Fashion Faux Pas Guide: Blazers
Like jeans and neckties, the blazer is the kind of thing you’d expect to see in every grown man’s closet. This style staple is almost always the go-to option for formal events, which says much about how foolproof it is. Blazers, however, are not completely faux pas-free; tweaks in the wrong direction can render this most dapper of pieces into a disaster.
Too Busy
Men these days are much more open to making fashion statements than a decade ago, and it’s not always such a positive development. By all means push the envelope with modern pieces like t-shirts and jeans. For formal and traditional items like neckties and blazers, on the other hand, the envelope is usually best left sitting where it is.
Any guy who knows his fashion brands will tell you that it’s usually the plainest pieces that are the most expensive. The plain bespoke suit and the discreet pair of Italian leather loafers typically fetch the highest price and go the furthest style-wise.
Blazers are no different. You get the most style and versatility out of them when you get them solid and simple. Few items are as dressy as the solid black or navy sport coat, but you can’t get any plainer than them either. The blazer is one of those cases in fashion where you’re better off with a safe option that never goes wrong, than a risky choice that’s almost certain to fall flat.
Too Tight
‘Fitted’ and ‘trim’ are too of the most ubiquitous buzz words in men’s fashion today, yet not everyone has the same idea of what the terms mean. In an effort to look younger and more contemporary, guys all too often try styles that are too tight – which never does any person any favors.
A good blazer should at the very least be in line with your natural shoulders and be able to close without any visible strain at the buttons. The checklist for the ideal blazer goes on for much longer, but those two should land you an acceptable jacket.
You should know that ‘tight’ is a whole other ball game from ‘abbreviated’, or shorter than usual. A good many men use abbreviated jackets, which have higher up hems, to put a shorter torso back into proportion. This is a completely acceptable (and very effective) style strategy. It’s also completely unlike wearing a blazer that pulls across your chest and hunches your shoulders every time you button up.
Too Worn
Blazers, as you may have read earlier, are very much about tradition and style heritage. It’s that history that makes worn and damaged blazers unacceptable attire for any man at any event, no matter how casual you might think it to be.
Are there rips, tears or holes? Are the edges frayed? Are there permanent stains or discolorations? Any of these symptoms of wear should already raise the red flag and send you shopping for a new jacket. Wearing one despite the aforementioned injuries isn’t cool or rebellious or vintage; it’s plain and downright sloppy. It’s something you can do with jeans or t-shirts or leather jackets, but definitely never with the blazer.
Keep at least two blazers in your closet in good and wearable condition, since you never know when one will suddenly be out of commission. Your tailor – preferably the one who made your blazers too – should be able to repair minor damage, but don’t rely on him to be patching up those holes forever.
Other Blog Posts You May Like:
How to Find a Perfect Suit
Guide to Mens Business Formal Dress Code
Your Mens-Ties.com Team