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

[mkarim]

Originally Posted by senseand

Do you like wearing your pjs? Do you wear it outside the house?

If I am MJ going to a trial...

 

[mkarim]

Originally Posted by senseand

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?

Good thinking, by the way!

 

[onix]

Originally Posted by senseand

Just my two-cents from a female on-looker.

..

Do you like wearing your pjs? Do you wear it outside the house?

Yes, because I am Hugh Hefner

 

[porcelain monkey]

It's fine.

 

[z7f9q]

I voted no, not because I think it can't be done, but because I wouldn't do it.

 

[sw20]

Common daily attire in hedge fund industry esp in CA/CT

Almost never wear a tie (ties are for clowns in PE or IB); only acceptable shirts are FC; wear real links (not girlie string knots); wear a suit jacket to office/dinner but obviously don't wear jacket once at desk

Some hedgies also wear FCs on wkends as only shirts owned are FC and don't own any jeans...young curmudgeons these days...

 

[glenjay]

I normally wear FCs with a sport jacket and an open collar. On location and/or with a client I wear FCs with a suit and tie. When I work from home I wear sweats or PJs sans FC.

 

[bowtielover]

Yes it is just fine to wear them without a suit, it can look off sometimes if you don't wear it just right but I have seen guys wear them with jeans and a jacket and it looks just fine.

 

[Avocat]

Originally Posted by J'aimelescravates

Honestly I do not see why there is such an issue with this. If it looks good with your current day's dress, why not? I sometimes wear these with sport coats. I will admit that, by themselves, they look a little -well- questionable. With a coat, be it suit or sport, it should be fine. What is the rule that says you can't?
Believe it or not, there are rules which say you don't wear links or cuffs, unless with a suit (best with a dark suit, white shirt and black tie). French cuffs with links are worn all the time with Court attire [black robes, black waist coat, white shirt with dark trousers (black, charcoal or court stripe, etc.)], and formal events, but also business meetings where, generally speaking, everyone's in a dark suit with a dark tie, etc. I'm starting to notice more men wearing cuffs and links with colourful ties, or even lighter suits, with some even mismatching their links on purpose (though rare), but never without a suit. That said, if someone wants to have fun mixing and matching links, why not. I think it looks like they made a mistake, though, like putting on two different colour socks-- one blue, one black--when rushing out the door in a hurry (but one fellow I know who does it on purpose is otherwise always well dressed, with a great sense of dry humour such that the mix-and-match cuff links suit his character, I think). Same with cuffs and jeans untucked, or without a jacket of some sort with a tie at least. That said, with the rules of business attire being relaxed as they are in some places -- like for e.g. the dot.com days of casual California-- I guess like all things it depends. If the OP is comfortable with it and it jives with his workplace, then why not ... though I likewise agree that like a red wine with red meat, cuffs and links are best served with a suit (though a sport coat works, too). EDIT: We are traditional in Toronto, subscribing to the same business formal philosophy of London, which also applies to Montreal, NYC, and Boston.

 

[bjornb17]

If you sew two buttons together and use it as a cufflink, it dresses it down far enough that it doesn't look pretentious.

 

[Sazerac]

I can see this working with jeans, but not with chinos. With jeans, the contrast is obvious. People will have that, "ah ha, I see what you did there," moment where they recognize the obvious formal/informal dichotomy all rolled up into the clever little style-ball that is you.

With chinos on the other hand, they might think you don't know the difference betwixt chinos and dressy trousers.

Personally, I can't bring myself to wear them with even a very dressy sport coat. I start rocking back and forth like Rain Man just thinking about it.

 

[paco_deluca]

i wear mine with out a suit

 

[Beatlegeuse]

Originally Posted by unjung

Yes, but never without a tie.

Originally Posted by onix

FTFY (think: bowtie, ascot...)

Does this also mean you would have to wear a SC with a FC shirt for it to be acceptable? I was under the impression that it was a big no-no to wear a tie without a jacket, and since this poll is for wearing FC without a suit, would I be correct to assume you meant FC + neckwear is OK, with the condition that you also wear a jacket or blazer with it?

 

[SkinnyGoomba]

Originally Posted by sw20

Common daily attire in hedge fund industry esp in CA/CT

Almost never wear a tie (ties are for clowns in PE or IB); only acceptable shirts are FC; wear real links (not girlie string knots); wear a suit jacket to office/dinner but obviously don't wear jacket once at desk

Some hedgies also wear FCs on wkends as only shirts owned are FC and don't own any jeans...young curmudgeons these days...

LOL.

 

[MBreinin]

I never wear them without at least a jacket, and usually stick to a suit for FCs.

Mike