- I would like to believe, as I'm sure many of us would,
that as you get older, your style improves.
You age gracefully, you work out, you watch what you eat.
Maybe you get some salt and pepper hair,
and magically you're supposed to have better style, right?
Completely wrong.
I'm 41 years old, and I can tell you from experience
that it is not magic.
It takes some effort to develop better style.
Although I'm over 40, age is not something
that I've addressed specifically on the channel before,
though it is something I'm interested
in talking more about and helping you guys
who are out there over 40, in your 50s, maybe 60,
develop a better style, as you age.
What's up, guys?
I'm Brian Sacawa.
You're watching He Spoke Style,
and today we are talking about tips
for dressing well as you get older.
(energetic music)
First tip is not a tip, per se.
It's more of pointing out something
that I see a lot of guys doing
that if they fix it,
could make a tremendous impact immediately.
And that is, you are not in college anymore.
Do not dress like you are.
I see guys in their 30s, 40s, 50s dressing
like they are still in college.
So what do I mean?
The college look for me, at least back in my day,
was the jeans or khakis that were too long,
possibly too wide, that would get caught
under the heel of your shoe and get frayed.
Not a good look even if you're in college.
When you grow up, buy a pair
of pants that are the right length,
if you need to get them tailored,
take them to the tailor.
Now, what else am I talking about?
Untucked dress shirts, flip flops, sandals as daily wear,
college t-shirt or sweatshirt or hat, all the time.
You know, maybe on the weekend, that's fine.
If you're home, just casual.
Basically, what this is, is on some level trying
to look younger by dressing the way you did
when you were younger.
Maybe trying to recapture those glory days, you know?
Or you just haven't evolved, whichever one it is.
You know, that was 15, 20, 25 years ago.
You've grown up, it's time for your style to grow up too.
Now, how do you do that?
I'm not saying you need to go out and buy a suit,
and dress in suits all the time
because not everyone needs to wear a suit on a daily basis.
But, I do think you need to own at least one nice suit,
navy or gray for an occasion you'd have to look nice at.
I think you should definitely have a sport coat as well.
Definitely a few nice dress shirts,
some cotton trousers, some wool trousers.
We can do another video at some point,
where I lay out a basic wardrobe upgrade.
But for now, for clarity's sake, for this video,
I'm going to suggest we move that discussion down
to the comments so we can get to the next item
on the list, which is to dress your body.
Listen, our bodies change as we get older.
If you've put on some extra pounds,
wearing tighter clothes is not gonna
to make you look younger, it's going to make you look fat.
So, you need to dress your body appropriately.
Now what that means is to wear clothes that fit you.
That's where having a good tailor comes in handy.
A good tailor, or a good made to measure,
or a bespoke suit company will hide your flaws.
If you don't like having flaws, go to the gym,
eat better, drink more water.
Put the time and effort into yourself.
You know, just like if you want to dress better,
you have to put time and effort into that as well.
The right fit for your age really depends on your body type.
If you're slim, you can get away
with a more tapered leg, maybe just a slight break.
If you're not, then a fuller cut
is gonna look better on you.
It doesn't matter that you liked the way the model
in the magazine looks, most of us don't have bodies
like that, and we need to make adjustments accordingly.
Next thing is not related to clothes at all.
It's related to personal grooming, and that is
to make sure that you pay attention to it.
It's one of the things that you have control
of that can really make a big difference,
especially in making you look younger.
When you go to the barber, have him trim your eyebrows up.
It's magic, you instantly look younger.
Pay attention to your nose, hair, and your ear hair.
(laughs) I don't know what it is.
Hair starts to come out of those places,
and you don't want to be that disgusting old guy
with hair coming out of his nose and ears.
So, get some little scissors, get a grooming tool,
take care of it, and make it part
of your routine and keep up with it.
Next is to avoid street wear or any kind of overt branding.
There are definitely a handful of older guys
that can pull this look off.
Nick Wooster, for one.
But I think for the rest of us mortals,
it's best to leave the fashion for the younger guys.
Unless, of course, you want to look like Ali G,
which is a reference that most certainly dates me.
Next thing to talk about is footwear, specifically sneakers.
Now, just because you're older doesn't mean
that you have to wear a suit and dress shoes all the time.
Sneakers are definitely okay, but they have
to be the right kind of sneakers.
Basically, the biggest thing is that you want
to avoid wearing your athletic shoes
when you are trying to dress nicely.
So, here's a good example of
what I'd call a grownup casual look.
It's all basics.
Button-down shirt with a classic Levi's sweatshirt,
suede jacket, pair of chinos and sneakers.
But notice that the sneakers aren't athletic shoes.
They're clean, they're minimal, there's no logo.
They are sneakers that I would call age-appropriate
in your 30s, 40s, 50s.
These particular shoes are by Common Projects.
Now, I'm not saying you need
to invest in a pair of Common Projects.
There are a lot of great options out there,
like M.Gemi, GREATS, et cetera.
Find a minimal pair of sneakers
that fits your budget and pull the trigger.
Now regarding casual wear, I will say
that dressing casual as an adult is a little tricky.
Like, how do you take casual staples
like tee shirts, jeans, sweatshirts, and so on,
and make them age-appropriate when they're worn
by pretty much all ages, especially younger guys?
Now, as much as I would love to tell you
that there is a simple formula you can follow,
that's just not the case.
And there are a lot of examples
of older guys who do casual really well.
Alessandro Squarzi, in his 50s.
And you can't tell me he doesn't look awesome
in his trademark jeans, military jackets, and waistcoats.
Similarly, my friend John Paolo Alliata
looks amazing in a suit, of course,
but he also knows a thing or two
about rocking a leather bomber hoodie and white sneakers.
In every case, what I will say is that it's important
to pay attention to the details and the fit.
One little bonus tip is to invest
in a quality casual jacket.
Easy pick, a simple leather bomber.
More advanced, maybe something in suede, wool or corduroy.
Thinking about fabrics and textures when it comes
to outerwear is a great mature style move.
Now, as I mentioned, there are no hard and fast rules here,
just like any quote-unquote rules of style.
Use these as guidelines, but also remember
to go with your gut and use a little common sense.
Leave your comments below.
Thumbs up if you found this video helpful.
Don't forget to subscribe and until next time,
thanks for watching, and stay tailored.
(upbeat music)
It's time for your style to grow up, too.
Sorry Rob.
(laughs)