Gentlemanly Tips from the Gentlemen of Falling Creek: Part 3

Trends in clothing are like jokes. They can become humorless and predictable a week after everyone knows about it. They can also be inappropriate under certain circumstances. That’s why it’s best to find the right attire that will fit into any occasion so you never show up to a Sunday social in your best frock coat when everyone else is sporting polo and shorts.

For those of you unfamiliar in this segment, the Gentlemanly Tips from the Gentlemen of Falling Creek (or GTFTGFC for short) is gentleman of camp relaying tips of their gentlemanliness to other gentleman of Falling Creek so that we can all be more gently and, of course, more manly. So, drag out your old jazz vinyls and crank your players to soft, because today we shall discuss the tricks and pitfalls in the wild world of men’s fashion.

Off the Cuff-link: Flying by the Seat of Your Pants

One of the biggest misconceptions when it comes to the right attire is price tag. A man needs not to worry about looking cheap if he happened to buy his clothes that way. What makes a difference in appearance is not brand, but cleanliness. Even if he’s wearing his t-shirt and shorts to a pick-up game of racquetball or a quick 18 holes, if he takes the right approaches to keeping them neat and unwrinkled, he can still look like a million bucks.

When said gentleman wishes to attend church, or an impromptu business meeting he has called to discuss finance, he would do well to make sure his shirt tale is tucked in. Nothing looks sloppier than shirt tales flopping around like a Doberman with uncropped ears.

In much the same way, he should keep his shirt tucked in and his shorts pulled up. He needn’t show off what color boxer shorts he happened to go with that day. No one wants to know. And no one is impressed by his audacity.

You are unlikely to encounter multiple occasions where you find the need to dress to the 9’s. True, if you are lucky enough to go to 3 balls, 2 galas, or 7 dinner parties in a week; you may want to invest in a suit. But you can get more mileage out of investing in 1 navy blue blazer that you can break out when the need arises. You could wear a blazer with anything from a button-up to a Sesame Street Shirt (if you work in the arts). It covers the gamut of funerals to bar mitzvahs. You could even wear it around the house if you want to be warm but not hot.

Rest assured, if it is before 5 o’clock, a black tie is not necessary… Unless of course you’re at your own wedding.

One last note on what you may put on besides fancy attire for such occasions, like cologne, or an entire can of AXE body spray. If anyone happens to compliment you on what scent you chose to cloak yourself with that night, you should not take it as such. Instead you should make a mental note you wore too much and should ease up next time; perhaps for a shower instead.