Without any doubt wearing a blazer with a nice pair of slacks is not business formal dress like a suit. But it makes sense to be smart and aware that a nice blazer with fashionable buttons is far too formal for fitting in at the workplace when it is business casual day or Friday dress down day at work.
Go with an apparel choice that is more casual in look and design that does not include shoulder padding. Shorter length blazers are considered casual and more modern. Go with Italian brands or well know American brand blazers to showcase your style and remain casual on business casual Friday.
A stylish casual blazer made with nicely boiled wool or knitted wool is a good choice. These types of blazers are super casual, but certainly more stylish than a simple sweater fest or thin plush material pull-over.
Be aware tech giants, you need more casual work wear game.
Critical Apparel Parts – Cardigans & Jackets
If the must casual apparel continues to appear too formal, a nicely collared cardigan is decent option for business casual day. Do not choose an outdoor or western down-home pattern. It’s work, not Thanksgiving or time at the cabin time.
A chore jacket is remarkably like a stylish blazer and sharper looking compared to jacket made of denim jean material, which is also a good choice to go with for business casual day. Be sure to not choose a distressed denim jacket. You do not want to look like you are going out to shoot pool with your pals on Friday night on business casual day.
A stylish light bomber jacket emotes military and uniform so it can serve as a blazer in your business casual wardrobe. The critical move when going this route is to choose a darker shade like new navy in linen, cotton, or wool. Do not choose nylon.
Pair your choice of jacket with a button-up shirt with trousers or khakis. Do not go with a t-shirt. It’s business casual Friday, not casual Friday out with the boys.
Critical Apparel Parts – Team Up Your Look and Be Sporty not Nerdy
There is no apparel choice that yells ‘online catalog shopper’ than a V-neck sweater and a shirt with an open collar. Go with a contemporary snappy look of a crew-neck style sweater. There is no requirement for accommodations for a necktie, so you can keep your look open. You will be able to ramp up the sporty feel of your look by wearing nice stylish knit with V stitched collar. Another choice to go with is a jersey sweater and khakis to give you a confident jock look.
Critical Apparel Parts – Keep It Business Casual, Not Smart Casual
Going with a stiff well-designed tailored blazer is too stiff and too smart-casual for business casual day. A better choice is a soft collar button-down shirt. Pick a button down made with denim or chambray to enhance the look with an out-west style that is eye catching. Be sure to choose a shirt with shirt tails that are reasonable in length if you want to wear it untucked.
Another smart option is a polo, particularly if it is long-sleeve and made with a top-end fabric. Nicely enough, a polo can be paired with a blazer as a solid option instead of standard button-down shirt.
Finally, a T-shirt is another smart-casual option. It is super business casual, but it can work. Locating the correct one to pair with a blazer is challenging. It needs to be high-end and high-quality with stylish neckline. Consult with your local menswear store, like Suits Unlimited in Albuquerque, NM, for help in choosing the right T-shirts for your smart-casual wardrobe.
Critical Apparel Parts – Sometimes Yes Slacks and Sometimes No
The working combined apparel parts of a smart-casual ensemble are like the sound board levels at a rock concert or the photo settings on your smart phone. If turn one level up, another level needs to be turned down to bring symmetry to the outfit. Harmony is everything.
Consider the situation when you are wearing casual dress shoes, a nice shirt, and a blazer—high-end tailored slack may make the ensemble look too smart and even somewhat formal. On the other hand, if your going to wear dress sneakers, a T-shirt and a bomber jacket, tailored slacks can stop you from appearing too relaxed and mostly casual. In the first example change the shirt to a T-shirt or the casual dress shoes with dress sneakers will bring the ensemble to the right ‘level’ you want it to be at.
Critical Apparel Parts - Dark Workwear Jeans Will Work
Jeans are more casual than all other forms of legwear, but they are still okay to include in a business casual ensemble. The need to be dark and new looking, not distressed.
Guides on style will guide you directly and advise acquiring dark blue jeans. Blue is a choice that will work, but black jeans are the smart way to go. Rivets and stitching colors on black jeans are tone matched so they look snappy, but bold at the same time. Both navy and black jeans are good choices you cannot go wrong with for smart-casual outfit.
Critical Apparel Parts – Footwear Choices Are Critical
The more stylish, refined, sleek and smooth shoe you go with, the better it will work to make your smart-casual ensemble work well. Dress casual shoes will put you on stable smart-casual ground, but an old pair of top-siders may not cut the mustard.
Similarly, dress sneakers can be diverting and questionable when it comes to a well put together business casual outfit. Nicely enough, there are a wider selection of ‘dress’ sneakers available in 2020. Pick up a pair or two for your business casual wardrobe that combine a white sole with a dark leather upper. If you decide to go with white dress sneakers, keep them clean. Dirty dress sneakers are out of style 100% of the time.
Critical Apparel Parts – Briefcase are Spiffy & Business Casual
The looks described here will be greatly enhanced by combining them with a stylish soft leather briefcase. Another option is snappy backpack, but it will come off as sophomoric in formal business wear company, but it will look stylish and fit right in a business casual place of business. Pick a backpack dark in color and leather if it is available. The more professional and well made it looks the better your business casual look will be as well.
Critical Apparel Parts – Style Watch Will Keep Your Look on Time
A sharp stylish watch with a steel bracelet will raise up any business casual outfit to new heights. A steel bracelet is classic, class and sporty all at the same time. The metal provides your business casual ensemble the pop it requires.