You’ve built your wardrobe on the basics of how to look good. You’ve got that versatile plain navy suit for work and semi-formal occasions. You own a dark grey suit that pairs with any colour in your wardrobe, and that mid-blue or light grey suit that’s marked only by its difference to the first two. So how do you stand out? How does a monotone-suit wearer stand out in the sea of monotone suits?
Add some colour!
According to Earl Klapstein, owner of Eddie’s Men’s Wear, adding some colour is one way for a man to get noticed. He practices what he preaches, as he can’t even begin our interview until he’s slipped into his fine blue jacket, which is nicely accented with a yellow tie and a plaid pattern on his shirt. “It’s a nice way to look a little better, look a little nicer, get noticed a little bit more. Eyes are going to gravitate towards it — do you want to be noticed or don’t you?” Pull that pink shirt or purple tie out from the back of your closet and wear it to the office.
Too yellow-bellied to wear bright colours? Not to fear, Klapstein says that’s okay too: “You have to look in front of the mirror with it and say, ‘Does this work or doesn’t it?’ And if you’re thinking, ‘Well gee, it kind of does, it kind of doesn’t — that really means it doesn’t.” Your confidence in a piece of clothing stems directly from how comfortable you are wearing it. “If you’re comfortable wearing it, you’re going to pull it off.”
But that doesn’t mean you can fill your closet with fifty comfy shades of grey so that you look like you stepped out of a Vaudeville film. If you won’t trade in your mild style for a yellow or orange shirt, Klapstein suggests you buy the blue one that’s got a little bit of orange or yellow in it. “You’re comfortable, but stretch the boundaries a little bit — then you’ll keep raising the bar.” One way to do so is with an on-trend sports coat, which Klapstein notes are coming out in exciting new styles and varieties this year. “They’re starting to look more like sports coats,” says Klapstein. “There’s checks, there’s plaid, there’s tweedy, there’s suede elbow patches — vibrant coats with some colour and detail in the pattern that’s fun to play with.”
On top of the colours in your wardrobe, you need to focus on the quality of each piece. It can be difficult to judge the quality of clothes just by looking at them because most companies still use highquality fabrics, as they’re easy to produce, says Klapstein. Where the problem arises is in the make of the clothing — how it’s stitched together — which is something you can feel between your fingers.
For instance, socks are machine knit in tubes, and the top and the bottom are left open so you can remove the sock from the tube. The difference between a well-made sock and poorly made one resides in the next step: whether or not the heal and the toe of the sock are hand-stitched or machine stitched together. “In good sock manufacturing,” says Klapstein, “they actually have people sit there and hand-link these seams together.” If you feel a bump in the toe of the sock, you know it’s been put together with less care by a machine. And that can affect the comfort: “A lot of guys will complain that ‘Geez, my dress shoes aren’t comfortable.’ And a lot of times it can be something as little as this toe seam made on a machine that’s bugging them.”
Not everything is so easy to feel, though, as a clothing maker may try to save on thread by cutting back stitches from 28 per inch to 18 per inch. “They’re saving on thread,” says Klapstein, “but the seams are a little bit looser.” But not everyone can put in the effort to count the stitches in the lining of their jacket — that’s where research into manufacturers and retailers becomes important. “You have to educate yourself,” says Klapstein. “Who is making the garment? Where it is coming from?” Where’s the best place to receive that education? In a menswear store Klapstein says, “We make sure the manufacturer we’re representing does their absolute utmost to keep the quality of the garment to the highest standard possible so it’s raising the bar.”
If all this information on quality and fashion makes you want to hide in your closet, Eddie’s Men’s Wear can hold your hand and help you with more than education. The store provides a convenient service in which they’ll come to your home and help you decide what in your closet needs to be thrown out, what has life left in it, and how to pair those latter pieces together. The store can’t dress a man every day, but “it gives him a road map,” says Klapstein.
Beyond trends, it’s important to remember the personal and monetary value that every piece of clothing should have. “When you’re buying any kind of suit,” says Klapstein, “and putting money into investing in a good one, you want it to have a lifespan.” On your next trip to a clothing store, find the high quality articles you love, and your confidence is sure to last as long as your clothing.
Fitting Accessories
Add some easy style to your wardrobe
Shoes: Traditional types of footwear are new and fashionable again, as Klapstein describes them: “shoes that grandpa wore.” Look for a quality pair of brogues or wingtips.
Socks: Here’s where you can have a lot of fun with all the colours and patterns available today. The sky’s the limit when it comes to what socks you wear, except for one rule from Klapstein: “White socks don’t go with any dress wear.”
Gloves: When in your overcoat, wear a nice pair of dress gloves — instead of your bulky, down-filled mitts — to add some sleekness to your style.
Ties: “Years ago they predicted the demise of the tie as soon as casual Friday happened,” says Klapstein. But the rumours of its death have been greatly exaggerated. Bow ties can add a lot of character to your outfit, and look even better when you tie them yourself — so take the time to learn.
