Sartorial Picks

Tops

Tops are the category where most men own the most pieces and think about them the least which is an interesting combination that produces a lot of wardrobes full of things that technically work but don't really do anything particularly well. We've been guilty of this ourselves. Accumulating t-shirts and shirts and jumpers without much strategy and then standing in front of a full wardrobe feeling like there's nothing to wear because nothing quite goes with anything else in a way that feels intentional. What we've learned over the years is that a smaller number of better pieces that work together is dramatically more useful than a large number of average ones that don't connect. Getting your core tops sorted in terms of quality fit and colour is the work that makes the rest of your wardrobe function better because everything else you wear is built around what's closest to your body.

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Cardigans

The cardigan spent a while in a slightly uncertain place stylistically where it wasn't sure if it wanted to be leisurewear or something smarter and that uncertainty made it slightly hard to wear convincingly. That period seems to be over and the cardigan is currently in a very good place as a layering piece that works across a genuinely wide range of outfits. We love a fine merino cardigan in a neutral for exactly the situations where a jumper is too heavy and a shirt on its own isn't quite warm enough. Over a simple tee with straight jeans and clean shoes it looks effortlessly put together. Over a shirt it adds a layer that feels smarter than a hoodie without the formality of a blazer. The open front is the key detail that makes cardigans useful in a way that jumpers aren't because you can adjust warmth and adjust the look depending on whether it's buttoned or not.

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Check Shirts

The check shirt is probably the most forgiving casual shirt a man can own because the pattern does a lot of work to make even relatively simple outfits look like you thought about them. A flannel check in autumn earth tones with straight jeans and desert boots is the kind of look that requires genuinely almost no effort while appearing quite considered. We've found that the scale of the check matters more than most men realise. A small tight check reads more formally and works better in smarter casual situations. A larger bolder check is more casual and more expressive. A classic gingham sits comfortably in the middle ground. Keep everything else relatively neutral when you're wearing a check because the pattern is already providing the visual interest and competing with it tends to result in something that looks busy rather than considered.

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Denim Shirts

The denim shirt is one of those casual pieces that's more versatile than it initially appears because it works both as an actual shirt and as a light jacket in a way that very few other pieces manage. Worn open over a white tee with straight jeans it becomes an overshirt layer that adds texture and interest to a simple outfit. Worn buttoned with chinos and clean boots it works as a casual shirt in its own right. The weight of the denim matters for how it falls and drapes. A lighter chambray weight works better as an actual shirt. A heavier denim works better as an overshirt layer. We prefer a classic straight cut rather than anything too slim because the denim shirt works better with a bit of ease in it and because the overshirt use requires enough room to work comfortably over whatever's underneath.

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Flannel Shirts

Flannel is the fabric that autumn was invented for and the flannel shirt is one of those seasonal pieces we genuinely look forward to getting back to when the temperature drops enough to justify it. There's something about the weight and softness of a good flannel that feels like the sartorial equivalent of your first cup of coffee on a cold morning. We love a classic plaid flannel worn open as a layer over a plain tee with jeans and work boots for exactly the uncomplicated autumn look it's been delivering reliably for decades. The trick with flannel is not overcomplicating things around it. The shirt is doing enough and adding a lot of competing elements tends to make the overall look feel busy rather than considered. Keep it simple and let the fabric and the pattern do the work.

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Gilets

The gilet fills a very specific practical gap that it handles better than anything else which is the occasion where you need warmth through your core but want freedom of movement through your arms. Walking in cold weather when you're generating enough heat to not need full sleeve coverage. Layering in an office that's too cold but where a full jacket feels excessive. The practical credentials are solid. Stylistically the gilet requires a bit more consideration because it can look incomplete as an outer layer in the way that removing sleeves from an already established silhouette sometimes does. We've found it works best worn as a genuine mid layer rather than trying to function as outerwear. Over a good knit or a flannel shirt with a proper coat available for outside it hits the right register without looking like you left part of your outfit at home.

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Graphic Tees

The graphic tee is one of those pieces where the gap between doing it well and doing it badly is quite wide and what separates the two is almost entirely about context and curation rather than the tee itself. A graphic tee from a band you actually listen to worn with well fitting straight jeans and clean trainers looks great. The same tee worn with tracksuit bottoms and unlaced trainers tells a very different story. The graphic itself matters too. Something with a strong visual or a genuine cultural reference tends to land better than corporate branded tees or graphics that feel arbitrary. We've moved away from very large graphics that dominate the entire front of the tee and towards smaller chest or back prints that feel more considered. Keep everything else simple when the tee is doing the visual work and you'll find the graphic tee earns its place in a lot more situations than you might expect.

