The Only 5 Dress Shirts You’ll Ever Need | Menswear Wardrobe Basics

You wanna do more with less, be ready for any situation, and get the most value out of your purchases. But there are so many options out there, especially when it comes to dress shirts, that it can be hard to narrow down what those basic pieces are that you really have to have. I always focus on versatility, and in this video, I'm gonna show you the only five dress shirts you will ever need. I'm Brian Sacawa, and you're watching He Spoke Style, where we give you the information and inspiration you need to dress well, have more confidence, and unlock your potential. Now, if you've been paying attention over the last couple years on the channel, you've probably noticed that I wear pretty much the same five shirts all the time. Every once in a while, I might throw in a different one, like this gingham shirt, for example, but in general, I'm not really stepping outside those core five shirts that I have in my wardrobe. The reason is because, above all else, and one of the things I believe in most, is building a wardrobe that is focused on versatility. You want pieces that you can plug in easily to a variety of different situations. Now, of course, there are two big details you need to pay attention to when you're thinking about your dress shirts. What type of collar are you gonna have, and what type of cuff are you going to have? A lot of this boils down to personal preference, and my personal preference is to choose a classic collar and a one-button rounded cuff. These aren't the most unique styling details. In fact, you might even say they're kind of boring, but if we're talking about really leaning into getting the most out of these shirts, a classic collar and a one-button rounded cuff is a really safe bet. I mean, full disclosure, I like a French cuff shirt. I like a turnback cuff as well, but those have a very specific look and feel, like you're not gonna be able to style a French cuff shirt in a more casual setting. A one-button rounded cuff, however, slides more easily between dressy, business casual, and casual scenarios. Same thing with a button-down collar or a more aggressive spread collar shirt. Those have their place, but again, if you're looking for maximum versatility and you only wanted to have five shirts, then the styling I suggest is a good way to go. Now, the way we're able to get a little more out of these shirts is by considering the fabric, and as I go through each of these five shirts, I'm going to talk specifically about the fabric choices, and I think you'll really see how far that will go to add versatility and range to the collection. Essential shirt number one is a white shirt in a poplin fabric by Thomas Mason. 100% cotton with a weight of 150 grams. Poplin weaves, because of their construction, are an ideal choice for shirts that are thin and cool, and that will also maintain a sturdy appearance. Poplin also has a great natural luster, which makes it perfect for more formal or suited looks, but it can also lend a bit of elegance to an outfit with chinos, for example, or even when paired with jeans. For this outfit, though, I wanted to highlight the poplin shirt in a classic, dressy, and suited way. This is a dark navy suit that has a subtle herringbone pattern in it, brown pattern tie to kind of take the formality down just a little bit, simple white pocket square, and brown oxford shoes. I spent so much time talking about the collar style I recommend, so I wanna point out why I do really like this style, and the main reason is that I love how the collar interfaces with the lapel of the jacket. Because of the length of the collar, you don't see the point, which I think just looks very clean and very polished. Essential shirt number two is one of my favorites, an ice blue oxford cloth shirt. This fabric is by Thomas Mason, 100% cotton, and a weight of 180 grams. You know, you always hear about the OCBD, or oxford cloth button-down, certainly a staple, more casual style shirt, but with a classic collar like this, you get the added versatility of being able to style it in a more dressed-up way, which is what I'm doing here, pairing it with a brown sharkskin suit, which seems to have become one of the fan favorites in the shop. I chose a Prince of Wales check or glen plaid tie here to keep it more in that in-between, not super formal, dressed-up styling, where I feel like an oxford shirt like this really shines. And then, again, to keep things on the more relaxed side of dressed-up, I'm anchoring this look with a pair of tassel-overs. Essential shirt number three is also an oxford cloth shirt, but this one with a stripe. Fabric is by Thomas Mason, again. It's 100% cotton, with a weight of 150 grams. A stripe shirt is a must-have, and I particularly like the size of this stripe. It's not too thin, it's not too wide, but it's different enough while still being classic, and therefore very easy to style. I always think of a stripe shirt like this as kind of fresh and lending itself to a more relaxed approach, which is why I've paired it here with a hopsack suit. Hopsack, as you know, great choice for a suit with a more casual feel. Ditto on the patch pockets. I chose a medallion tie with a lighter tannish color, again, playing into that relaxed and not super buttoned-up and formal vibe. Sunglasses are by Oliver Peoples, and the derby shoes are by Enzo Bonaffe. Essential shirt number four is gray with what you might call a reversed pencil stripe. It's in a poplin fabric by Canclini. 100% cotton and lightweight at 110 grams. This is going to be your dark horse, kind of underdog shirt in the collection, but one that gives you just an incredible amount of range and really deepens your entire collection. This shirt for me kind of feels like low-key elegance, and I've paired it with the same dark blue suit with a subtle herringbone pattern that you saw in the first look. Totally on purpose, because although the looks are similar, what you can see here is that the richness of the gray with the addition of the stripe, although still more or less on the formal side, just has a completely different feel. And for a shirt to be able to transform a suit like that, that's what we're looking for when we talk about versatility. Essential shirt number five is a denim shirt. The fabric is by Canclini, 100% cotton, 210 grams. This is such a great sportier shirt to have, and one of my favorite things about it is how easily it can dress down a suit for more business casual looks. And business casual is what I'm doing here. I've paired the denim shirt with our brown Donegal tweed sport coat, pair of navy cotton trousers, classic pocket square, and some Derby shoes, which are, again, by Enzo Bonaffe. Now, I wanna let you know that all of these shirts are available in the HSS shop. And the best part about that is if you, you know, want something different, like a different collar style or a different cuff style, you can completely customize those parts of the shirt. And add to that that you're going to be going through our measuring process, so you can be really confident that you're going to get a shirt that is fit perfectly for you. If you haven't checked out our shirts in the shop yet, there's a link right over there. So click there, head over to the shop, and start filling your wardrobe with some great menswear essentials.