Stop Wearing Your Sweater Wrong (Layer Like A Pro!)

Can you spot the error with the shirt and sweater combinations? So, we've got look number one right here, a white collared shirt with a gray sweater. Next up, that same sweater style, but we're going with a more vibrant color, this green mixed in with a collared shirt whose base color is blue, but if you look closely, distinctive pattern. And then, we've got the combination I'm wearing right here, a medium gray sweater with a brown suede accent with a navy blue collared shirt. What do you think? Did you spot the mistake? Well, gents, I don't know how you didn't see this, but I wasn't wearing pants with any of those combinations. Here, I'll show you. Nope. Just kidding. I don't want to scar you guys. But, no, seriously, I do wear pants in my videos. But to the point, layering a shirt with a sweater can be done in an infinite number of ways. Some combinations are going to make you look great. Other combinations, well, they can make you look like you have no fashion sense at all. So, how to avoid the latter and increase the likelihood you always look great? Well, gentlemen, that's the subject of today's video, how to layer your shirt and sweater like a pro. So, first up, we're starting with the basics. If you're going to be layering with a sweater, you want to have the right type of shirt underneath because ideally you don't want to be having to wash your sweater after every wear. A shirt serves the purpose of absorbing any sweat, any dirt, any oil that comes off the skin and enables you to get more life out of your expensive sweaters because you're not having to launder them as often, you just throw the shirt in the wash. Now, as such, any shirt that you're going to wear under a sweater, you want it to fit well on the body. A shirt that's too baggy or too large that's worn under a sweater is going to have the effect of creating bulks and wrinkles even under a well-fitted sweater and it's just not going to look good. In addition, most times you want to find a shirt that has a strong collar. Now, one of the simplest and classic collars to go to when you're layering is a button-down collar. It's a casual style collar made popular on the polo fields, but why men like it when layering is it keeps the collar points in place. And last, but not least, let's talk about shirt length. So, for any man in his 20s or above, I recommend when you're layering to tuck in your shirt. Now, if you're 15 going to a school in which they've got a uniform and you want to push the envelope and go with the half-tuck look to be a rebel, go for it. If they put you in detention, tell me Antonio told you. Next up, let's talk the sweater styles that look best with layering. Starting things off, we got the classic crewneck. Now, as mentioned earlier, for a more casual look, you can choose just to wear a t-shirt underneath the crewneck. But, the classic layered look is going to have a collar that just peeps above and is held together closely by the sweater neckline. It's a classic well-established look, although I feel it looks a little bit bunched and I prefer this other style which is the v-neck. Now, v-neck sweaters reveal a little bit more of the color. And I find that when bringing in a third item like a necktie, they do a better job of showing off the three different texture combinations that you could see in this layered look. And, yes, it's a little bit more fashion forward, but I do think you can wear a t-shirt underneath and that combination can look fine. But, having said all that, my favorite sweater style for a guy to layer has got to be the quarter zip or the half zip sweater. And within this style, I'm also throwing in sweaters that have buttons on them whether it's a button or a zip, it's a very small difference, although buttons in general are going to be more formal. But, yeah, this combination right here is a little bit more moderate and I really like, again, when paired with the right shirt when possibly even paired with a necktie, it does an excellent job bringing in a variety of different materials, different colors, different textures. And, again, because so many of you guys are choosing to not wear a necktie, this is where the accents on the sweaters whether it'd be the button color whether it'd be a suede lining right there next to the zipper. This here all of a sudden is bringing in lines, it's bringing color, it's bringing a little bit more attention to where we want people looking towards you towards your face. If you want something a little bit more unique, stylish, still pretty well laid back, check out the sweater blazer which is a close relative of the cardigan. You can argue a sweater blazer is a little bit more of a structured look, but, no, it's basically cardigans, sweater blazers, basically the same thing. And, again, as you can see here, you can make this super casual with a v-neck shirt or you can dress it up with a collared shirt. A really versatile piece to add to your collection. And speaking of which, all these combinations, you like what you've seen so far in today's video, guys, you can grab all these looks over at Collars & Co. Now, gents, I've been talking about Collars & Co for years because I love what these guys did. They came into a stale industry and they innovated. They saw so many guys were wearing dress shirts and hated layering them underneath a sweater underneath a sports jacket because they were uncomfortable, they didn't fit well. So, they created the perfect polo dress shirt combination. It's a shirt that has a strong collar and placket of a dress shirt with a comfort, ease, fit, wear of a polo and the result is a shirt that you can dress up, you can dress down, you can layer, you can wear it by itself. Collars & Co's dress collar polo is where they started and this is still their best seller. And, guys, when you go look at the different collar options, they got the semi-spread, they've got the English spread, they've got the cutaway collar, and of course, they've got button-down collars. And if you live in a hot area, you want a polo that's incredibly breathable, but still has that strong collar, check out their Featherweight Flex Collection. But, Collars & Co didn't stop at those polos. Of course, they started to get into other pieces of menswear. All the sweaters that we've been talking about in today's video, you can find over at Collars & Co from the crewnecks to the v-necks to the quarter zips. And if you want to dress things up, take it to the next level, check out their Maverick Performance Blazers. And this is a blazer I actually travel with. Why? Because it's made