Popular Collar Styles For Men’s Dress Shirts
Classic Turn-down Collar
This is the most common of all shirt styles. It is a classic design that suits business, leisure, as well as formal settings, and can be worn with or without mens ties. Within this style there are variations of different collar spreads – the width between each collar tip. Usually the wider the spread the larger of a necktie knot you should wear. Also, the collar spread should match your facial features. For instance: A man with a larger and shorter neck should wear a wide spread collared dress shirt, and a man with a longer neck and longish face is best off wearing a narrow to medium spread collar. Finally there are different variations of cuff style, shirt placket, yoke styles, and custom options such as pocket styles and monograms.
The Button Down Collar
This collar style is the most casual of the four discussed. The collar should always be buttoned down – regardless whether or not you choose to wear a tie. Most button down collared dress shirts are made from a linen-like fabric known as Oxford cloth. Because the button down collar resembles a British look, we prefer to match these shirts with classic Regimental ties and a timeless Four in Hand knot.
Most common is the classic white button down collared shirt, followed by light blue, gray, and black. Classic shades are most common and bright colors are almost never found for the button down collared dress shirt. Also common are button down shirts with fine striped pattern (white and light blue being the most common design).
Formal Wing-Tip Dress Shirts
This formal dress shirt is almost exclusively reserved for black and white tie events. Most common is the black or white bow tie with this type of collar, but the formal ascot is an acceptable alternative. The wing-tip collared dress shirt comes in many variations: pleated vs. non-pleated fronts, french or barrel cuffs, and decorative button studs or a placket hiding buttons.
While black tie functions give the wearer different options for shirt styles, it is the white tie dress code that mandates a wing-tip collar paired with a white bow tie, white waistcoat, and a tailcoat jacket.
Oriental Mandarin Collar
This oriental dress shirt style is the least common of the four in the Western society. It is however a formal dress shirt style that can, if matched correctly, worn to formal black tie functions. The mandarin collar dress shirt is never worn with a tie, but instead with a decorative button stud. The front of the formal shirt is always pleated and closed with decorative studs instead of buttons.
The mandarin collared dress shirt is typically paired with a mandarin jacket – a lapel-less high buttoned jacket that is sometimes compared to the Mao-Suit.
Other Suggested Readings:
How to Choose a Necktie
Guide to Business Formal Dress Code
Your Mens-Ties.com Team