Welcome back to the Gentleman's Gazette. In today's video, we'll be discussing
modern men's style and why it only really works for one body type.
Let's face it. When most of us are looking for style inspiration these days, the first
place we go to is the Internet. And whether we're looking through images online or
even back in the day when we were browsing through magazines, what we'll be
seeing is really a representation of current fashions more than of timeless
style. Case and point, let's take a look at
modern tailoring. Most of the models you're going to see in menswear
publications these days are exceptionally skinny 20-somethings who
really look more like teenagers. It's safe to say that this is a body type and
physique that 90% of gentleman's Gazette readers aren't going to have. Even
someone like me who is on the taller side and definitely slim, isn't quite
athletic enough to fit this ideal modern body type. So then, the modern style is
all about the slim and narrow but, where did this come from?
In our video covering the History of the Suit in 22 minutes, we talked about the
Mod fashions of the 1950s and 60s and indeed, these looks are still influencing
modern style today. The typical Mod suit was slim fitting with narrow lapels
and was often worn with similarly narrow ties. It featured slim flat-fronted
trousers that had narrow leg openings. As an example of this style, you can take a
look at some of the suits worn by members of the Rat Pack in movies that
they made in the late 50s and early 60s. As the 60s progressed, these mod suits
got even slimmer and the pants also got shorter and more tapered meaning that
you wouldn't see a break over the shoe. Overall, the history of men's fashion can
be characterized by actions and reactions. So, you'll see things like
lapels getting wider or narrower overtime and cuts being more
baggy or more slim. The mod style then was a reaction against the more full
cuts of earlier generations which were coming to be seen as old fashioned. But
by the 1980s and 90s, everything was suddenly looser and more full cut again
as a reaction to the slimmer styles that were now twenty years or so old. Then, in
the 2000s, things flipped once again and we've been in the slim fit camp up to
the present day. For examples of this, you can look at the current retail giant
suit supply and for an extreme example, the work of American fashion designer
Tom Brown. So it's established that modern suits are very slim cut and
therefore don't work ideally for many men. But even if you're not wearing a
full suit -- just a dress shirt and trousers, you might still experience some
of these same fit problems. To illustrate this principle, let's start with shirts.
Traditionally, men's dress shirts were much more full fitting allowing for a
greater range of motion if you wanted to do something like raise your arms.
Because shirts were considered an undergarment in previous decades and
thus wouldn't be seen unless underneath a jacket or other outer layer, this
fuller fit wouldn't be seen as sloppy. In the modern style however, slim fit is
definitely king and you'll even see some retailers marketing shirts with things
like extra slim fit or super slim fit. This will likely cause problems if you
have wider shoulders or any kind of a belly however. Unless your whole torso is
uniformly thin, you're probably going to experience some pulling of the shirt
fabric across your chest. This will detract from a clean and
uniform look when you're standing up and will be especially apparent if you're
wearing a shirt with a pattern like stripes. Rather than being straight up
and down, the stripes are going to be crooked and broken. Because of this, many
modern shirts will have spandex or elastane added into the weave to
allow a bit more stretch of the fabric. However, this will likely mean that the
longevity of the shirt is lower over time and you might find fewer options
from any one retailer. And while you'll experience some minor issues while
standing, these will likely be further compounded when you're sitting. The
placket, which is where the shirts buttons are, could even gap in addition
to folding and creasing. This will make the front of the shirt look like an
accordion and even worse it could expose your undershirt or bare skin through
these gaps. Imagine being in a business meeting or on a first date and having
your navel exposed through one of these shirt gaps. Definitely not a professional
or good look. You could try to cover up some of this gapping and creasing with a
necktie of course or you could just wear a shirt with a bit more room so that the
gapping wouldn't happen in the first place. On that note, for our comprehensive
guide on how a dress shirt should fit, take a look at this video here. Next,
let's move on to trousers. As we said before, the Mod style of the 50s and
60s was characterized by thin tapered and flat-fronted trousers with narrow
leg openings. Many of today's trouser offerings are similar and again they're
not going to be flattering to all body types. For example, if you've got larger
thighs either from working out cycling or just due to genetics, modern slim fit
pants might not work for you. For one thing, they're going to look unsightly,
wrinkling and bunching and will make your legs look a bit like sausage
casings and they might also be uncomfortable. What's more, the seams
could even tear if subjected to enough pressure. Similarly, if you're carrying
any excess weight in your midsection, flat-fronted pants might not be your
best option. You could verticalize your look a
little bit more and therefore slim yourself down visually by trying pleated
pants. Pleats have a bad reputation today because of the baggy pleated
styles of the 1980s and 90s but these are extreme outlier examples.
Today's pleated styles are more moderate overall and of course, remember that
pleated pants are a staple of men's fashion going as far back as the Golden
Age of the 1930s and 40s and seen on Hollywood icons like Clark Gable and
Cary Grant. In addition to emphasizing your vertical line, pleats will also give
you a bit more room in the trouser and thus, more comfort especially when
sitting. However, while you can certainly find
pleated pants today, they're not going to be standard in most modern styles. Your
typical modern cut also tends to have a lower rise. This is the distance from the
crotch of the trouser to the top of the waistband. Essentially, the rise measures
how far up your waist the pants will sit. A low rise is associated again with that
slim teenage build but it's definitely not going to work for everyone.
