Summer is almost here and temperatures are constantly over 70 degrees F (20 degrees C). Because we have weddings and other formal events, the question on everyone’s mind is: how do we dress stylishly and keeping it cool at the same time?

I’m going to talk about the shirt exclusively, because it’s the first option you should consider when dressing casual (t-shirts go well too but let’s leave this discussion for another time. Shirts are of course the ONLY option when you’re invited or hosting a formal event.

So what shirt can you wear if it’s really hot outside. It all comes down to two options: a short-sleeved shirt or a long sleeved shirt.

One of the more recent trends in men’s style suggest that we should avoid short-sleeved shirts. For some reason, they are seen as too childish. They even suggest we avoid wearing them in casual situations.

The recommendation of those who hate short-sleeved shirts is simple: you either roll up your sleeves of your long-sleeved shirt or.. you just deal with the excessive heat.

Why is the short-sleeved shirt so hated. There are two main reasons that I could dig up:

1. It makes you look like a child or a bartender.
2. You can’t wear them with ties or bow-ties because the lack of sleeves will “unbalance” the entire outfit.

Because I don’t really enjoy the torture of staying in a long sleeved-shirt at high temperatures (just to follow a style rule that almost no one around you will know about), I decided to do a little digging. I wanted to know if short sleeved shirts are really that bad.

Here’s what I found (and it’s good news):

Short sleeved shirts are back and are recommended even by GQ. Here’s what they’re saying on their blog, the GQ Eye (this is an article published in april 2011):

One of the best trends in recent years, in addition to the return of the waistcoat and flat-front pants, is the return of the classic short-sleeve shirt.
[...]
The short-sleeve button-down is on the casual side of business casual, more so than its full-sleeve counterpart, but I think it’s quite acceptable in a summer-casual work environment and far better than a polo shirt.

You can find the link to the blog post here.

So what is the GQ gentleman trying to say? That the length of the shirt’s sleeve is just a trend like anything else, that’s in or out of style. And here’s another important lesson: never trade comfort for style.

A golden rule of style says that you should always feel excellent in all the clothes that you’re wearing. And if it’s really hot outside and rolling up your sleeves is just not enough, go ahead and wear a short-sleeved shirt.

Conclusions

Ok, let me give you a brief recap of the key points you should remember from my research.

First of all, short sleeved shirts are great and can form very stylish outfits.

Second, wearing them with a tie or a bow tie is a fashion no-no and I agree to that. On really hot days you won’t be wearing such accessories anyway because you’ll barely be able to breathe.

Third, a long sleeved shirt will always be more stylish than one with short sleeves.

And finally fourth, rolling up your sleeves is a great way to be stylish.

It’s all up to you and your own sense of style to make the right decision.

I firmly believe that we shouldn’t forget the classics. Nowadays we are flooded by a string of non values, and we forget what’s really of a good quality. Those classics may actually make you stand out, because not many use them appropriately.

That’s why I am writing this article on white shirts. Every man should have such a shirt in his drawers.

But first of all, a little history. The world’s first shirt was discovered in Egypt, almost 5000 years old. Until the twentieth century it was a garment of underwear. The richer you were, the less you showed the shirt. Wearing the shirt with nothing else over it was an indication of your poverty.

While in the nineteenth century, the color of choice was white, and a blue shirt was unthinkable, 100 years later it had become already the most common choice of style.

Ideas on how to wear your white shirt

1.A cardigan

During the warmer months try to forget black, gray and navy and sneak an attention-grabbing cardigan.

Best colors here are forest green, bright blue or a pastel.

For you stylistically daring junkies out there, consider shades like yellow as well, and remember that you can get away with brighter, more outrageous colors the darker your skin tone is.Alternatively, if you’re sick and tired of brights, try out camel.Not many men use it in their apparels.

photo:http://www.hypebeast.com

2.A striped blazer

Break out of your usual style routine by boasting a striped blazer. It gives you a chic, nautical look, especially during the summer months.

And here’s the best part: although a patterned blazer will definitely turn heads in your directions, stripes are mean a conservative look, so it goes very well in formal environments.

http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com

3.White pants

A white dress shirt may be heard of before, but when teamed with white pants to create a head-to-toe white ensemble, it becomes incredibly refined. To get this look right, just find white pants in a lightweight material.

And this is how it should all look:

photo:http://www.linenpantsformen.net

4.Track jacket

photo:http://www.aluba.com

Contrasting a white shirt with a track jacket is a quick way to achieve that hip, high-low look that has stylish written all over it. You probably won’t be able to wear this combination in the office, but for the weekend, there is no better option.

Though denim is the obvious choice when it comes to trousers here, this jacket would be stunning with white pants and sneakers.

If you are thinking of being more formal, don’t overlook the possibility of wearing a pocket square. White goes with white.

photo:http://www.essentialstyleformen.com

Good luck matching your white shirts!

photo: made-in-china.com

One of the things I advise here at Be Stylish is to keep your sporting clothes for sporting activities. Things like shirts, vests and leather shoes will look way better on you then if you wore your gym equipment on a night out.

