Tom Ford says, “keep your jacket buttoned. Always. It’s just really flattering” and Tom Ford is right, because even though Tom Ford puts on his pants one leg at a time like the rest of us, when his pants are on, he’s Tom Ford.
So now that we know our jackets should always be buttoned, it opens up a whole new set of questions, and rules. Firstly, the “always” part of keeping your jacket buttoned applies only to when you are standing, it should be unbuttoned when you sit down.
With regards to the above sometimes, always, never rule it applies to the actual buttons on your suit or blazer jacket, starting with a 3 button jacket (You shouldn’t own a jacket or blazer with more than 3 buttons unless you are actually in Boys 2 Men and the year is 1992). Basically the top button is optional and depends on the cut.
With 2 button suits it gets a little simpler, you just never button the bottom button.
A single button suit requires very little thought, with the 1 button and all.
So what to do when you’re stepping out and wearing a double breasted suit or a waistcoat. they also come in varied button configurations based on the cut and the trend of the time. The rule here is a little simpler, the bottom button always remains unbuttoned.
Legend has it that Kind Edward VII started the trend of leaving the last button of his suit undone, this isn’t to say that the king was a fashionista with a keen eye for trend spotting, but more to say that the king was a fatty. Yep, his suit got too tight so he would leave the button open, eventually the same for his waistcoat, and so on…as time passed and out of respect for the fat king, it became custom. Okay. Stay fancy.
* All the above items currently on Zara.Com
