5 Essentials of the Accidental Minimalist
Nobody aspires to do the minimum. To just get by is hardly a worthy goal. But when it comes to getting dressed, that’s the way a lot of guys think.
Too many guys “have to wear a suit to work” when they should want to look professional and well-put together in a suit. Too many guys are wondering whether they can “get away with” outfits for a wedding or some other event, instead of aiming to look confident and at ease in a suit. We call these guys accidental minimalists. They’re not choosing minimalist style out of a desire to look ultra-modern and chic, they’re just guys who use minimalist style to simplify getting dressed for the two or three times a year they put on a suit.
If you’re a guy who doesn’t wear a suit to work everyday, but wears one to the occasional wedding or job interview or otherwise important event: here’s the most bare bones system for getting dressed up a guy could ask for. No shirt and tie matching necessary, no wondering “am I wearing the right color with this.” No hard decisions at all. Stock your closet as follows and you will not just “get away with” your suit and tie look, you’ll crush it.
What to look for:
- Be sure to nail the fit.
- Keep the jacket simple (straight, flap pockets, notch lapels).
- Get the pants with a flat front without cuffs for a streamlined look that never goes out of style.
What to look for:
- As with the suit, fit is the most important feature. If off the rack shirts fit you like tents, it’s time to look for a custom alternative.
- No button downs. Button down shirts, contrary to many people’s beliefs, are not shirts that button down the front (those are button front shirts) but shirts with a collar that is buttoned down. This New England preppie look might be okay with a Navy blazer, khaki chinos and a pair of bass loafers, but should be avoided when you suit up.
What to look for:
- Keep it slim. A super wide, 80s looking tie is a surefire way to kill this look. Keep it under three inches wide at the widest point.
- But not too slim. On the flip side, a sub-two inch wide strip of runway down the front of your shirt screams “fashion victim.”
What to look for:
- A silk square works, but we really love cotton and linen for their ability to hold their shape when folded in a square fold.
What to look for:
- Skip the brogues. Minimal means unadorned. Perforations, like those found on brogues add unnecessary detail and should be kept to a minimum to round out this look.
ODDS & ENDS:
The Accidental Minimalist Approach to Time & Money:
An everyday watch can double as a more formal watch by switching to a black leather strap. Since all Martenero watches come with two bands (one leather and one NATO strap), you’re covered.
Most wallets are full of pockets and slots. Minimal means only carrying the bare essentials, like cash and cards. Try one of these clips from Men in Cities for a day and you’ll wonder why you’ve been walking around with your life story in your pocket all these years.
The five essentials above are just a start. You can add to this foundation with any number of variations on the black and white theme. Or, you can slowly add a touch of color with colored ties, pocket squares and shirts. With these five essentials as your jumping off point, no matter how far you take things, you’ll always have a stylish minimalist outfit waiting for you in your closet.
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I like the money-clip wallet from the leather guy in Milwaukee (can’t recall his name), been using it for several years now, it’s very slim and holds the bills easily. Leather coin purse for change.
Concur with charcoal being most flexible, easier to manage than navy.
I never wear a wristwatch, usually have a nice old pocketwatch on a chain. Much more elegant, dresses up a three piece suit or odd vest, and is a great conversation starter (especially when someone asks the time and I pull it out). If not using a vest, I carry it in my pants interior pocket that I think is made just for pocketwatches, pretty easy to reach if wearing braces rather than a belt.
To concur with your points….
Holding bills easily is essential.
Gray all the way.
It sounds like you’ve got some serious old-school cool. Maybe you’ll enjoy this story too.
I’ve never used a money clip or credit card clip. I think I can find it useful but something bothers me, how do you deal with change, and by change, I mean coins. If you have a solution for that, I’ll definitely go buy them so I can walk much lighter than when I carry my wallet !
Unless you’re carrying around change in your wallet (which we would advise against), you’ve probably been figuring out what to do with your change for a while now. So solution #1 is just to keep doing what you’re doing.
Solution #2, carry no change. There’s a reason why places keep tip jars by the register. Cashiers know that some people would rather drop their change in the jar than in their pockets.
Solution #3, carry just one coin, a quarter, which you go around flipping like a wiseguy. Maybe you can even stand on a street corner, leaning on a building with one foot pressed against the wall, flipping that coin and adopt a gangster nickname like Legs. Pretty cool, but not real practical.
Thanks for the tips BL 🙂
I’ve been trying to find solutions to the bulky wallet issue for a long time. I’ve got a slim wallet now without extra card flap (carrying only 4-5 cards now) and a smaller coins slot, but it’s still about an inch thick, mostly due to coins. Problem is: in EU and Switzerland (where I live now), the smallest bills are 5 euros ($6) and 10 francs ($10), so you’d rather not say “keep the change”. Besides, the small coin slot forces me to take everything out in order to find the right coins (there are 7 different coins in Swiss, 8 in EU), and takes much longer at the cash register. Meanwhile, I come across many places in Switzerland where they don’t accept debit/credit cards for small purchases. Any ideas/suggestions apart from emigration?
We definitely advise AGAINST emigration. Especially during ski season!
This may be a case for a two-part system. You could carry bills in your slim wallet and coins in your pockets. Not ideal, we know, but it’s a step. Either that or you’ll just have to be a high roller and only go around with 5 Euros bills!
My humble thoughts:
Navy is still a good choice for guys who don’t want to think. While there is color, the Navy suit standard has created a plethora of tie options that are literally made to match a Navy suit. Finding them is not hard. In fact, it can be harder to find ties matching charcoal, unless you stick with the grey on grey you suggest.
Minimal is the way to go, and not just because it can be easier (which I disagree with for the same reasons that a short letter is harder to write than a long one). A suit should compliment the man, not overshadow him. Not that I shun cufflinks and the like, but mine don’t broadcast Mickey Mouse, the Playboy Bunny, or the NY Giants’ logo (though I love the Giants). The proper function of the suit is precisely why you are absolutely correct that fit is paramount. Proper fit flatters the man, not the suit. Also, minimalism is sure to avoid the suit that screams, “LOOK AT ME!” Accepting that some will disagree and that there is a season and occasion for most everything, I never want someone to remember my dandy pocket square, multicolored laces, or shirt and tie combo. I want them to remember me.
Don’t get us wrong, Nathaniel, we love a good navy suit and find them extremely versatile, but in the spirit of the barest of bare bones wardrobe, we wanted to “desaturate” the look.
You’re spekaing our language when it comes to fit. When a suit fits you’re half way to well-dressed already. When your suit fits it puts the emphasis on how good you look, not your loudest accessories.