Q. When you say that the most professional nonsuit jacket is a blue blazer, I imagine you are talking about navy blue. First, is that true? And if so, how informal are medium-blue blazers? I have one that I always get compliments on and I'd like to buy another, but I do work in a generally jacket-and-tie office and don't want to be too "fashionable."
A. A man's core wardrobe generally consists of a few matched suits plus one or more blue blazers. Although it is not precisely a suit, a blue blazer is an important part of what makes up professional attire. As for the shade of blue, you are right that navy is more formal and closer to a suit in dressiness. Lighter shades of medium- and even light-blue blazers are more casual and can be slightly fashion forward.
Since it obviously is flattering and you are happy with the response you get when you wear your medium-blue blazer, I see no reason not to buy a second one, if you wish. But my first recommendation is to be sure your closet includes at least one dark blue blazer -- one of the most versatile items a man can own. A navy wool blazer pairs well with traditional gray flannel trousers and with business-casual camel-colored dress pants; it also looks great with casual cotton khakis. If your work environment allows denim, a blue blazer worn with jeans is always a cool casual look.
Speaking of blue blazers, I just attended Men's Fashion Week in New York. One highlight of the week was something new, "The Blue Jacket Fashion Show." For years, women's Fashion Week has featured "The Red Dress Collection," a show designed to create awareness about women and heart disease. This year's Inaugural Blue Jacket Fashion Show paralleled the Red Dress shows. To support prostate cancer awareness, instead of professional models' wearing clothes from one designer, the show was a presentation of 14 celebrities from the fields of sports, TV and show business wearing clothes from 12 different designers.
Everyone wore a one-of-a-kind variation of a blue jacket -- whether it was an actual blue suit, some form of a blue blazer, a short cropped jacket, an overly elaborate bright blue tuxedo or tailcoat or some offbeat blue garment for which I am at a loss to find a name. These were not looks that you would ever find in your "jacket-and-tie office." Even when the jacket was cut traditionally, it was often made of a too-bold fabric or accessorized in a not-so-quiet mix. One guy wore shiny gold sneakers.
Two sports figures dressed up their jackets with a ton of sparkling "bling." And several had shirts that inexplicably extended out several inches beyond the bottom hem of their jackets, making me want to tell them to "tuck in your shirt!"
The "models" included Carson Kressley, Don Lemon, Bill Nye (the Science Guy) and sports figures CC Sabathia and Victor Cruz. Because they were not professional models, they had fun cavorting down the runway and showing off their often over-the-top blue jackets.
Among the designers whose jackets they wore were Joseph Abboud, Thom Browne, Nicole Miller and John Varvatos. After the show, all the specially designed jackets were included in an auction alongside some breathtaking sports memorabilia, including photographs, baseballs and a baseball mitt signed by the likes of Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Mickey Mantle -- with proceeds going to the Prostate Cancer Foundation, founded by philanthropist and financier Michael Milken.
As I have said before, clothes that are displayed on men's fashion show runways are conversation pieces, and not always (in fact, hardly ever) something you would see worn by a well-dressed man.
Send men's fashion queries to Male Call:
lois.fenton@prodigy.net
High Profile on 02/12/2017