Fashion Faux Pas With Belts
At first glance, the belt might seem one of the simplest items in all of men’s fashion. You thread it through the provided loops, adjust it for your waist and then you’re good. Like the necktie and the pocket square, the belt has hundreds of years of style heritage behind it. And, like the necktie and the pocket square, all that history doesn’t make it foolproof.
Style Means Subtlety
Belts are a lot like neckties: the less they scream for attention, the more stylishly classic they are. The best investments, then, are the simple solid belts made of good quality leather. Not only will they last long, but they’ll work with so many outfits too.
Conversely, a gaudy, showy belt is hardly worth anything at all, in terms of style or cash. LED belts, crazy designs and kooky buckles rarely look witty, always look cheap and never look elegant. Aside from being un-wearable to formal events, they also make you seem like you’re screaming for attention – and you would be, in the worst way possible.
Keep your belt regular and plain. There are many other ways to make fashion statements that are both effective and attractive. None of them, however, involve a belt taking center stage in the outfit. The role simply doesn’t fit the accessory, especially in the context of men’s style.
Brace It or Belt It
The belt doesn’t have a monopoly in its niche in men’s fashion. Suspenders – braces, as they’re called in some parts of the world – is the British approach to keeping your pants in place. Braces are just as style-appropriate as the belt. What’s criminal, on the other hand, is when you wear both at the same time.
Men’s fashion largely revolves around functionality. The garments that we use today are still here because they serve one use or another; purely decorative items like neckties are very rare. Because belts and suspenders do exactly the same thing, wearing one renders the other obsolete (or, at least, redundant). That’s also to say that you ought to wear only one of those items at a time.
Keep in mind that there’s a particular style of pants that goes with the equipment. Slacks for suspenders usually have a flat waist, while pants for belts have the loops for them.
Unmatched, Unfashionable
The men’s fashion industry is light years away from the styles of 50 years ago, and belts have been influenced by the changes as well. Like with everything else in the wardrobe, belts have expanded in variety over the last few decades.
Not all the belt options, however, will fit with just any outfit. In fact, your belt must jive with the other important accessory in your ensemble: the shoes. Match the color of the leather: a brown leather belt for brown leather shoes, a black leather belt for black leather shoes. It doesn’t have to be a spot-on shade match, but you could at the very least try to get from the same family of colors so that your accessories are consistent.
The rule isn’t just for leather either. If you’re wearing fabric or canvas shoes, you may want to stick to fabric or canvas belts. There’s always a chance of messing up when items for the weekend get mixed with items for those coat-and-necktie days.
Other Suggested Readings from TheTieKing.com:
Biggest Tie Fashion Faux Pas
5 Tips for Perfect Tie Knots
Your TieKing Team – Your Site for Fine Designer Neckties.