But what if you want to show your passion for sports and remain stylish at the same time? Is there a way to do it in a subtle way?

Enter the world of rugby shirts.

A rugby shirt is similar to a polo shirt, which makes it a great alternative to them. It comes with either long or short sleeves and always has thick horizontal stripes (also known as hoops). The difference lies in the fact that the rugby shirt‘s collar is more prominent, pointed and can sometimes come in a different color that the rest of the shirt.

What are they made of?

Rugby shirts specifically made for the game of rugby are mostly polyester. The reason is they fit tighter on the body and are more aerodynamic.

However! …

For going out, you shouldn’t go for the polyester ones. Cotton breathes and it’s the number one choice for a variety of items of clothing. Yes, this includes rugby shirts. Sure, if you like to play rugby, you probably already have a few polyester rugby shirts but, for going out, you need the cotton ones.

Another difference between the “sportswear” rugby shirts and the “street wear” ones is that the formers have a big number on the back. You won’t always find numbers on rugby shirts that are meant to be worn on a night out.

To me, the presence of the number on the back dresses the outfit down, and I don’t personally want that. I prefer to dress my casual outfits up, to stand out a little more.

But this is up to you. Style is about following some guidelines as well as making personal decisions.

Are rugby shirts for me?

Let me put it right from the start: if you’re too short, rugby shirts are NOT for you. They have big horizontal lines that make you look wider. If you’re not that tall, your goal should be to look taller. Vertical stripes are for you in this case (think dress shirts).

If you have a belly, rugby shirts are not for you either. They’ll make your belly stand out so much you’ll want to run away home and change.

But… if you’re skinny and either tall or of average height, you should definitely go for rugby shirts. They’ll balance you out by widening your midsection.

Layering

The natural question every guy wants to know the answer to is: what goes well with a rugby shirt?

Well, a lot of things!

You can wear a t-shirt or even another collared shirt under it. Think about it: if you were tower the rugby shirt in the picture at the beginning of this article, what would happen if you wore a white shirt underneath? You would get two white collars one on top of the other.

That’s coolness at its best right there…

Here are some other things you can wear with rugby shirts: slim ties, sports jackets and even some sleeveless vests (stay away from vests with vertical stripes – since the rugby shirt has horizontal stripes, you’ll create a weird effect).

Stay stylish!

A few weeks later it hit me: the polo shirt combines formal with casual in a very stylish way. It keeps the collar from the dress shirt and borrows the short sleeves from the regular t-shirt.

There are good and bad ways of combining casual with formal. Wearing sandals with a suit is a bad example. Wearing a slim tie with a polo shirt is a GREAT example.

The best part when it comes to polo shirts is that you can wear them with almost anything. Try any of these (just make sure you coordinate the colors):

• Shorts
• Dress pants
• Jeans
• Slim ties
• Leather shoes
• Sneakers

Here’s a nice looking outfit of a green polo shirt and a sports jacket:

(Don’t wear your polo shirt‘s collar raised, like the guy in the above image does it, though. It’s not very stylish.)

Notice how you can wear a bold looking color like green and look stylish. The black of the blazer is what tones the whole outfit down for a classy yet stylish look.

A warning when it comes to polo shirts. Never wear them in formal situations. If you’re a salesperson or a businessman, never show up at your meetings in one. Nowadays, when dress shirts are making their way more and more into the world of casual, it’s silly to start wearing polo shirts to important business meetings.

Layering

If you’re looking to get more out of your polo shirts outfits, try layering them with vests. This will show everyone that you pay attention to the way you dress. This is me wearing a blue polo shirt and a white vest:

Whatcha think?

When most men think about a military shirt, they imagine an ugly camouflage shirt. But today’s stylish military shirts are not like that at all. They have very good fabric and colors (as you are about to see).

So why are they still called “military” then? Well, they do keep some elements from the original models worn by the soldiers. One is the epaulets and the other is the front pockets.

These two elements are actually a blessing if you’re thin because they will make you look bigger. This is actually one of the best guarded secrets about how to look “larger”. Instead of wearing a normal shirt two sizes too large (which will make you look ridiculous anyway), try a military shirt that fits you perfectly. The epaulets will make your shoulders look bigger and the front pockets will make a more prominent chest.

photo: ethicalstyle.com

What you have in the picture above is a perfect example of a stylish military shirt. It looks good, it makes the guy look bigger and the sleeves can be rolled up if it’s too hot outside. It goes perfectly in any casual situation.

What can military shirts go well with?

Whether you’re a jeans person or a dress pants person – it doesn’t matter. Military shirts go very well with both. The thing that matters is how to match it with your outfit. In order to really bring out the potential, you need to make sure all colors go well together. This of course means you need some color coordination advice as well as some practice.

To get you started, here are some outfits which include of military shirts.

One important thing: most military shirtscan either be worn tucked or untucked. (You’ve probably already noticed this from the pictures.) This is something you need to figure out for yourself depending on the outfit.