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Hawaiian Shirts

The Hawaiian shirt requires the confidence to commit to something colourful and pattern heavy in a way that most British men find genuinely challenging and that challenge is actually why getting it right feels so satisfying when you manage it. The key things we've figured out about wearing a Hawaiian shirt convincingly are firstly that fit matters more than you'd think given the relaxed reputation of the garment and secondly that keeping everything else in the outfit quiet is non negotiable. A well fitted Hawaiian shirt open over a plain white tee with straight neutral shorts and clean shoes looks like a deliberate style choice. The same shirt loose and oversized with busy shorts and chunky footwear looks like a holiday outfit crisis. The better quality Hawaiian shirts in cotton or rayon with more refined prints tend to be easier to wear than cheaper versions with very loud synthetic fabrics.

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Hoodies

The hoodie is probably the piece of clothing most men wear most frequently and also the one most men give the least thought to which creates an opportunity because getting a good hoodie right is one of the easiest style upgrades available. The difference between a good hoodie and a bad one is mostly about fabric weight and fit and neither of those things requires spending a fortune. A heavyweight cotton hoodie with a clean minimal design in a good neutral hangs and drapes properly in a way that thin lightweight hoodies don't. It looks like a considered choice rather than something you grabbed because it was near the door. Fit wise the current sweet spot is somewhere between the boxy oversized end and the fitted slim end. A relaxed but not shapeless cut that follows the body without being tight through the chest and shoulders is where most of the best hoodies are sitting and it works across the widest range of situations.

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Jumpers

The jumper is where most men's wardrobes could stand the most improvement for the least money because a good knit in the right colour and fabric is one of the hardest working pieces you own and yet most men are tolerating mediocre ones that pill after three washes and lose their shape by January. Merino wool is the fabric we'd point anyone towards first because it's warm without being heavy manages temperature remarkably well is usually machine washable at a low temperature and doesn't itch in the way that coarser wools do. A crew neck or v neck in a mid gauge merino in navy grey or camel is the version we'd build around because it goes with everything. Over a shirt for something smarter. Over a tee for casual days. Under a coat for warmth. Getting two or three good jumpers right is more valuable than having a dozen average ones.

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Knit Vests

The knit vest has come back strongly enough over the last few years that we've gone from slightly uncertain about it to genuinely enthusiastic which isn't something we expected. The layering potential is the main thing. Over a shirt it creates a look that has some of the layered intentionality of wearing a jumper but with the collar and cuffs of the shirt visible which adds a detail and a finish that the jumper alone doesn't provide. Over a long sleeve tee it works as a more casual version of the same thing. The fit matters quite a bit because a knit vest that's too large tends to look shapeless and one that's too small creates an uncomfortable tightness across the chest when layered. A slightly fitted version that follows the torso without pulling is the right territory. Neutral colours integrate into existing wardrobes most easily but a deeper colour like forest green or burgundy adds something more interesting without being too demanding to style around.

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Polo Necks

The polo neck is one of those pieces that divides opinion more than it probably should given that it's just a jumper with a higher collar. Some men feel immediately comfortable in them and some feel like they're wearing a costume and the difference is mostly about face shape and how much of your neck you're used to showing. If you're in the first camp the polo neck is a genuinely excellent piece that does sophisticated work with minimal effort. Under a blazer it replaces the shirt and tie combination with something that feels more contemporary and arguably more interesting. On its own with straight pants and clean shoes it creates a very strong minimal look that requires almost nothing else to work. A fine merino polo neck in black navy or grey is the version we'd start with because those colours have the most flexibility and the finer gauge keeps things sleek rather than bulky through the neck and chest.

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Printed Shirts

The printed shirt occupies similar territory to the graphic tee in that the pattern is doing the visual work and everything else needs to step back and let it. The difference is that a printed shirt sits slightly further up the formality register than a tee which means it can work in situations where a graphic tee wouldn't quite cut it. A clean abstract print or a botanical pattern on a relaxed fit shirt with simple chinos and loafers works for smart casual occasions in a way that feels genuinely contemporary. The main thing to avoid with printed shirts is wearing them with anything else that's competing for attention. Neutral bottoms and simple footwear are essentially mandatory. The shirt is the event. Everything else is just context for it to exist in.

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Shirts

The shirt is foundational in a way that most men intellectually acknowledge but practically underinvest in and the consequences of that underinvestment are visible in a lot of outfits that would be dramatically better with one simple upgrade in this category. A well made shirt in good fabric that fits properly across the shoulders and through the body changes the quality of everything you wear over it or with it. We always look at collar construction first because the collar is what frames your face and a floppy collar that doesn't hold its shape undermines even the best jacket or suit. Fabric matters enormously too. A proper cotton poplin or Oxford weave has a weight and a structure that polyester blends simply don't replicate. Building a small collection of shirts that genuinely fit and genuinely work is more valuable than a wardrobe full of ones that are technically shirts but aren't doing anything well.

