Michael Alden of The London Lounge used to say about menswear writers: “read what they write, but remember they need to write in order to eat.” So much has been written at this point about the simple act of putting on clothes, yet so much can be boiled down to some simple principles. Few people exhibit those principles better than our friend Graeme in Sydney, Australia.
- Value Quality Over Quantity. You don’t need a lot of clothes to be well dressed. Back when he had to wear a suit every day to work, Graeme had seven suits that could be broken into separates. Now that he works in a more casual industry, he’s edited that down to just three – one navy, one grey, and one dinner suit. His casualwear wardrobe is just as tightly edited. Most of us wind up with more clothes than we ever really need, which is why it’s good to focus on buying the right things, rather than more things.
- Prioritize Fit and Dress According to Your Eye: Graeme prioritizes fit above everything else, but if you pay attention to his clothes, he dresses according to his eyes – not rules. His suit jackets, for example, are just slightly trim and short, allowing him to give a nod to current fashion trends while still remaining classic. Think of rules more as guidelines and be honest about what looks flattering on you. As Graeme advises, it also helps to have a friend with a critical eye, as “we often get too caught up in our own interpretations."
- Don’t Look Too Studied. Graeme has a strong, classic sense of style, but also has a carefree relationship with his clothes that prevents him from ever looking too studied. That kind of nonchalance is hard to learn, but we’d like to think it comes naturally over time.
- Simplicity Can be Good. There are some people who dress well with bold colors and lots of patterns, but Graeme shows how you can look great with much simpler choices. His style feels sophisticated and modern because he mostly relies on navy and rarely wears more than two patterns at once.
- It’s Not About Money. A lot of what Graeme wears is on the high end. His made-to-measure suits are from P. Johnson, bespoke shirts from Ascot Chang, jeans from The Armoury, and shoes from Saint Crispin’s, Edward Green, and Alden. At the same time, he also wears a lot of things from more affordable brands, such as button-up shirts from UNIQLO, chinos from J. Crew, and sneakers from Tretorn and Nike. His mix of expensive and non-expensive items shows that you can dress well on almost any budget.
Granted, it helps that Graeme is a handsome dude who’s in fantastic shape (he’s a cyclist who rides about 15 hours per week, which equates to about 15,000 kilometers a year). At the same time, his style is inspiring for all the values we champion here at Put This On: dress classically and simply, but have fun with your clothes; choose quality over quantity; and don’t think this is just about needing to buy more expensive things.
Graeme used to blog at his site Most Exerent, but you’re more likely to find him nowadays on his Instagram accounts: Guido Wongolini and Wear What Without Care.
