When it comes to dressing casual not much emphasis is put on pants. Well, that’s about to change. We’ve put together a handy little guide to incorporating your favorite slacks into dressed-down styles to give them more versatility. Here are 3 tips to turn your dress pants into everyday wearers.
Button Downs and Band/Stand Collars
Not all dress shirts are created equally. For instance, a standard white dress shirt should easily be paired with slacks or jeans. But have you noticed that sometimes, when dressing down slacks, some white dress shirts just feel off? There is one main reason for this: the collar. Most standard white dress shirts come with a standard point collar. These are made to be more business casual than casual, so when put into rotation with say, casual sneakers, the styles clash. To fix this, stick to “casual collars”. Casual collars like the button down – equipped with buttons on the point of the collar – and the band/stand collar work wonders to tie together more dressed down looks.
Choose the right footwear
Speaking of casual sneakers, they are a great way to dress down slacks. Combo them with dress tees and slacks that cuff around the ankle for a casual Friday vibe that can go from workday to after work drinks without skipping a beat. When trying to find casual sneakers, versatility is key. Clean lines are imperative for office attire, so we’d suggest solid white, black, blue, brown, and grey, as starter colors. Outside of the office, though, any sneaker is fair game. Play around with a few styles and choose the one that best suits you.
By the same token, going sockless with dress shoes like loafers, oxfords, and boaters is also a viable and stylish option.
Sweaters and Cardigans and Dress Tees
Button downs aside, there are many ways in which to dress down slacks by choosing between other shirt options. We are referring to sweaters, cardigans, and dress tees. Here are a few tips to incorporating each of these into your wardrobe.
Sweaters: Sweaters come in two main styles – V-neck and Crew neck. V-Neck sweaters are great for pairing with button downs whereas Crew necks can be worn with dress tees or a simple undershirt. Your sweater of choice should never show off the shirt worn under it unless, of course, the shirt worn under it is a collared one. But that wouldn’t really be dressing down, would it?
Cardigans: Cardigans are a great way to dress down dress pants. How casual the outfit gets is dependent on how casual the cardigan. Solid colors and fits that are more form fitting tend to work in office settings. Don’t be afraid to add cardigans with an aesthetic motif to casual situations where a little more heft (read: baggy) fits are welcome.
Dress Tees: Dress tees only have one hard rule that shouldn’t be ignored until you’re comfortable with the style – NO GRAPHICS. That’s it. Keep it simple. Chose solid-colored shirts that fit well and you’ll be ahead of the game.
At Original Stitch we offer a fully customizable collection of premium quality dress shirt, suit blazer, and pant fabrics. Use them to create a wardrobe that is completely unique to YOU. Our high-quality yarns are hand-selected from – and tailored in – Japan to be extra resistant to wear and tear while maintaining a softer feel than their off-the-rack counterparts.
