The 10 Wardrobe Must-Haves for Men

There is much debate on which items are the "classic" staples for a man's wardrobe. After reviewing hundreds of publications and web sites and searching through my personal memory bank, I've come up with the items that should form the foundation of any man's closet. I use myself as a guide since I can relate to the fashion fears and challenges of most men. The things that my dad taught me proved to be the best fashion advice I've ever heard and is what I'd like to share with you.

After graduating from college and finally landing a job, my dad said it was time to develop a real wardrobe and leave the prep school/college attire behind. We took a drive to Syms in Rockville and began my rite of passage. In the middle of Sym's my dad looked me in the eye and, while rubbing his hand in a circular motion over his chest (like rubbing his belly), said "as long as a man keeps his chest area interesting, most people will think he has a much larger wardrobe than he actually does." With that in mind we set out to keep my chest area interesting.





We went to the men's department of Syms and got measured. Guys, spend the time and really get professionally measured. Neck, arms, chest/back, waist, inseam and outseam. Only then will you know what your real business attire sizes are. We then selected 3 or 4 white shirts, 3 or 4 blue shirts, a navy blue suit, a navy blue blazer, a black blazer, a pair of nice khaki colored dress slacks (NOT to be confused with khakis), a pair or black oxfords, a pair of brown oxfords, 4 or 5 ties and a bunch of black and brown socks. That's it! For less than $1,500 we bought an entire business wardrobe. Keep in mind that some guys spend that on ONE suit. Unless you can afford it, there is really no need to do that. The most expensive item we purchased was the pair of black Allen-Edmonds shoes. All of the other items were very inexpensive. The navy blue Pierre Cardin suit (yes, Pierre Cardin) was only $150.

We kept it nice and simple and shopped at Syms where we saved thousands of dollars. You know what, with only one suit and two blazers, everyone in my office was fooled! Every week my co-workers commented on how nicely I dressed. They couldn't believe that week after week I continued to pull new items out of my closet. Little did they know that every week I was washing (not dry cleaning) my dress shirts and ironing them myself -- this was well before I could afford weekly dry cleaning. By mixing and matching my white and blue shirts (each with a different collar style) with my 4 or 5 ties, no one knew that I was wearing the same things week after week.

With that being said, here is my list of must-have items and why you need them in your closet:



1. Crisp white dress shirt
The white dress shirt and the navy suit run hand-in-hand as the best items in a man's wardrobe. They can be dressed up or dressed down and move easily from day to night. I think the most important thing to look for in a dress shirt is the color. I absolutely detest button-down collars when worn with ties in the workplace. I know a lot of you only have button-down collar shirts, but I implore you to move past them. There is nothing that screams prep school social function more than the button-down collar. There is simply no need for it. A nice straight point collar (with the collar stays) is all you need. Simple, classy, timeless, adult. We can talk about types of fabric later.



2. Navy blue suit
The navy suit is appropriate in the work place and almost every social occasion you will attend (excluding black tie events where you should wear, uh black ties -- preferably accompanied with a nice tuxedo... purchased, not rented). Weddings, interviews, funerals and happy hours all are perfect places for your nice blue suit.



3. Black leather belt
I like my black leather belts with silver buckles since they coordinate with most other accessories. Please, please, don't wear overly worn or frayed belts. A quick trip to Target or Wal-Mart can inexpensively solve your wardrobe malfunctions. You don't need to run to Prada for a $300 leather belt to look nice, polished and up-to-date.



4. Pair of black lace up dress shoes
Guys, please ditch the tired, worn shoes with the rubber soles. Invest in a nice pair of black oxfords. Again, you don't have to break the bank. I often find nice pairs of shoes at discount stores like Sym's, right here in the DC metro area. Often you can find shoes that normally cost $300 priced at $100 or below. Black leather shoes with black leather soles say adult, rather than recent college grad or fashion misfit. You can look at a simple cap toe or wing tip, yes wing tip! They're not your grand dad's shoe anymore. Also, please throw out the ugly shoes with the tassles. There is a time and place for tassles and we can discuss how and when to break them out.



5. Black socks
Do I really need to tell you why you should have black socks?



6. Black leather wallet
The black leather wallet says you realize you're an adult. You never know when you'll have to take your wallet out in front of others so make sure you've got a presentable wallet with you. No velcro please! Also, do you really need to carry 3 inches worth of store credit and affinity cards with you? Whittle your collection down to the essentials: license, primary credit card, ATM card and one or two others. That's it! Everything else can go in another wallet you can leave in your car or briefcase or... your man bag! I've got one and there's nothing wrong with it.



7. Overcoat and/or trench coat
Opt for a simple black overcoat or nice classic khaki colored trench coat, like the one Burberry's made popular. When selecting your overcoat or trench coat, go one step above your suit size so you can make sure it fits over your suit or blazer. Anyone can wear a trench coat and most styles can be worn year-round.



8. A classic tie
This is a touchy subject and you may need to seek advice when selecting a tie. In general, you should stay away from theme ties. One simple striped tie (with no more than 3 colors) is good. Make sure it matches a large number of items in your wardrobe. You may want to stick with blues, reds and greens when first assembling your tie arsenal. When first putting my wardrobe together I bought 5 ties at Sym's. Guess what? By selecting classic patterns I was able to keep those ties in my closet for over 10 years. That's right, the same 5 ties for almost 10 years wearing them 5 days a week.



9. Light blue dress shirt
Similar to the white dress shirt, the blue dress shirt adds a little spice to your wardrobe and changes things up a bit. It blends nicely with all the basic colors needed in a man's wardrobe like navy, beige (khaki/tan), brown, and all shades of grey. Also, as with the white dress shirt, a straight or spread color works the best.



10. Nice pair of jeans
And not your dad's jeans with the high-rise (aka as "mom jeans" -- they look horrible on women and even worse on men). There are now dozens of high quality jean manufacturers selling jeans for hundreds of dollars. Although I'm partial to some of those designers, like Chip & Pepper, Rock & Republic, Seven and True Religion, you don't have to spend big bucks to update your jean repetoire. Simply go to Target, yes TARGET, and look at Mossimo's jeans. Mossimo is a quality manufacturer, uses decent denim and has jeans in more updated cuts. I tend to like boot cut jeans, but some of the relaxed or straight leg jeans are nice too.

This list can be expanded and revised, but these are the staples that have proven to be timeless. Once you are equipped with these, you can make a few more steps to really set yourself apart from the pack.