A sports jacket or blazer is one of the most useful wardrobe items a guy can own, and having a few on hand is always welcome. How to wear one with style? Consider the following five pillars of sport jacket wisdom:-- Sleeve-length: The sleeves of your jacket should just hit your wrist, and allow for and about a half an inch of shirt cuff to show.
-- Buttons: On a traditional three-button jacket, button the middle button, and the top one if you really want to be “buttoned-up.” On a stylish two-button jacket, never button the bottom button, just the top one. On a one-button jacket, there’s pretty much only one way to go.
-- Pockets: Now hear this – your pockets are not a brief case. Pockets are for stashing small, lightweight items only, i.e., business cards, a wallet, cell phone and perhaps a mint or two. To maintain the shape of your jacket pockets and prevent stretching them out permanently, carry your barbells, rolls of quarters, snacks, work materials and whatever else in a stylish messenger bag, leather tote or briefcase.
-- The fit: It all starts from the shoulders – the jacket needs to fit the shoulders not extend beyond them like a line-backer. For example, if the jacket is too wide for your shoulders, you’ll have extra fabric flapping down the arms and across your back. If the jacket is too narrow, you’ll have trouble moving your shoulders forward, and you’ll see be ripples between the shoulder blades.
Our suggestion? Start small and work your way up – that is, try on a few jackets that are a size or two smaller than you might normally try and keep moving up till you find one that fits smoothly across your back.
-- No pushing: No matter how hot it is in your office, resist the urge to push the sleeves up as this will, over time, stretch out the fabric and help wreck the lines of the jacket. Add to that more few wrinkles and creases and before you know it, you’re a walking fashion emergency.
Our advice? Keep the sleeves down, where its’ maker intended, or take the jacket off and hang it up.
