How many dress shirts should one own? Forum

[Jessep]

I was having a conversation recently with a friend. He made fun of me for having too many shirts.

I'm curious what others think. Of course once you get beyond a certain point it is more for style, but one does not ever want to be known as they guy who always wears that shirt. The question is where that number lies. This may seem silly, but I've seen young lawyers who have too small of a wardrobe and people do notice.

How many dress shirts should one ideally have? I'll save my opinion so as not to skew the poll.

[Lawl Shcool]

Im pretty sure I have 8-12 but usually wear the same 3-4. I don't think anyone notices since they are all mostly white shirts.

[edcrane]

12-15 sounds about right to me. You can definitely get away with fewer, but I like having the option of not doing laundry/visiting the dry cleaners every week.

[Anonymous User]

Im pretty sure I have 8-12 but usually wear the same 3-4. I don't think anyone notices since they are all mostly white shirts.

oh we notice. Behind your back we call you "that guy"

[20160810]

I think 10 good ones is a nice round number.

[CGI Fridays]

I think 10 good ones is a nice round number.

2 work weeks.

[Anonymous User]

2-3 White
2 Light Blue
5-6: tasteful whatever you want that is striped/tattersail/other solids

[blink]

I think 10 good ones is a nice round number.

2 work weeks.

this.

btw, why all the anon. posting??

[20160810]

2-3 White
2 Light Blue
5-6: tasteful whatever you want that is striped/tattersail/other solids

I personally prefer a mix of 5 white, 3 blue, and 2 misc. Nothing beats a nicely-made, crisp, clean white dress shirt with an excellent tie.

[dougroberts]

Nothing beats a nicely-made, crisp, clean white dress shirt with an excellent tie.

I do agree - sometimes the tie seals the deal, especially with white shirts.

Now, do you think more shirts are necessary for business casual firms (not requiring a suit)? And, in such firms, do you think COLOR is allowed, or just white/blues again?

[20160810]

Nothing beats a nicely-made, crisp, clean white dress shirt with an excellent tie.

I do agree - sometimes the tie seals the deal, especially with white shirts.

Now, do you think more shirts are necessary for business casual firms (not requiring a suit)? And, in such firms, do you think COLOR is allowed, or just white/blues again?

I will be working at a biz-cas. firm myself, and plan to stick mainly to white/blue, because that's just what looks good. The only real difference is that I will wear khakis instead of suited pants, sometimes boat shoes instead of black dress shoes, and with biz-cas you have more flexibility w/r/t tie selection, which is sweet. Case in point: I just bought, and plan to wear this summer, an awesome Brooks Brothers tie with little liberty bells on it on eBay for $9. Freedom, baby. Freedom.

[BunkMoreland]

you still wear a tie in business casual, SBL?

[20160810]

you still wear a tie in business casual, SBL?

Yep. I kinda like ties, and walking around the firm it looks like about half the attorneys wear them, so I figure better to play it safe and never feel underdressed

[Jessep]

Good point on differentiating with business casual. I wrote the poll with the assumption of a biz-casual workplace. Personally, I think a few extra shirts are needed in this environment because I tend to not just do solid white/blue.

For acceptable colors, it totally depends on workplace. Some places you should remain conservative (white/blue base), while for others it is acceptable to wear all types of unusual colors. Your best bet is to observe people around your level of seniority. Do not copy partners as they can get away with more of a relaxed dress. They already proved themselves.

Erring on the side of more conservative is generally better. There are a LOT of variations of white/blue base with different stripes and check patterns, though again it really depends on the firm culture. However, I will say that overdressing can be bad too. If no one wears a tie, you probably shouldn't either as a junior associate. You may come off as stuffy.

Bottom line: it's never good to significantly stand out for your clothes.

[BunkMoreland]

you still wear a tie in business casual, SBL?

Yep. I kinda like ties, and walking around the firm it looks like about half the attorneys wear them, so I figure better to play it safe and never feel underdressed

So, how many pairs of pants do you have to rotate with that? As you can imagine, I'm woefully underprepared for all this.

[Bosque]

Depends. Are we talking about a firm that is business casual or full on suit-tastic?

[20160810]

you still wear a tie in business casual, SBL?

Yep. I kinda like ties, and walking around the firm it looks like about half the attorneys wear them, so I figure better to play it safe and never feel underdressed

So, how many pairs of pants do you have to rotate with that? As you can imagine, I'm woefully underprepared for all this.

Get 3 pairs of REALLY NICE khaki pants for a biz-cas firm. This is an investment that you will thank yourself for later. I recommend Banana Republic chinos. They look great, fit really well, and are incredibly soft, and cost about $70 ea. Go for slightly differing colors (let's say off-white, tan and maybe navy or olive) so people don't think you're wearing the same pair every day. It is just not true that all khakis look the same. Cheap ones look bad and feel like you're wearing a paper bag.

[Lawl Shcool]

I don't know if these exist outside of my native Ohio but Jos. A Bank has some baller work clothes.

[Bosque]

I don't know if these exist outside of my native Ohio but Jos. A Bank has some baller work clothes.

They do, but I hate them.

[20160810]

I don't know if these exist outside of my native Ohio but Jos. A Bank has some baller work clothes.

They do, but I hate them.

+1

When you buy 3 suits for $200, it's going to look like you bought 3 suits for $200. Sometimes for true basics like white dress shirts, places like Jos. A Bank and Men's Wearhouse (sic) are acceptable, but generally speaking, it's just not a good idea to wear cheap clothes to work. No need to rock an Armani tux to your summer associate gig, but go to Macy's or Nordstrom and drop a few bucks. Men's professional attire never goes out of fashion (unless you buy weird shit like knitted skinny ties or those shirts from the '70s with huge lapels, which, as an aside, I think look pretty cool), so there's no great reason to skimp.

[Anonymous User]

If you're in the Northeast, check out SYMS -- you'll have to pay a little more in tailoring costs and won't be able to pick the exact color or brand you want, but you can get brand-name suits/shirts/pants (much better stuff than Jos A Banks) for 30-50% off retail price.

[20160810]

I'm serious about buying ties on eBay, by the way. Ties that cost $75-150 new can be picked up for $10-20, and nothing makes a suit pop like a really great tie.

[BunkMoreland]

You can get some pretty nice stuff off the Buying and Selling forum at styleforum, too. great deals.

[Bosque]

I really hate the look of ties without jackets by the way. Not sure exactly why.

[Jessep]

To start out, I think one should have 2-3 suits. At least 5 pairs of pants, and at least 10 dress shirts. Most places don't require ties, but I'd have as many ties as shirts. A sport coat/blazer or two is generally good to have as well. Start with basic navy though personally I'd avoid the gold buttons (even though many wear them). Avoid flash like tie clips until you are settled in a workplace and get a feel that it wouldn't be out of place. You don't want to look pretentious, and you don't want to look like you picked up your clothes from the Salvation Army.

Going with wool dress pants rather than khakis can save the hassle of ironing and look a bit more polished, but they are more expensive usually ($90-100 rather than $50-70 for khakis). The above poster is absolutely right that not all khakis or dress pants are created equal. Get clothes that fit. Fit is very important, so pay attention, get it tailored if need be, and you'll be fine. Some shirts/pants won't fit you as brands/lines target different body types.

Most of all you want to blend in, and create an impression that you are part of the team. Online re-sellers like ebay can be great to pickup deals once you know your measurements/style. Until then, it can be helpful to have someone help you in-store.