Especially again, if you've got weight in your midsection, this low rise will
probably cause a bit of a muffin top and will make your tucked-in shirts look
especially unsightly. As is the case with pleats, a higher rise that sits closer to
your natural waist essentially in line with your navel can make you more
comfortable and give you a more flattering look. Classic style dictates
that you not show any exposed shirt between the bottom of your necktie and
your waistband when you're standing and your jacket is buttoned. As a bonus here,
wearing trousers with a higher rise will ensure that this dreaded triangle of
shirt fabric won't be seen. Additionally here, one thing that's often overlooked
in today's Styles, is the relatively narrow leg opening of many pairs of
pants. If you have a fairly large shoe size, a narrow leg opening is going to
look off proportionally and might even make your feet look clownish. A larger
leg opening of roughly seven and a half to eight and a half inches will look
more proportional with large shoe sizes. Last but not least today then,
let's touch on modern jacket styles including suit jackets, blazers, and sport
coats. In jackets marketed as fashionable today, you're often going to find a fit
that is exceptionally close to the body, very narrow lapels, a higher buttoning
point and a shorter length overall. While these design features can look good on
some, they're definitely not for everyone. Narrow lapels often accompanied by a
similarly skinny-tie, are ideally meant for tall and thin men. The narrowness
will make the wearer's chest seem broader because there's more space
between the lapel and the shoulder. This is why narrow lapels look fine on the
boyish models who are often wearing them but if you've got a naturally broader
chest already, narrow lapels will probably look out of proportion. In
general then, narrower lapels are going to look better for a narrower chest and
broader lapels for a broader chest. Modern jackets are also known for being
shorter in length overall than more traditional styles. A traditional jacket
is supposed to cover your seat or rear end when you're standing. However, modern
jackets are often going to be cut shorter leaving more of the seat exposed.
Overall, the bottom of a jacket is where your body is divided in two and thus,
these modern jacket styles will often leave your torso looking shorter and
your legs longer. This, in and of itself, wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing as
higher rise trousers are also designed to lengthen the leg line. However, because
modern trousers as we've already discussed, typically have a lower rise
that paired with a shorter jacket style can often leave things looking a bit
awkward over all around your midsection. If you do have a body type that's
characterized by shorter legs and a longer torso, a slightly shorter jacket
might work for you. However, still trying to follow the baseline of having the
jacket cover your seat is going to look good on most men. Finally here, the
buttoning point on a jacket is where the waist button is positioned. This is the
top button that you're supposed to button when standing. It might not always
be the top button on the jacket itself, but it's the one that is supposed to be
buttoned. These days, the buttoning point on many
jackets has been migrating higher and higher on the chest making the upper
torso look shorter and wider. This is why it's often modeled by tall thin men
because it will help their shoulders to look a bit broader. This high buttoning
point, in other words, is working to balance out the lean build of these
models. However again, if you do already have a naturally broader chest or larger
build having a jacket with a lower buttoning point closer to the natural
waist will probably work better for you. In conclusion then, be careful when
you're buying men's wear in modern and or trendy styles. Remember that the
purpose of a garment is to flatter and accentuate your natural proportions and
give you a more ideal visual silhouette overall. Therefore, if you're really going
to be able to pull off modern and trendy styles well, you'll probably need the
body type that suits these kinds of garments best. You'll need to be tall,
thin, and ideally youthful. Even if you are in the small percentage of the
general population for whom these styles would work however, you might not want to
wear them. Why is this? Well after all, they are still trends at the end of the
day and trends will eventually go out of style.
Therefore what we would suggest, both for men who do fit this ideal modern body
type and for the many men who don't, is to lean on a more classic style; the one
that we discuss here most often at the Gentleman's Gazette. If you can
incorporate these timeless style hallmarks into your looks, you won't be
immediately dated by the kinds of garments you're wearing and we'll have a
more timeless overall look. So, while modern styles may have their ideal
target customers, a classic style is likely going to be more timeless and
more comfortable for the vast majority of men. In these cases then, your choice
should be clear. In today's video, I'm wearing an ensemble that is a bit more
modern in style but definitely still has some classic influences. It's not
completely in either camp. My charcoal gray suit has just a bit of pattern and
texture in its weave and it does have some more modern features like a
slightly closer fit and narrower lapels. However, neither of these features are at
extremes. Similarly, my knit tie which is from Fort Belvedere and in beige and red
silk, is a bit on the narrower side to complement the lapels but again, not at
an extreme. Also from Fort Belvedere today are my shadow striped socks in
gray and burgundy and my belt which is part of our new Fort Belvedere belt
system. The belt itself is in Bordeaux burgundy calf leather and the buckle is
silver-plated brass in the model we're calling the Jasper. Any belt and any
buckle can be exchanged in this system leading to maximum versatility in your
outfits. The belt complements my shoes which are similarly burgundy colored cap
toe Oxford and my pocket square is a vintage model with some orange and pink
tones that compliment my pink shirt and the red accents in my outfit. One final
Fort Belvedere accessory today, are my cufflinks which are platinum plated
sterling silver eagle claw models featuring red carnelian as the stone. You
can find all of the Fort Belvedere accessories that I'm wearing today
including the cufflinks, socks, tie, and belt and buckle in the
Fort Belvedere shop here.