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Short Sleeve Shirts

The short sleeve shirt is something a lot of British men treat as exclusively holiday wear which means they own bad ones bought in airports and then wonder why it's hard to wear one convincingly at home in summer. A well made short sleeve shirt in good fabric is actually a strong option for the warmer months that works across a range of casual and smart casual situations without the formality of a long sleeve. The bowling shirt and camp collar styles have both become reliably strong options that work particularly well with simple pants and clean footwear. Linen or a linen cotton blend is the fabric that works best in warm weather because it breathes and handles the heat in a way that cotton alone doesn't quite match. Keep the fit slightly relaxed rather than fitted because the short sleeve works better with a bit of ease and a fitted short sleeve can look awkward rather than sharp.

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Sweatshirts

The sweatshirt occupies a slightly smarter casual position than the hoodie because the absence of the hood removes one of the more casual signals and leaves you with something cleaner and more adaptable. A crew neck sweatshirt in a quality heavyweight cotton is one of the most effortlessly wearable pieces in a casual wardrobe because it works with straight jeans and trainers for everyday dressing and lifts surprisingly well when you put it with smarter chinos and clean leather footwear. The quality of the fabric makes an enormous difference to how a sweatshirt looks and how it ages. A thin sweatshirt that pills and loses its shape quickly is never going to look intentional no matter how you style it. A substantial one in a good weight cotton or French terry develops a character over time that makes it look more considered the more you wear it rather than worse.

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T-Shirts

The humble t-shirt is the piece most men own the most of and think about the least and there's an argument that this is where the most significant improvements in your everyday appearance can be made for the smallest outlay. The fit of a t-shirt matters more than anything else about it. A tee that fits correctly through the shoulders and has the right length sitting at or just below the waistband looks intentional and clean. One that's too long or too wide through the body just looks like you grabbed something without thinking. Fabric weight is the other variable that separates a good tee from a forgettable one. A heavier weight cotton has a drape and a substance that thin jersey doesn't and it holds its shape wash after wash in a way that cheaper tees don't manage. White grey and navy are the three colours we'd have in rotation because they work with everything and need no thought whatsoever.

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Tank Tops

The tank top for men works in a narrower range of situations than most other tops which is fine as long as you know what those situations are and deploy it accordingly. At the gym or in explicitly athletic contexts it's the obvious practical choice and there's no style question to answer. Beyond that the sleeveless tee or athletic tank has carved out a place in casual summer dressing that works when the weather genuinely justifies it and when the body underneath it is comfortable being relatively visible. Layered under an open shirt as a base layer it works across a wider range of temperatures and outfits than as a standalone piece. We'd look for something in a quality cotton or cotton blend with a clean minimal design without heavy branding because the restraint reads better and gives you something that works in more contexts than something that announces itself too loudly.

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V Neck Jumpers

The v neck jumper is the layering piece that a lot of men discover relatively late and then wonder what took them so long because it solves the shirt and tie situation without replacing the shirt and tie situation. Worn over a dress shirt with a tie the v neck creates a smart layered look that was a staple of classic British style for good reason and that reason is that it genuinely works beautifully. Worn over a shirt without a tie it bridges casual and smart in a way that feels considered. Worn over a tee it's a clean casual option. The depth of the v matters. A very deep v is more fashion forward and more casual. A moderate v gives you more versatility across different combinations. A fine gauge merino or lambswool in a solid colour is the version that covers the most ground and integrates most easily into existing wardrobes without requiring everything around it to change.

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Vests

The vest as a standalone garment rather than as a component of a three piece suit occupies an interesting casual territory that's become genuinely wearable over the last few years as the layered relaxed approach to dressing has made it easier to justify things that might previously have seemed like they needed a specific context to make sense. A knit vest or a more structured waistcoat style worn over a long sleeve tee or a shirt creates a layered look that adds visual interest without the bulk of an additional jacket. The key is treating it as a deliberate layer rather than a remnant of something more formal that's lost its accompanying pieces. Keep everything else in the outfit simple and the vest adds something without dominating. The fit needs to be right through the torso because a vest that's too large just looks like you've misplaced your jacket.

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Waffle Knit Tops

The waffle knit top is one of those textural pieces that does quiet but effective work in a casual wardrobe. The grid texture of the weave adds visual interest to what is essentially a simple long sleeve top and that interest comes without any of the commitment that a printed or boldly coloured piece requires. It layers well because the texture adds dimension without bulk. Under an open overshirt or denim jacket it creates a casual layered look with more going on than a plain tee would provide. On its own with straight jeans and clean trainers it works as a simple but considered casual option. We prefer a slightly relaxed fit rather than a slim one because the waffle texture works better with a bit of ease and because the relaxed fit is more comfortable to wear as an actual base layer. Neutral colours are the starting point but a deeper earthy tone like rust or forest adds something more interesting without requiring much more thought.

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