Off the Cuff - Carson Kressley [51]
The best rule of thumb I can give you is that it’s always better to be overdressed than underdressed. If you’re not sure if the event requires a tie, bring one with you and scope out the scene. You can always put the tie on if it’s required, or leave it in your pocket, bag, or glove compartment if it’s not. Not having a tie in a situation where one is called for is bad news. It’s like showing up at a black tie wedding in a suit or at a job interview in sweatpants.
If you’re on a date or you’re proposing to someone, you want to show you care.
Make an effort. If you’re going to church, dress up a little. It’s God’s house, people. If you’re a guest at a wedding, it’s about respecting someone’s special day. If I may paraphrase Sergio Valente, how you look on the outside tells the world how you feel on the inside.
Work Situations
Job interviews are a fashion no-brainer, people. You wear a suit to a job interview unless you’re interviewing with the department of sanitation. No shame in that game, by the way, but you just won’t need a suit. And as we learned in chapter five, unless you’re something like the Nell character from the Jodie Foster movie, you will own one good quality suit for just such an occasion.
When it comes to the workplace, my good friend Ted Allen—one of my peeps—says you always want to dress for the job that you want, not the job you have. Dressing below your job rank will only make people in your human resources department question themselves: “Hmmm. Look at those pleated khakis and that Muppets tie. Is Bob really CEO material? Maybe he’d be better in the mailroom.”
Now, if you work in the kind of environment where you would get laughed at for wearing a suit, that doesn’t mean you should come in wearing gym clothes for that big presentation. There is such a thing as high-quality casual clothing. How about a V-neck merino sweater, a crisp white shirt, flat-front dress trousers, a beautiful belt, and a great looking watch? People will think, “He looks great and has really taken the time to prepare for this.” Well-constructed garments don’t have to look dressy to look sophisticated. Call it casual power dressing.
Black Tie/Formal Wear
Nothing strikes as much fear into the average guy’s heart as being invited to a black tie event. Well, nothing except impotence, that is. Relax. Not many of us have the opportunity to wear formal wear very often. It’s really just for very special occasions. Unless you’re a debutante (in which case I’m jealous) or an executive at a Fortune 500 company, your social calendar is unlikely to be chock-full of black tie events. But the occasional black tie wedding or benefit does fall into many men’s lives, so you might as well be prepared.
The funny thing is that formal wear is probably the least frightening of all fashion situations because you really don’t have too many choices or options. It’s almost like a uniform. It’s as easy as black and white. Here, more than anywhere, I urge you to remember: Keep it simple, sister. If you are not someone who needs more than one formal outfit, buy yourself one classic black tuxedo with a peaked lapel jacket. Look no further. Nothing makes you look more like a movie star.
Notice how I said buy yourself a tuxedo, not rent yourself a tuxedo? I know, you’re frightened. You’re lost. But a rented tuxedo is the worst thing I can think of other than nuclear holocaust. That thing is caked in DNA, trust me. Do you know how many proms it’s been to? It’s a vessel, a conduit if you will, for the aromas of all former wearers. I suggest you visit a discount clothier and drop the $500 to $1000 for a quality tuxedo instead. Even if you go to only five formal events in your entire lifetime, it will have