Because learning to dress well is often a foreign and intimidating endeavor for a lot of men, most of us will start doing so by digging in and learning as many style “rules” as possible – and there are plenty of them. There are entire corners of the Internet dedicated to and built by men who will argue for or against specific rules until their dying breath.

And there’s some truth to it. Each man has individual characteristics of his build, coloring, and contrast that can be either accentuated or suppressed by following guidelines about colors, patterns, and fits that affect those characteristics. Hell, I break down all these rules for you in my Basic Consultations. Things like your shirt collar style, suit button stance, color saturation, the way your trousers are tailored, what kind of lapel you should wear, etc. all have real, measurable effects on a man’s appearance and are the basis from which these “rules” are derived.

The key is to remember that these are guidelines, not iron-clad rules. One of the beauties of men’s style is that it’s an art more than a science. It’s also a medium for us to express our personalities, our tastes, and even our geographic areas. Here’s an example from one of my friends, Dustin.

Dustin has a round face and technically should be wearing a shirt collar that is long and pointed. Instead, he’s gone to almost the opposite extreme by wearing a spread collar. According to the rules, this is less flattering because a spread collar accentuates the roundness of his cheeks, whereas a point collar would counter their shape and even out the overall appearance of his face.

But Dustin not only gets a pass wearing this type of collar, he makes it look good. He does so because he follows so many of the other principles of good style. His shirt and jacket fit the way they’re supposed to. The colors in the shirt provide a bit of contrast for his face and accentuate the blue of his eyes. His face is also narrowed out because of the thinness and vertical direction of the stripes on his shirt. By having an idea of and adhering to most of the guidelines, Dustin is able to fly in the face of a major rule and reflect his personality doing so.

The new company I work for has an appropriate motto for dressing well:

“As always, style rules are written in pencil, not ink. Play around with it, be daring, show some personality, and discover your own style.”

My process with this site is to give you an idea and understanding of the rules. The consultation aspect is helping you apply these rules to you as an individual and help you internalize them. However, the ultimate goal I have is to simply serve as a springboard for you to develop your own style, and part of that is knowing enough to tweak the guidelines.

Just like a musician can break the rules and create a masterpiece only after knowing things like the difference between a major and a minor scale, or the circle of fifths, a man is best able to create true style after learning the rules and then getting creative breaking them.

PS. I’m on Facebook and you damn well better Like it.

Last week I got a great email from a man named Vincent who’s a reader and a fan. On top of that, he’s an illustrator who is working on a couple of his own comic series.

He reached out to tell me thanks for the blog and also let me know he’d done an artistic redesign of my logo. I was both flattered and excited to see it and, when he sent it over, it certainly didn’t disappoint.

His comics involve some serious men’s style as well and he’s told me he’s just going to add more and more elements of a good wardrobe as he learns. It’s a little NSFW for language but worth checking out  – www.vincentnappi.com.

PS. I’m on Facebook and you damn well better Like it.

Whether you’re spending $12k on a completely bespoke, US-made suit or are picking up a two-piece from H&M for under a hundred bucks, you should consider wearing appropriate clothing when purchasing a new suit.

Let’s say you’re out shopping with your girl on a Saturday afternoon. Odds are you’re wearing something like jeans, a henley, and a decent pair of casual shoes. You walk into the store and decide to try on a couple of suits. After taking measurements you get the right size for your jacket and pants and throw them on. As you’re standing in front of the mirror you see your bare wrists poking out of your sleeves and decide they’re too short. The pants look a bit long against your chukkas so you ask the salesman to have them hemmed to the proper break.

These are all good things because you’ve developed an eye for style. You know what you’re looking for, what your body type is and what’s going to look good.

But here’s the problem. Your exposed wrists are actually where your dress shirt sleeves fall. By having the sleeves let out a bit you’re no longer going to be showing off any cuff and your jacket is going to look too big.

The opposite is going to happen with the pants. Your chukkas or sneakers are taller than your dress shoes and the ideal break against them leaves you with a lot of exposed ankle in your dress shoes. It’s great for fashion bloggers but this is a work suit and you don’t want to walk in to the office looking like you think you just got back from Fashion Week.

Collar gap, sleeve length, trouser break, jacket length, and a number of other things are all affected by the clothes you wear with your suits or sport coats. So the next time you’re out looking for a suit or getting fitted for something custom, wear the appropriate clothes and accessories. You’ll be dialed in.

PS. I am now selling ad space on the site. If you are interesting, please get in touch via the contact page and I can give you a break down of what the space is and its price.

PS. I am now selling ad space on the site. If you are interesting, please get in touch via the contact page and I can give you a break down of what the space is and its price.

I’m not a Catholic but I like the idea of participating in Lent (which starts tomorrow). If you are, please correct me if I err in my description but my understanding is that it is a time wherein Catholics “fast” for the 40 days before Easter in simulation of Christ’s fast for 40 days and 40 nights, after which he was tempted by Satan.

Thankfully Lent does not mean giving up food and water for 40 days, but it is a chance to sacrifice something we enjoy and practice the masculine quality of self-discipline,

I got a little soft over the holidays and have yet to get back to an ideal form so I’ll be giving up sugar for Lent.

So what does this have to do with a style blog?

Well, Lent is the perfect opportunity for men who are on the fence about certain style aspects to give up their prejudices and try something new. While it may be nowhere near the kind of sacrifice most people make and especially Christ’s fast – a bad, or even not-the-best clothing fast will be good for you.

Here are some examples.

Don’t wear a T-shirt until Easter

Rather than just wearing a shirt and tie to work, wear a blazer or a full suit every day as well

Get a more grown-up hair cut and try parting it for 40 days

Refuse to wear white socks

Never leave the house without a sport coat

Never leave the house in a baseball hat

Stop eating out and use the money to take your baggy shirts to the tailor

These are just a few ideas and it’s all going to boil down to each man’s sartorial weaknesses. Whatever your excuses are for not dressing one step better, give them up for Lent. When you get razzed about it by other guys at work, just tell them the reason and ask them what they’re sacrificing. Most won’t be doing anything and they’ll be impressed by a man who still believes in the principle of sacrifice – even if it’s sacrificing to improve your own life instead of someone else’s.

The cool thing is that after Easter, you may not want to go back to your previous clothing safety nets. I’m hoping to get my serious sweet tooth under control so I’ll be able to stay in better shape throughout the year. Who knows, maybe you’ll throw away those cross trainers and reward yourself with a good pair of bucks.

Let me know in the comments what you plan on giving up.

PS. I am now selling ad space on the site. If you are interesting, please get in touch via the contact page and I can give you a break down of what the space is and its price.