Essential Tops for the Men In Your Life

Happy Thursday, ladies!  Although we weren’t really planning on doing this, I have a special treat for you.  After the success of the post How to Build a Casual Wardrobe for the Man in Your Life, I asked my oldest if he’d do a series based on that.  He begrudgingly agreed, so I’m going to turn it over to him as he talks essential tops the men in your life should own.

Hi, everyone!  This is Alex, Beth’s son.  As someone who has dressed in band t-shirts and jeans most of my life, as I approach middle age, I decided to rebuild my wardrobe from the ground up.

Not too hard given that I have Beth to help, but I thought I’d share a few of the tips I’ve picked up over the past few years or so.  I figured most of us have a man in our life.  (I have myself, at least.) And those men could probably use a little help.

So, over the next few months, I thought I’d take a page out of Beth’s book and write a sort of “essential”-like column—tops, bottoms… you get the idea.

Ultimately, my aesthetic is pretty spartan and based largely in part on American and British workwear.  We’re talking a lot of jeans and work pants; button-ups and tees; sweaters and shirt jackets.

It’s a wardrobe that dates back about 150 or so years.  (Yay, Levis!)  So, it’s never really going to go out of style.  Honestly, I think it would hold up well for a man of any age.  And outside of a formal occasion, you can pretty much wear it anywhere.  So I hope you enjoy the post and it provides a little inspiration for the men in your life.

The Summary

  Today, my oldest is talking essential tops for the men in your life

  He’s pulled in 4 categories:  tees, sweatshirts, button-ups, and sweaters

  For each category, he also pulled in an inspiration outfit

  All of this suggestions are shoppable via text-widgets

Essential Tops the Men in Your Life Should Own

1. Basic Tees

Whether the man in your life wears a t-shirt alone or uses it as a layering piece, they’re the foundation of any wardrobe.  To my mind, the four most essential tees–short and/or long-sleeved–a man should own are:

• henley
• crewneck
• v-neck
• raglan

I’m personally obsessed with henleys at the moment and wear them under just about everything from button-ups to cardigans.

When purchasing new t-shirts, make sure you have the neutrals covered first:  white, black, grey, and navy.  Once you have the foundation laid, tees are a great way to introduce color into your wardrobe.  I’ve got a yellow and red crewneck that I’ve been rotating through heavily this winter.

Board:  New Elder Henley Short Sleeve Shirt Raw (&Sons) | Double Knit Long Sleeve Baseball Raglan (Marine Layer) | Solid Crewneck T-Shirt (Vince) | Slub V-Neck T-Shirt (Treasure & Bond)

inspiration outfit

Board:  New Elder Henley Short Sleeve Shirt Raw (&Sons) | Tellis Slim Ikigai Rigid Red Line Selvedge Jeans (AG) | Cayon Plaid Button-Up Wool Shirt (Pendelton) | Chukka (Stetson)

2. sweatshirts

It’s hard for me to imagine a single man I know that doesn’t love sweatshirts.  I know I sure do.  Whether I’m lounging around at home or heading out to run errands, I always reach for a sweatshirt.

You’ve basically got three options here:

• pullover (crewneck or hoodie)
• zip-up hoodie

I was a hoodie guy for the longest time.  (Mostly band ones, actually.) But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve gravitated more to crewnecks for what it’s worth.

And it is worth pointing out, that although never formal, sweatshirts don’t have to look sloppy.  I put together an inspiration outfit below based on one I wear quite frequently:  a zip-up hoodie, classic tee, chinos, and workboots.

Can’t go wrong, really.

Board: Track & Field Hoodie (&Sons) | Corbet Quilted Full Zip Hoodie (Marine Layer) | Waffle Stitch Crewneck Sweatshirt (French Connection) | Cotton Blend Hoodie (Treasure & Bond)

inspiration Outfit

Board: Virgil Chino (&Sons) | Iron Ranger Boots (Red Wing) | Solid Crewneck T-Shirt (Vince) | Corbet Quilted Full Zip Hoodie (Marine Layer)

3. Button-Ups

I would say the majority of my wardrobe is comprised of button-ups.  And in all honesty, they’re fairly evenly split between plain neutrals and flannel.

When I say “plain neutrals”, I’m including denim shirts, snap buttons, and traditional button-ups.  But in reality, I’m not a big pattern guy—just really utilitarian.  So, I’m sticking to navy blue, black, olive green, and tan.  Any color is coming either from my flannel shirts or the tees I’m using as layering pieces.

That’s right, I’m big on layering.  I always pair a button-up with some sort of tee.  As for the button-up itself, I wear it unbuttoned about half the time, depending on the occasion.

Board:  Sunday Shirt (&Sons) | Shepherd Moleskin Shirt (Buffalo Jackson) | The Western Shirt (Banana Republic) | Cayon Plaid Button-Up Wool Shirt (Pendelton)

Inspiration Outfit

Board: New Elder Henley Short Sleeve Shirt Raw (&Sons) | Shepherd Moleskin Shirt (Buffalo Jackson) | Heritage Moc Boot (Red Wing) | Quilted Jacket (Barbour) | Cigarette Skinny Fit Jeans (AllSaints)

4. Sweaters

Absolutely love sweaters.  Crewneck, shawl collar, cardigans—you name it, I’m wearing it.  The weather has been particularly cool down here in Georgia this year, so I’ve gotten a lot of use out of my sweater collection.

Again, layering is the name of the game here.  Whether a t-shirt or button-up, you can’t go wrong.  I think my biggest consideration is the thickness of the sweater.  I’m a huskier guy, so I’ll wear t-shirts with chunkier sweaters and button-ups with thinner ones.  Personal preference, though.

Board:  Ahab Mariner Rollneck Jumper (&Sons) | Nate Stripe Cardigan (Marine Layer) | Fair Isle Donegal Crewneck Sweater (Alex Mill) | Crewneck Sweater (Vince)

Inspiration Outfit

Board: New Elder Henley Short Sleeve Shirt Raw (&Sons) | Nate Stripe Cardigan (Marine Layer) | Desert Cup Sole Boot (Clarks) | Surplus Cargo Pant (RRL)

In Case You Missed It

This morning, Kelly shared her take on the monochromatic trend but for petites. Click the title or image below to read the article.

The Monochromatic Trend for Petites

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