Men’s Fashion for the “Twentysomething”
College is great preparation for real life – except when it comes to fashion. Board shorts, graphic tees and braided accessories are all ubiquitous features of university style, but you don’t exactly see them being sported by adults running around in their offices. The transition from college guy to working man can be very drastic style-wise; these are some of the most crucial changes you’ll have to make.
Size Assessment
Autonomy is undoubtedly one of the best things about being an adult, and that goes for your wardrobe too. By the time you leave your teens, you should be making your own decisions and clothing purchases – which means you should already know your size.
Even grown and mature men are overwhelmingly ignorant of their own sizes; just look back at all the teaching assistants and professors you’ve seen marching around in shirts that are oversized and bunched up in the most unattractive ways. By the time you turn 20, you should have already learned how to judge whether a shirt fits you right: seams on your shoulders with no bunching or sagging at the waist and arms.
By your twenties, you should also have a sense of how easy or difficult it is to dress your body. Some guys – short, husky men, for example – will simply find it hard to buy off the rack. If you fall into that category, your twenties is also a great time to discover a tailor.
Classic Studies
The “twentysomething” decade is a time of many firsts: first long-term relationships, first jobs, first businesses and so on. This makes it the perfect time to assemble a full set of all the classic style pieces that every man’s wardrobe should have.
Men’s fashion adds and removes things over time, but there’s a set of timeless basics that never seem to go out of style. Dark jeans, fitted slacks, tailored shirts, navy blazers and two-color striped neckties all fall into this category; they look good and sophisticated, no matter what year or season it is. They’re just the pieces you need to get through all of the life experience and crossroads that this decade is sure to throw at you.
Formal-Friendly
As you settle into your new job or try to move up from your old one, you’ll find more and more need to dress up. It’s not an isolated experience; men usually go to many, many more formal events in their twenties and thirties than in their teens. This crucial transition decade is the ideal time to start upgrading to a more formal-friendly wardrobe.
Hoodies, graphic tees and jeans can only get you so far, especially once you’re done with the university arena. Blazers, neckties and pressed shirts are all fashion staples of every mature, formal-wearing guy, and it’s high time to introduce them to your wardrobe.
The best way to ease into wearing formalwear is to start using dressier pieces in your day-to-day outfits. A crisp white collared shirt can be worn with shorts if you roll up the sleeves, while slim gray trousers can be a very sophisticated stand-in for dark jeans. By making these dressy pieces part of your everyday ensemble, you reduce the newness of the experience when you finally do wear them for a full-on formal outfit.
Your “twentyssomething” years are easily some of the most crucial in your life, since this is the time when the next few decades get decided and designed. That goes for your style as well. Tread with care.
Other Readings from Our Blog:
Guide to Mens Jeans
Casual Friday Dress Tips
Your Mens-Ties.com Team