from a performance material, so it's anti-wrinkle, it's got a four-way stretch, it's comfortable, it fits incredibly well off the rack. And I love how they got a built-in pocket square. I don't even have to think about that being said, I can fold it in and put it in my own pocket square. In any case, gents, just give them a shot. They're an amazing company. And again, down in the description of today's video, I'm putting a link to the best deal on the web that you're going to find. So, now, let's talk about color matching. At the beginning of this video, I showed you some various combinations. Probably the biggest difference you saw there were the ways that the colors worked with each other. Now, this combination right here is the most muted. We've got a regular gray mixed in with a dark blue and the accent color here, like I said, is that little bit of suede right there, that brown, but it definitely doesn't scream in your face. All of these colors right here are what are known as neutrals. Neutrals are those base colors that everything else can be built on. They don't really grab that much attention, but that's a great thing because they work with each other, they're easy to combine, you don't have to think about as long as you nail the fit, you are going to look good. Now, the next combination I want to talk about is that of a high contrast combination. We see this a lot of times in formal wear, but depending on the style and the materials that are being used, it can also be casual. But, usually for this contrast, we're going to see a light color and a dark color right next to each other. Now, the key with a contrast combination is it draws the eyes in. The darker color is going to be the majority of what we see and the lighter color is going to be used for a little bit of accent contrast, which is exactly what we see in this gray and white shirt combination here. Now, what about when we bring in a pop of color? Now, if there's any mistake I made with this combination right here and that is I brought in too much color. The sweater in of itself is not a common color that you see people pulling off especially men. I'm not sure it works really well with my skin tone. Usually, I go towards more of an olive green, but I wanted to try it out. I do recommend that you try out colors because you're never going to truly know if something works for you until you hold it up next to your face up next to your skin. Now, the shirt contrasts with the sweater not only because it's a different color, but notice how there's a subtle pattern in the shirt. However, I don't think the contrast is high. I do think the combination works, although overall it does lean a little bit more casual. Now, right next to color, we've got patterns and texture. So, in general, we're going to see most of the patterns in the shirt. You can bring in a striped or a patterned sweater, but because visually it's something we see more of, I think it's harder to pull off and you're not going to get as many miles out of a sweater that has a distinctive pattern. Although, there's nothing wrong with that especially if you've already got a lot of solid sweaters in your collection, bringing in something with a little bit of pop a little bit of pattern is not a bad thing. You're going to be able to mix and match it with a number of different neutral sweaters. Yeah, by sticking with patterned shirts, you're probably going to get more bang for your dollar. But, it's in texture that the sweaters really have the big advantage. With shirts, most of the time we're going to see performance fabrics, but usually we're going to have a tight weave that either has a little bit of a sheen or not much to it. The sweaters on the other hand are usually going to have a slight napped surface, so they're going to have that softness to them. And, depending on the weave, depending on the knit, you could have knits that are tight, they're going to have a very smooth thin look to them or you can have heavier knits that are going to have a much bulkier overall textured look and feel. Now, the tighter knit sweaters whether they're made from cotton, wool, or cashmere are going to be the dressier ones and the heavier knit larger bulkier sweaters, those in general are going to be more casual. But, yeah, when you're layering texture is one of those secret weapons because you could have that cotton shirt with that wool sweater with a silk necktie, all three of them different textures working with each other, you can have the same exact color, and yet it's still going to give this really nice elegant layered look. Now, we alluded to it, but I want to talk a little bit more about material matching when it comes to weight. So, whenever something is considered dressier, that's where you've got a thinner sweater. Again, it can be made from cotton, wool, usually cashmere or something like that is what you're going to find. But, these are going to be lighter weight and they are going to have shirts underneath them that are of a lighter weight. These are fabrics like performance materials or a thin dress shirt oxford. If you decide to wear a bulkier sweater, something a little bit heavier, then you want to try to match it especially if the shirt is going to be seen with a heavier weight shirt. These are going to be shirts made from at least an oxford type material, which is going to be a little bit thicker, a little bit heavier. But, you could choose to level up to a flannel, which is going to be much thicker, much heavier. And as you can surmise, this combination is probably going to keep you a lot warmer, so reserve this for colder weather. Now, the combination I'm wearing right here, I've got a dress shirt polo made from a performance fabric. Now, the sweater is a lightweight cashmere merino wool. And because of the lightness, the overall close fit to the body, I can actually add a third layer, which you saw me do earlier with that performance blazer. And that's where I think layering gets really interesting is when you start to have four layers because, yes, that would count as four layers if I was wearing a necktie. But, you see how that combination would work because the level of formality of all four items would be in alignment. And in case you're wondering, when it comes to necktie knots, I recommend when you're layering, I like the four-in-hand or the half Windsor because they're not overly bulky. So, what do you think? Agree? Disagree? What did I miss? Let me know down in the comments below. And, guys, keep watching. I got you another video. Boom! Right here. Yeah, you're going to love it. Check it out. You want it. Yeah.