By Oghenekeno Akpoili
You can usually tell when a man dresses well, but it isn’t always easy to say exactly why. Sometimes he isn’t wearing anything particularly expensive or fashionable. His trousers just sit properly, his shoes are right, his shirt fits, he smells good and nothing looks accidental.
Then there is the opposite: an expensive outfit that somehow still doesn’t quite work.
The difference is often in the details. And the good news is that most of them don’t require an entirely new wardrobe.
Here are a few that make more difference than you might think.
The Fit Comes First
Fit is probably the quickest way to tell whether a man pays attention to how he dresses. Trousers shouldn’t gather endlessly around the ankles. A shirt shouldn’t pull across the stomach or shoulders. A jacket should sit properly rather than look borrowed from somebody slightly bigger.
And tighter does not automatically mean better fitted. There is a difference.
This is also why a good tailor is worth knowing. Small alterations can completely change clothes you already own. Sometimes the problem isn’t your wardrobe. Your trousers simply need hemming.
Your Shoes Are Telling On You
You can get almost everything right and lose the argument at your feet.
Beautiful native with tired shoes. A sharp suit with the wrong loafers. Dirty white sneakers that stopped being white several outings ago. Shoes are one of those details people notice even when they aren’t consciously looking.
You don’t need twenty pairs. You need a few good ones that cover your actual life and that you bother to maintain.
Clean the sneakers. Polish the leather. Replace the pair that has clearly served its country.
Grooming Is Part Of The Outfit
The clothes do not stop at your neck.
A fresh haircut, neat beard, clean nails and skin that is actually being looked after all contribute to how put-together a man looks. So does fragrance.
And smelling good doesn’t mean the entire room needs to know you’ve arrived before you do. A good fragrance should be discovered, not announced.
None of this requires an elaborate routine. It simply requires the same attention you gave to choosing the clothes.
Know When To Dress Down
Being well dressed doesn’t mean being dressed up.
Not every dinner needs a blazer. Not every birthday requires your most elaborate native. And there are places where a beautifully fitted T-shirt, good trousers and loafers will look considerably better than an outfit that is trying very hard to announce itself.
The same applies in reverse. There is casual, and then there is looking as though somebody called you outside unexpectedly.
Knowing the room matters.
Don’t Let The Small Things Spoil It
This is where many otherwise good outfits go wrong.
The shirt is creased. The undershirt is showing at the neck. The trouser pockets are stuffed with a phone, wallet, keys and everything else a man apparently needs to survive the afternoon. The belt has seen better days. The socks are having an entirely different conversation from the rest of the outfit.
Individually, none of these things seems particularly serious. Together, they can make a good outfit look careless.
A steamer is a wonderful invention. So is a bag.
Stop Saving Everything For A Special Occasion
There are men with excellent clothes sitting untouched in their wardrobes while the same three polos are working overtime.
Wear the good shirt. Wear the loafers. Bring out the watch. That lovely native doesn’t have to wait for somebody’s wedding, and the expensive perfume doesn’t need permission from Saturday night.
Clothes earn their money by being worn.
Of course, this doesn’t mean wearing your best suit to buy groceries. It simply means getting out of the habit of dividing your wardrobe into “normal clothes” and everything you actually like.
Expensive Doesn’t Automatically Me Stylish
A visible label can tell us where something came from. It cannot tell us whether you look good in it.
One of the easiest traps in menswear is assuming that expensive pieces will do all the work. They won’t. An ill-fitting designer shirt is still ill-fitting. An expensive shoe can still be the wrong shoe for the outfit. And wearing several recognisable labels at once doesn’t necessarily improve the overall look.
Spend where quality matters, certainly. But don’t confuse price with taste.
Find Your Thing
The best-dressed men usually have something recognisable about the way they dress.
Maybe yours is beautifully cut native. Perhaps you are a white-shirt-and-great-watch man. Maybe you love colour, jewellery, loafers, interesting glasses or immaculate basics. You don’t need all of them.
In fact, trying to incorporate every new thing you see is probably the fastest way to lose whatever personal style you already have.
