Are you familiar with the style terms in men’s fashion?
In case you aren’t caught up on the major terms, we created this handy men’s style cheat sheet. Learning about styling ideas and designers is what keeps the fashion wheel spinning, making for fresh outfits on your Instagram feeds. So, go ahead, read on to brush up on your fashion style terms.
1. AVIATORS are originally developed for military pilots, hence the name. Aviators are a style of sunglasses with a thin, wire frame and large, teardrop-shaped lenses. Worn slavishly since the 1960s, the classic eyewear style have seen their popularity soar due to continued celebrity use and films such as Top Gun.
2. JACK PURCELLS were created when B.F. Goodrich called Jack Purcell in to design a new court-ready sneaker, and Purcell went the way of the times… conservative, understated. His sneaker placed performance first, utilizing Goodrich’s advanced rubber to create a sole that could hug the surface of the court, finished off with a light canvas body that allowed the shoe to breathe. Purcell wasn’t all about minimalism though, he did throw in the shoe’s trademark “smile” on the toe cap for good measure.
3. MA-1 BOMBER JACKET is a short, zip-front jacket traditionally made of leather with an elasticated waistband and cuffs. It was created in the late 1940s, when the Air Force stepped into the modern era of aerial combat with the introduction of jet fighter planes.
4. PINSTRIPES are narrow, crisp lines running in parallel, found in cloth often used for suiting. Originally called a coach line, the pattern is evenly woven into fabric generally spaced one half to one inch apart were about as flamboyant as it got in the ’20s, which made it a natural favorite for mobsters and rum-runners during the Prohibition Era.
5. PANAMA HAT is a wide-brimmed hat made from straw-like material and was an Ecuadorian secret until the sixteenth century when Conquistadors, on their way to the mythical El Dorado, began wearing them.
6. RUGBY SHIRT is a top of a kind worn by rugby players, having a buttoned collar and typically long-sleeved with broad stripes. It’s made from thick cotton that would stand tough (and not rip) on the wrong end of a scrum — the ideal shirt for sports.
7. SAFARI JACKET, a belted lightweight jacket, typically having short sleeves and four patch pockets. It is a cross between a shooting jacket and a military field jacket, perfectly suited for the escalating temperatures of the African countryside.
8. VARSITY JACKET is traditionally worn by high school and college students in the United States to represent school and team pride as well as to display personal awards earned in athletics, academics or activities. This style of jacket was first created when the Harvard Baseball team decided to take their uniforms and sew giant “H”‘s onto the center of them, thus creating the “letterman jacket.”
9. MODERN-DAY BROGUES are abbreviated, decorative dots that give a shoe a nice bit of personality. Brogues were never meant for the boardroom. Today, they’re have become a tasteful way to show some personality with your footwear without veering towards the dangerously gaudy. Just as suitable for a business meeting when paired with a gray suit as for the weekend when worn with jeans.
10. BUTTON-DOWN COLLAR SHIRT is one of those all-important pieces that remain a cornerstone of American style and still the backbone of any self respecting man’s wardrobe, perfect for everything from a lazy Saturday brunch to that big board meeting.
READ: PART 2
By: ASK THE BLACKRHINO (@AskTheBlackrhino)
CitizenTimePH 