10 Things Elegant Men NEVER Wear (Buy THIS Instead!)

Smart watches, flip-flops, running sole dress shoes, baseball caps, no show socks. Now, it's safe to say most of us own a few if not all of those items. And understand, I'm not here to tell you that you can't wear them. No, the point I want to make is that most men are over wearing these items. Seriously, there's a time and place for the Apple Watch. I love mine. On the weekend, running errands, but on days that you get dressed up especially if you're wearing a jacket, if you're wearing a suit, come on, gents, level it up. Bring in a classic mechanical watch. And I'm not saying you got to go out there and spend a lot of money on a Rolex. No, if you look around for a couple hundred bucks, you can get something that's timeless, that's elegant, that's incredibly versatile and looks good and is going to allow you to wear that watch that piece as jewelry. Because, yeah, a stylish watch can complete an outfit. And when you're wanting to dress things up, bringing in the right timepiece can make all the difference. Now, speaking of dressing things up, let's talk about those running sole dress shoes. Over the last decade, they've become really popular. And you know what? I like them. They're functional, they're comfortable, and definitely the last couple of years, they have actually become pretty darn stylish. That being said, they are definitely not equivalent to dress shoes. So, definitely, if you're wearing a suit or if you're wearing a nice outfit and you want to make that outfit look good, choose a proper pair of dress shoes. And, yes, there are many brands out there if you look around that are comfortable that feel good when you wear them. And, yeah, wear the right shoe outfit combination when you want to look your best. Now, what about flip-flops? You see people wearing these all over the place. And you know what? There have been hot Saturday mornings that I am guilty of this, I'll just be out running errands and I just throw them on. But, the reality is flip-flops aren't very functional and they actually best serve a man when he's near the water, when he's going to be taking them off to jump in the pool, to jump in the ocean, or to protect his feet from hot sand or when he's in the men's locker room. And an easy timeless alternative here, get a pair of sandals. Not only are they a step-up style-wise, they're also designed in a way to not fly off your feet in the case that you've got to run. I mean, seriously, you never know what's going to happen. Now, what about no-show socks? Well, like everything on this list, they have their time and place. A hot summer day with a casual outfit, sure, go for it. You can wear them with casual shoes, you can wear them with a light-colored pair of loafers. But, once the temperature drops below 70, it's time to bring back your regular length socks. And remember, in general, you want your socks to match your trousers. Now, what about the baseball cap? Hey, if you're on the golf course, if you are playing baseball, all the more power to you, wear it. But, if it's dinnertime and you still are wearing a baseball cap because you didn't want to brush your hair, come on, gents, have a little bit more self-respect, step it up. Take the time to take the hat off and get your hair looking good. Now, if you're bald and especially if you're outdoors, you get a pass, you can wear that hat whenever. All right. I took that jacket off. It's hot in here. Seriously, when I'm filming these videos, I can't have, you know, the AC going. But, what I have underneath is an undershirt. And an elegant man, he never wears a dress shirt without wearing an undershirt. And I know some guys are saying, Antonio, an extra layer, isn't that going to make it warmer? Maybe, but what it does really well is it catches sweat. It better distributes it and it protects your more expensive dress shirts from getting ruined from getting sweat stains. And, yeah, if it gets hot in your area, look for ones that are made from a lightweight breathable material. I personally find they're cooler and I appreciate how I don't get the sweat stains because I'm wearing something underneath. So, up to this point, we've been talking about a lot of things that a man should not wear. But, let's talk about things that a man should wear. One of them, a belt that fits him properly. Seriously, if you're wearing a belt that has holes in it, you can only adjust it by the inch. That means that that belt isn't going to fit you properly and it's probably uncomfortable. Compare that with the micro adjust system at Anson Belt & Buckle. Now, gents, I've had Anson Belt & Buckle as a sponsor for years. And I love what these guys do, how they've helped pioneer the micro adjust system, which enables you to adjust a belt to a quarter of an inch, so you get the perfect fit every time. In addition, let's talk about their interchangeable system. So, all of their buckles work with all of their straps. That means if you've got three buckles, if you've got three straps, you have nine different belt combinations. In fact, that's why I highly recommend grab their box set. You can mix and match, create your own combination, or you can go with their classic combinations of their best sellers. Highly recommended. And, guys, while you're on their website, check out their compact classic buckle. This is a shorter version of their classic buckle built to reduce front of waist bulk. These compact classic buckles take everything you love about the Anson Belt & Buckle original design and refines it into a design approximately half the length of their standard classic buckle. And it does all this without sacrificing strength, durability, or performance. And for those of you guys that conceal carry, check out their 1.5-inch concealed carry straps. And if you want to save money, gents, make sure to sign up for their email list. Occasionally, they got flash sales up to 20% off on their email list and on their text club, up to 30% off on occasion. So, gents, get over to Anson Belt & Buckle. Check them out. Look at all the new straps, all the new buckles, all the new designs they're coming out with. Guys, use that link to get the best deal on the web. I love this company. I know the founders. So, go check them out. Use the link in the description. Anson Belt & Buckle, they're the real deal. Next up, let's talk about five-pocket performance pants that you are wearing as dress pants. I, to a degree, am guilty of this. I've got certain performance pants I love to wear when I'm traveling. But, when I am actually going to an event, one in which there is a dress code, one in which they've asked people to dress up, I do wear dress slacks. There is still a difference. As much as I love the synthetic breathable materials of performance trousers, they're oftentimes cut in a way that makes them more casual. They've got a bit of sheen to them that doesn't give the luxury look. So, at this point, I'm still going to recommend if you need to get dressed up, it's important that you actually wear dress pants. If you're wearing a suit, it should come with a matching pair of trousers made from the same material, hopefully in a lightweight worsted wool if it's hot. But, yeah, performance pants can be dressed up, but only to a certain degree. Now, speaking of suits and breaking them up, let's talk about wearing that suit jacket as a blazer. It's possible, but you got to make sure you're doing it right. First up, if you're going to do this, it probably should be a solid navy in color. You may want to change out the buttons, but you always want to make sure you get the fit. I've seen so many guys try to do this except maybe it's a dark gray, it's a black suit, and it just looks off and oftentimes they're pairing it with the wrong type of trousers. If you are going to match odd trousers with a jacket that is from a suit, you really want to make sure you're keeping it simple that they are both of a cut that's going to match. You don't want to wear overly loose trousers with a closer fitted jacket. Yeah, when you try to mix cuts like that, it just doesn't look right. Next up, let's talk about the quarter zip. I love quarter zips, but they can be overplayed. Understand quarter zips are casual sweaters. V-necks, crew necks, especially if you go with a lightweight one, those look great especially if you're going to layer them with a suit, that V-neck in particular. Quarter zips on the other hand, yes, can be worn over a dress shirt with a pair of nice pants and dress shoes. But, they come out of performance where they were made popular on the golf course. You saw them out in Silicon Valley. And in general, these are still going to be casual wear items. So, be careful about trying to dress up that quarter zip too much. It is still a casual piece. Next up, let's talk about the long line t-shirt. You saw these maybe five years ago. They were really popular. And these are t-shirts that are overly long. They've got that curved front that curved back. They had their heyday. And like a lot of fashion pieces, the problem is that heyday only lasted maybe a year maybe a season. And now, they are hopelessly out of style. Same thing with jeans with zippers on the ankles, maybe those only had like a moment like ten seconds. But, I know some of you guys bought them. Understand those are not in fashion. Moto jeans with ribbed knee panels. I'm not even sure why they made these things because they weren't actually made to be – I mean, if you are familiar with leather moto protective gear, it is designed like this. But, the jeans, this didn't even make sense. It was a fashion trend. And, guys, that has been gone for years. Ripped skinny jeans especially with Chelsea boots, guys, that trend is gone. Ultra low rise jeans and chinos, that is out of fashion as well. And spray on stretch jeans, thank goodness that one has been gone. In fact, I was against it whenever it was around. And what are we seeing right now? Baggy loose fits, which they will have their moment. You may be wondering, Antonio, well, what do I go with? Go with classic styles that aren't going anywhere. Straight fits, tapered fits, fits that suit your body type. Guys, this is why I recommend you buy clothing for the body you have, not for the style the fashion that's out there because otherwise, you are, yeah, you're going to be wasting a whole lot of money. Drop crotch joggers, it's hard to even say that. Yes, they were a thing. You want to avoid these, yeah, just it was a fashion trend a few years ago. You'll see these things pop up at thrift stores. Maybe you'll find a pair out there that's on sale, 95% off. Guys, that does not mean you want to buy it. But, what about things that are in fashion right now? Drawstring trousers. I have couple pair of these. Drawstring trousers are great. If you want comfort, they're going to be a little bit looser, so they're going with the current fashion. But, here's the thing with drawstring trousers is they are always casual. These are not trousers that you could ever