For some men, constructing a matching ensemble is as frightening as hearing the words “some assembly required.” It may not sound macho but you would be amazed at how close to the truth that really is. Ironically, it really doesn’t have to be that challenging if you just consider some of the basics. Granted, there are a few men out there who just seem to have a knack for doing this, but for the most part, men need help in this area. Here are some helpful tips on how to match a shirt, suit, and tie.
First and foremost, always remember to pick the suit first and then match your shirt and tie to the suit. You’ll find that this is far easier. Most men make the mistake of finding just the right shirt, just the right tie to go with that shirt, and then can’t find the right suit to match it all together. It is much easier to match the shirt and tie after selecting the suit, so always remember this step. Today there is a wide range of high quality tailored and ready-made men’s shirt and men’s accessories and ties, so picking up a smart bespoke shirt or a well tailored suit adds to your personality.
Men’s Formal Shirt Colors
Your best choices on a suit are still the standard black, charcoal grey and navy blue. So look for a suit in one of those colours with coordinated men’s shirt and accessories. It’s not that this is the easiest way out for the first step but it is a very professional look. After all, isn’t that what you are trying to achieve here in the first place? So pick the suit and then move on to the shirt. Remember that the tie is what gives the elegance and style to the whole ensemble.
The easiest colour choice for a men’s shirt is white especially if you want to achieve the ultimate conservative and professional look. This is not a hard and fast rule, but it is common sense and for the sake of headaches, it is also the easiest choice. Another option is to choose a shirt that is a powder blue of light grey colour. These will also blend well – i.e. the powder blue shirt with the navy blue suit, the light grey with the charcoal or black. Consider another option as well. If your colour preference on the suit results in looking at browns, then the option on the shirt would be a tan or yellow. Another stylish choice for colour has always been that pale shade of green, referred to as “mist” or “sage.” By selecting a tie with the predominant brown colour of the suit, you will be tying together what may have initially appeared to be the wrong colour shirt for that suit. Keep in mind that a patterned tie adds a little more life to the ensemble than a solid coloured one does.
Bespoke Shirt Coordinates
The key here is that you are striving to coordinate the colours of the shirt, suit, and tie, so for all practical purposes, the role of selecting the tie becomes the significant issue of the entire process. Some clothiers will place the highest importance on the selection of the tie to bring everything together, and this is probably an accurate level of thinking. However, you still want to follow the suggestions lined out here. In other words, choose the suit first, then the shirt, and finally, complete the package by selecting a tie that has the colour of the suit in it as well as one that will coordinate with the shirt. Don’t be afraid to go a little out there with argyle or stripe patterns with the tie.
Additionally, check shirts can be worn with solid or striped ties provided that there is a predominant colour in both the shirt and tie that will tie in with the colour of the suit. This brings up some more food for thought. Let’s say that you have chosen a navy blue suit and a white background shirt that has both burgundy and navy stripes. A great idea is to choose a tie with burgundy and navy blue diagonal stripes. You will be very satisfied with the look you achieve and it will look extremely dapper as well.
Men’s Accessories
Typically, it is the norm to make sure that if the men’s shirt is a solid colour, that the tie can have a pattern and vice versa. It is acceptable now to put striped men’s shirts and men’s accessories and ties together so you have that option as well. If and when you choose to do this, make sure that the dominant colour in the shirt matches the colour of the suit and that the tie also contains that colour.
For more info: Bespoke mens suits
