The Men’s Guide to Vests

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Oct 04

The Men’s Guide to Vests

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In modern men’s fashion, vests are practically vestigial to a lot of guys. The vest-less two piece suit is the norm, and they’re a rarity even when you go to black tie events. However, the vest remains a very stylish and debonair article of clothing, especially when worn properly. It’s a great way to add a dash of old-world, hobnob style to even the humblest of outfits, and is about as versatile as your favorite polo shirt.

Dress It Up
Like immaculate neckties and buffed leather shoes, vests always inspire images of old school formality. Wearing one with formal pieces is still one of the best ways to carry a vest, so long as you remember to give your look a few formal touches.

Start with the most basic combination: the three-piece suit ensemble. If you’re not very comfortable with the whole set, though, ditch the jacket but keep the vest buttoned up. As long as the color of the vest matches that of your pants, you can pull off the look that’s formal without being stuffy. It’s also an opportunity for you to do up your favorite black necktie and avoid all those connotations of coming from a funeral.

Matching the vest to the pants has been a fail-proof sartorial combination since the dawn of men’s fashion. Even if you move away from solid black, take a formal English check pattern, for example, you’ll still look sharp and very gentlemanly as long as the patterns match up. Keep your shirt subtle and you’ll have a little room to play around with bold neckties that make an additional style statement.

Dress It Down
Even if your elders said that vests were strictly for formal occasions, the new (and very flexible) rules of men’s fashion say otherwise. With the right pieces and styling, the vest can be combined with more casual pieces to dress it down or add more drama to an otherwise boring look.

Starting with the formal vest, slacks and tie ensemble from above, take off your tie and leave the first couple of buttons open. But since the outfit can become boring once you take out the tie, you might want to swap your subtle shirt out for something bolder like a stronger stripe or a big check pattern. You’ll be able to make a style statement, while the vest breaks up the shirt’s pattern enough such that it doesn’t become overpowering.

Replace the tailored pants with light wash denims and the black vest with something in a lighter color like brown or gray, and you’ve got yourself a more outdoorsy, rough and tumble look. Roll your sleeves up and you create a very laid-back, suburban feel to your outfit. This works better with an unstarched shirt so that you feel as comfortable as the outfit looks.

Vested Casual
You could even do away with the long-sleeved shirt entirely and swap it with a polo shirt, preferably one with stripes to it. Swap the formal vest for one in a less formal fabric (wool works great) and the slacks for slim-cut dark denims. Minimalism is the key to this look, so make sure that all the pieces hug your body and your accessories are kept to a bare minimum. In fact, don’t wear anything extra other than a watch.

The versatility of vests really comes out when you pair it with very casual pieces like the outfit above. Even if you were to throw a vest on over a plain white tee and dark slim jeans, you’re still able to create a great, cohesive look, in this case a Bohemian rocker outfit. With the right accessories say, a great pendant necklace for Mr. Boho musician, it’ll look like something straight out of a Dsquared fashion show.

Don’t be intimidated by the formal tradition that lies behind vests. Once you actually get around to mixing and matching them with more casual pieces, you’ll find that they can be as versatile a style choice as anything in your closet.

Pohl enjoys to give advice on mens fashion by publishing articles to online magazine. Besides writing on fashion be is also the manager of necktie store: http://bows-n-ties.com/ – your source for quality neck ties, bows, and cufflinks.

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