September 2003 Newsletter

His Style

How many of you have heard the term Metrosexual? I have heard it bandied around so often of late that I decided I should mention this new breed of man and welcome him into our lives. Whilst we had the SNAGS (Sensitive New Age GuyS) in the 80’s and 90’s he has now had to make way for the new breed, the metrosexual. This is the modern metropolitan man, conscious of his appearance, well groomed and dressed, often confused for his cousin the homosexual, but is actually heterosexual.

I am not surprised at the emergence of this new breed of male. In the animal kingdom it is more often the male of the species who uses his looks to attract the female. They are often more elaborately plumed or coloured and spend their days chasing after and fighting over women. The females of many animal species will just sit back and see who manages to raise her interest and possibly her pulse. But that is an issue for the Discovery channel more so than here. We girl’s know how much we have enjoyed pampering and preening ourselves over the ages. It has just taken the guys a little longer to catch on.

With us celebrating the Father’s in our lives this month and especially this Sunday I thought I would focus on the boys for a change and what they should take into account regarding their appearance.

Starting at the top a man needs a hairstyle which reflects his personality, can be easily maintained and, if it is short, is trimmed often. There is nothing more off putting than a hairy neck on a well groomed gentleman or any gentleman for that matter. A man should consult with a hairdresser as to what style will suit his face shape. A man with a long face needs to create width so opt for styles that are not too full on top or even avoid the spiked up styles that are still quite popular today. This style is magic on a man with a round or wide face as it can give him some length and height.

This season sees the shelves stocked with all styles of collars including the spread collar and the long pointed collars. It is important to understand the significance your collar can have on your appearance. A man with a wide face and a short/thick neck will look as if he has been squashed into his shirt with a spread collar. At the same time a man with a long thin neck and long face will start to look like Beaker, from the Muppets, when he wears a pointed collar. A standard collar suits all face shapes and necks. Remember if you are wearing a collar that buttons down it must be worn buttoned down and not unbuttoned. You may as well have your fly open. It is not a design feature that looks good undone.

Your tie is equally important. When wearing a wide collar you need a thick knot so you should tie a full Windsor. A half Windsor will give you a more triangular know which will suit most business shirts and the four in hand is a more narrow knot and suited to the button down style of shirt. If you would like more information regarding how to tie a tie please drop me an email at clare@corporateconfidence.com.au with how to tie a tie in the subject line and I will send you an info sheet. Whatever style of tie you are wearing a dimple is very important to the finished knot. This is best achieved by pinching the fold in as you tighten the knot.

The colour of your tie says a great deal about the type of person you are. The brighter the tie the brighter your personality. Red ties are great to make yourself known and create a presence. Be careful though of being too obvious as the old style of bright red tie, white shirt and black suit is very last century. Yellow and gold ties are uplifting and lively. They look ideal with blue shirts but go for the new colours and not the very gold ties of the past decade. Blue ties are conservative, green ties will work in generally lore muted colours mind you I have a client with cat green eyes and he suits the green ties impeccably. Lose the orange ties and I would only choose pink to keep the girls happy. The guys, even if you are metrosexual will not respond well. Purples and lilacs are the closets you can come to the softer colours and look fabulous with both white and blue shirts. Grey and black ties are suited to formal occasions and sombre ones. The really tone down your look and will not place you as a progressive male. Never ever let me see one of my clients in a comic tie. There is only one joke that can come from wearing a tie or socks for that matter with comics on them and the joke will be the wearer.

The suits at the moment that I am recommending my clients to wear are the single breasted, three button style. They are flattering to all shapes, give you are great shape and hide any imperfections easily. Be wary of wearing any jacket that is too tight. It will pull in at the waist giving you ore of a woman’s figure and pull open at the bottom button revealing the bottom of your tie and giving you a Ginger Meggs appearance. A boy with his tie hanging below his jacket. Knowing you should always wear a jacket with the bottom button undone leaves no place to hide your tie which would sit well concealed under a well fitting jacket.

Depending on your age you might like to start wearing suits with flat front trousers. They are a modern look and look amazing. If you have any pants with double pleats in the front it is time to say goodbye to them.

There is much more to a smart and stylish presentation for a man. In the coming months I will have a site up dedicated to men and their clothing requirements. Keep a look out for it and its address to be advised in future newsletters.

A couple of hints to good fitting suit.
The buttons do up and the jacket will sit flush to the body without revealing the belt or bottom section of you tie.
The sleeves finish about two centimetres below your wrist bone.
The jacket length should not be above your hip bone or too low on your body.
Unless you are very tall cuffs will make you look shorter. Mind you many pants these days have no cuffs.
Lastly ensure there are no more than two breaks (creases or folds) at your pants hem. It is a sign your pants are too long.
Your tie at it’s widest point should be roughly the same width as your lapels, also at their widest point.

Remember gentlemen it is just as important to have a good fit as it is to have a good fabric and good quality. An expensive suit that does not fit you well is simply a waste of money.

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Look out for Clare’s regular column in The Good Life – Peninsula Style down on the Mornington Peninsula.

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