe oxford for a loafer or a chukka boot.
You need to be the embodiment of the mindset, so ask yourself: do you want to drink espresso in a street cafe or filter coffee in your basement office? Yes, I thought so!
Items worn in this post are from: