Poll: French cuffs without a suit - Yes or No?

No.

I hope Kent doesn't mind me using his pictures, but I've always thought this was awesome: I'm sure the MC faithful will scoff.

French cuffs without a jacket? Big deal. If someone has a nice shirt that looks good with just a pair of jeans/khakis/dress pants, why avoid it just because the shirt happens to have french cuffs?

With the caveat that I am not a great devotee of French cuffs to begin with, I would say they might be acceptable with a fairly dressy odd jacket. Wearing them without any jacket would strike me as an anomaly or sartorial discontinuity--sort of like wearing dress bals with a polo shirt and khakis.

I vote no!

I vote yes. It just looks like you've taken off your coat. I'm not too sure with jeans unless the shirt has relatively short skirting (edit: see Brian's post above of Kent, I think that looks good). Mine all have long skirting and it looks weird to tuck in my dress shirts into jeans. I'm sure it can be done though, just not on me. And I agree to keep the cuff links simple such as silk knots.

Oddly enough, I disagree with FC and sports jacket. Without a suit coat, it looks like you've just left your suit coat somewhere and you're walking around in your FC shirt and tie. But with a sports jacket, it looks like you're doing something wrong. Just my opinion.

French Cuffs without jacket, tucked into dress pants - NO!

Why?

1) It looks undressed. FC tucked into dress pants without a jacket is like wearing pants without a belt. Yes, there's nothing stopping you from doing it, but it just looks undone. Incomplete. Even on "Wall Street", Gordon Gekko wore a jacket and only took it off in the office thereby revealing FC shirt.

2) It looks like you're trying too hard. To an onlooker, the main difference between a french cuff shirt and a non-FC is the cufflinks. When you wear a FC with a jacket, you're dressing up - that's the statement you're making. You're saying to the world, "I'm dressed up." You're also hiding your cufflinks under the jacket - understated. When you wear a FC without a jacket, it looks like you're saying to the world, "The only reason why I'm wearing a FC shirt instead of a normal shirt is because I want to show off my cufflinks, to show you how expensive they are, how sophisticated I am. Look at my cufflinks." Yikes! Haven't you heard? Showiness is out. Understated is in.

French Cuffs without jacket, untucked, casual pants - YES!

Why?

1) (Caveat - I'm talking about semi-casual FC-shirts that are *made* to be untucked, not the formal pressed ones with long skirting. ) By matching FC *untucked* with *casual pants*, your statement is, "I'm deliberately breaking the rules!" In this case, your cufflinks become your fun jewelry to jazz up the outfit. Cufflinks should NOT be too formal or too expensive looking in this case. Look a little rumpled. Do not be too pressed or you'll look like you're trying too hard. ;-)

Just my two-cents from a female on-looker. Yes, of course you can wear whatever you like, or what you find comfortable. Do you like wearing your pjs? Do you wear it outside the house?

Yes, but never without a tie.

FC without a suit is totally out of the question for me

Depends on the shirt and the cuff links.

Low key links and more casual/bold FC shirts? Sure, why not. Usually, in such instances I wear silk knots or very simple links. Hell, I wore one today without a jacket and plain, brushed metal links.

Dressy shirts and dressy links? Those look incomplete or out of place without a jacket.

That said, I could never wear FCs with jeans. That's just... wrong.

It looks good on women.

Originally Posted by J'aimelescravates

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What is the rule that says you can't?

I think it is the one that says you can't.

This is a good question, and it's interesting to see the wide array of responses. I myself have never done it, but am contemplating.

Almost off-topic, but those Black Fleece shirts that have FCs and a button-down contrast collar. Hella fresh. I think those would fit the bill.

I'd do it.

Originally Posted by unjung

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Yes, but never without a neckwear.

FTFY (think: bowtie, ascot...)