wear with a suit. These are not trousers that you would ever want to dress up. If you're on vacation and you want to look cool, definitely you can pull them off in linen. But, for a serious meeting, if you're going out, you want to be careful wearing these things. Getting back to footwear, recovery slides. You see a lot of people wearing these with socks. I like slides. They're comfortable. Am I going to wear these with socks around? No, not in public, maybe around the house. But, no, not where anyone can see. All right, gents. So, now, let's dress things up a bit. Let's talk about strong colors in suiting. So, a few years back, we had this strong blue that we were seeing everywhere. I really like it especially on the right tone. It can work really well. You've got darker skin. But, here's the deal. This is not a blue suit. When I say own a blue or charcoal gray, I mean navy. Navy is the go-to color. Charcoal gray is another go-to color for your first two suits. This color blue is not. It's beautiful. It's going to work with certain color tones. But, it's not going to work for most men and it is going to be a more casual style. Other trends in suiting that we've seen that has now gone away is closer fits to the body, thinner lapels, shorter jackets, all of these things. You'll find some jackets have all of that right there. This is a dated suit. You'll pick it up at a thrift store and say, hey, this looks good on me. And you know what? If you are a thinner individual, you can pull this off. But, they have a lot of those jackets that were made for bigger individuals and they never looked good. And, again, I'm not saying you got to go with the latest trends, which are going to be baggier. Instead, go for a timeless build, which if you go into any finer menswear store, they're going to have the classic cuts because they just don't go out of style. But, all that being said, if you're trying to wear something that's got thinner lapels or thicker lapels, remember you want to match the width of your necktie with the lapels. So, if it's got thinner lapels, you are technically going to need to be wearing a thinner tie. If you're going to go with thicker lapels, you're going to go with a little bit thicker tie. And if you're working with a professional, if you're taking this to a tailor, you should note that and make sure the proportions are on point. Now, what about dark-colored dress shirts? Well, technically there is no such thing as a dark-colored dress shirt. All dress shirts are white, but you will see variations which we now call dress shirts that are going to maybe have blue stripes on them are going to be light blue like what I'm wearing right here. This is technically a button-down casual shirt. So, remember that distinction because when it comes to darker colors, these are always going to be casual. Even if they are labeled as dress shirts, they're technically not. Again, to each their own and I don't mean to throw anyone under the bus, but when I see a young man who's wearing, you know, a red dress shirt with a light-colored tie, it just doesn't look good. I feel like, ah, man. Yeah, for the sake of your future self, when you look at these photos twenty years from now, I want you to look good. I want your kids to look at those photos and say, dad, man, you looked great. So, light-colored dress shirts preferably white, the tie should always be darker. And speaking of ties, never go with any of those novelty neckties, any of those wooden bow ties. All of those things are dated and they were never really that stylish to begin with. And if you are buying a tie and pocket square as a set, make sure that they are not a matching set. You want them to complement each other, not to match exactly. Now, what about giant designer logos? Here's the thing, unless you are getting paid by the brand, you don't need to have that giant designer logo. You'll see those pants out there that have logos going all over the place. You'll see shirts with huge logos on them. Guys, you do not want to go down this path. Keep it simple, keep it in neutral colors. So, another thing to avoid are bright neons. Yes, they go in and out these strong colors. Every season seems to have a color. For you in general, you want to stick to neutrals. These colors right here for a timelessly elegant man, you keep it simple. And what I love about colors like this is they're easy to mix and match, easy for you to be able to wear with each other, so you can put together outfits like this. As you can see, just solid boring colors, but with a timeless style. And if you take care of yourself, guys, this is one of the easiest ways to step up your style is, yes, is to stick with the pieces, the colors that worked for your grandfather that worked for your father. You bring in maybe a few modern pieces here or there. Maybe one dash of color, have fun with the accessories. Maybe go with the latest haircut. But, guys, overall, if you keep it simple, you'll find that your style comes off as elegant as timeless. Without even trying, you will look like the man. So, what about square-toed shoes? Well, I left a lot of things off this list because I just felt they were obvious, but they're probably not. So, go watch this video right here in which I go into even more. Yes, I left a lot of things off. You can let me know in the comments what should have been on this video. But, guys, right here, I've got another – yeah, we keep going, so go check it out and, yeah, enjoy. I'll see you guys in the next video. Take care.