Long sleeve wool polo - with a shirt underneath?

[Mr Tickle]

I have a few of these long-sleeved polos in merino wool or cashmere, and I have always worn them either with nothing underneath or at most an undershirt. Then I came across this Permanent Style article about Luca Faloni which has a picture of a guy wearing one with a shirt underneath it, which is not something I'd considered before and not something I'm used to seeing on men when I'm out and about.

Permanent Style

Luca Faloni knitwear – a high-quality staple

www.permanentstyle.com

I dunno - something just seemed odd to me about the idea of having two shirt-type collars on top of each other.

So I tried it and actually though it looked quite cool, using the long-sleeve polo as a middle layer, rather than exclusively as a bottom-layer, as I've always done in the past. Is this acceptable? Or is it just like the sort of thing that's done in photoshoots to look striking and edgy, but actually looks a bit weird when you see it in real-life on a middle-aged dad?

 

[mhip]

It looks like an evolution of the trend of using a quarter zip as the middle layer.
IMO your polo collar looks like it's in pain and being stretched beyond it's comfort zone...

 

[Mr Tickle]

In an amusing occurrence of synchronicity, literally just after I make this thread I glance at my TV where I have the movie World War Z streaming in the background, and see the actor Pierfrancesco Favino is doing exactly this, as he plays the role of WHO doctor.

(Bit hard to see in the small pic but on my 55" bedroom screen you can see he is wearing a dark collared shirt under the grey polo mid layer and sports jacket combo)

 

[DorianGreen]

To me it's a nice and usual look. I almost always wear my polo jumpers with a shirt underneath.

 

[Mr Tickle]

To me it's a nice and usual look. I almost always wear my polo jumpers with a shirt underneath.

Yeah, I think it looks much sharper than the quarter-zip-over-shirt-and-under-jacket thing.

 

[mak1277]

Layering multiple polos is definitely a prep/ivy thing. I think it looks better with all polos, as opposed to a dress shirt with a stiff collar and a polo.

 

[DorianGreen]

Yeah, I think it looks much sharper than the quarter-zip-over-shirt-and-under-jacket thing.

The zip is a taboo for me, but I wear also buttoned mock collar jumpers.

 

[SartoriaModerna]

I think this type of look is 'trendy' now due to the popularization of the BC aesthetic, defining 'casual luxury'. The idea is to mix tailoring or more formal pieces with casual clothing with a sprezzatura mindset, and the casual pieces should be in luxurious fine materials.

With that said, I definitely think it looks good, but only if done right.

The polo: To make it look effortless chic without being a try-hard, the polo needs to be in a very fine material. This allows the polo to have a 'slouch' , soft effect in contrast to a very stiff/drape effect. Cashmere is ideal, and preferably italian style as scottish cashmere are more stiff. IMO, merino will often look too clean and crisp in its drape unless it's a very fine gauge, but that means it could be too thin as well to layer it properly. It's hard to explain it but once you have handled many knits in merino and cashmere, you will know the difference in drape.

Also, try to avoid merino's that have a melange colour, the more monotonous the polo, the better. In your picture, there is a melange in blue and white. Another thing is the buttons and buttoning: The polo should have more buttons for a better V-neck effect and buttons should be small. The buttons in your picture are somewhat too big and it creates an imbalance.

The shirt:
the shirt should have a button down collar unbuttoned instead of any other type of collar such as spread collar. The spread collar will create a very messy look within the neck zone. The buttons of the shirt should also be in the same colour as the shirt, so no contrasting buttons.

 

[DorianGreen]

The shirt:
the shirt should have a button down collar unbuttoned instead of any other type of collar such as spread collar. The spread collar will create a very messy look within the neck zone. The buttons of the shirt should also be in the same colour as the shirt, so no contrasting buttons.

Disagree here, I wear only spread collar shirts, as I don't have any Button Down, and I absolutely like as they look with a polo sweater.

 

[ter1413]

I would not do it. I wear a V neck sweater if/when I need an extra layer.

 

[Tried and True]

I first tried the look years ago (ok, it was decades 😏) after seeing it on a manikin at the dearly departed haberdashers A.Sulka in Manhattan. I found that it worked fine on its own but became tricky when choosing the right garment to wear over the shirt/sweater combo. The tailored collar of a sport coat would invariably muck up the whole thing while certain pieces of outerwear were much less disruptive. I usually choose a beefy shawl collar cashmere cardigan like the one below….courtesy of the venerable A. Sulka.

 

[DorianGreen]

I would not do it. I wear a V neck sweater if/when I need an extra layer.

The combination with a vee neck is obviously the canonical one, especially with a tie. You could discover new and pleasant looks with a polo jumper though.

 

[ter1413]

The combination with a vee neck is obviously the canonical one, especially with a tie. You could discover new and pleasant looks with a polo jumper though.

I've also done a 1/4 zip with a shirt/no tie. That also works for me.

I just don't like the style posted in this thread.

 

[DorianGreen]

I've also done a 1/4 zip with a shirt/no tie. That also works for me.

I just don't like the style posted in this thread.

Of course to each his own. Style is also nice and interesting because it's highly individual.

 

[ter1413]

Of course to each his own. Style is also nice and interesting because it's highly individual.

Re the pic in the original post....

I think it would look better with a nice pair of slacks. Also, the colors don't work for me.

I am sure if I wanted to try it one day, I could make it work...