Question from a Newbie about Sportcoats and Tee Shirts

[Michael 1265]

Hello everyone,
New to the forum. I am a 40-something with teenage kids, and the last time I paid a lot of attention to fashion, "London Calling" was in heavy rotation in my car cassette (!) player. So, I am a little out of the game. In any case, my 30th class reunion is approaching, and I want to look good, not like someone who threw on a shirt and a tie that had been in the closet since 1999. This is the first reunion that I've attended, and I literally have not seen any of my classmates since 1984.

The dress is casual. I've decided that I want to go with a black T-shirt/brown blazer combo. Maybe with slacks, maybe with jeans, not sure.
This is generally the look I am shooting for (with a t-shirt and a lighter weight jacket):


I am 6'4" and 230, with wide shoulders. I don't look like George Clooney.

My questions: How do I select the components of this outfit and not screw it up? How can I pull off this look without looking like I'm trying too hard?

Thanks in advance for any advice.
Mike

 

[GoldenTribe]

Black and brown don't usually look good together.

The easiest blazer to pull off is classic navy blue. If you don't think you know what you're doing, I wouldn't start with brown. (But if you have the right outfit for it, there's no reason brown can't work.)

If you've never worn a tee with a blazer before, you probably aren't going to look comfortable and at ease in that get-up, which you might want to consider part of the goal for a casual reunion.

From a basics perspective, a button-up shirt is almost always the best thing under a sport coat. Just make it a casual shirt, don't button it up all the way and don't wear a tie, and you won't look stuffy. Jeans can also help to dress down an outfit like that, but without knowing what you look like or what the items are, it's easy to present vague ideas that will leave you looking like a blind person who dressed himself after browsing GQ in braille.

Next time, use the thread for quick questions.