Thousands of businesses have a formal dress code in which workers are required to wear a suit or similar type of formal outfit. If you work for one of these businesses, you might be wondering what type of suit you should wear to the office. Choosing a business suit requires a different approach than choosing a personal/leisure suit. Since you'll be wearing it at work, your suit must be comfortable while also featuring a traditional style that complies with your business's dress code. If you're struggling to find the perfect business suit, though, we've compiled a list of helpful tips.
Check Your Business's Dress Code
Start by checking your business's dress code, assuming your business has one, to see what types of clothes you are and are not allowed to wear. According to
one report, nearly half of all U.S. businesses have a dress code. Failure to follow your business's dress code reflects poorly upon your skills and competence as a worker. To remain on your employer's good side, you must follow his or her dress code. If the dress code says all male workers must wear a two-piece suit, you should follow this advance by wearing a two-piece suit to the office each day.
Choose a Comfortable Fabric
When choosing a business suit, consider the fabric and whether it will be comfortable to wear at your workplace. If you work in an air-conditioned office where the climate is a consistent 68 degrees Heterogeneity, you may want to choose a wool suit, especially if you aren't a naturally cold person. With their thick construction, wool suits offer a superior level of warmth compared to suits made of other fabrics, making them ideal for cool offices and workplaces.
If you worn in a non-air-conditioned warehouse, on the other hand, you may want to choose a linen suit. Linen suits are thinner than wool suits, so they are naturally cooler to wear. You can wear a linen suit for eight or more hours a day during the hot summer months without feeling excessively hot. The bottom line is that you need to choose a business suit in a comfortable fabric.
Avoid Bright Colors and Flashy Designs
It's usually best to avoid wearing bright-colored or flashy suits to work. While perfectly fine for recreational and leisure activities, most businesses discourage workers from wearing suits with bright colors or flashy designs. As a result, you'll need to choose a business suit in a traditional color and design. You really can't go wrong with an all-black suit. Whether it's made of cotton, linen, wool or any other fabric, a black suit will help you create a classic image while likely complying with your business's dress code in the process.
Although black suits are an excellent choice for the workplace, you can choose business suits in other colors. Gray suits, for example, offer a similar classic style that's perfect for the modern workplace. Black and gray are just two of many classic, traditional colors in which men's suits are made. Feel free to experiment with other colors. As long as it's traditional and not too bright or flashy, it should be fine to wear to work.
Wear a Matching Suit Jacket and Trousers
When creating a formal outfit for work, you should choose a suit jacket with matching trousers. In other words, your suit jacket should feature the same fabric, color and overall design as your trousers. If these two garments don't match, your suit may look a little too casual for the workplace. You can easily prevent this from happening, however, by purchasing a complete two-piece suit with a jacket and matching trousers. Wearing suit separates -- different jacket and trousers -- is fine outside of the workplace, but when getting dressed for work, you should wear a suit jacket with matching trousers.
Wear the Right Dress Shirt
While a two-piece suit, by definition, consists of a suit jacket with a pair of matching trousers, you'll still need to wear a dress shirt with it. Don't just wear any dress shirt with your business suit, though. To create an attractive and formal outfit, choose a dress shirt that compliments the color of your suit. Assuming you're wearing an all-black business suit, a white dress shirt is an excellent choice. White contrasts with black to create a visually appealing appearance. Regardless of what color suit you intend to wear, there's probably a dress shirt out there in a complimenting color. It's up to you, however, to find it.
Find the Right Necktie
Of course, you should pair your business suit with the right necktie. There are several accessories you can wear with a suit, including a tie bar and pocket square, but none are more important than a necktie. A traditional necktie will define your upper body while introducing new colors, patters and other visual elements in the process. If you don't know how to tie a necktie, check out this
YouTube video. It reveals the step-by-step process to tie a necktie in just 10 seconds or less.
De-Wrinkle Your Business Suit When Needed
Even if you choose the perfect business suit with the right color, design and fabric, it will likely develop wrinkles. While you can't prevent wrinkles from forming on your business suit, you can eliminate them either by ironing your suit or having it dry cleaned. First, check your suit's care label to see if you can iron it. Depending on the fabric, as well as how the suit was manufactured, you may be able to de-wrinkle it using a steam iron.
If your business suit says "dry clean only" on the care label, don't try to de-wrinkle it with a steam iron. Instead, take it to dry cleaner. Dry cleaning isn't necessarily a dry process. It's called "dry cleaning" because it uses liquid chemicals to clean clothes rather than water. Regardless, it's a safe and effective way to de-wrinkle your business suit without using a steam iron.
