How To Dress:

As though you expect your grandchildren to interview you on that topic some day.

Black Tie

This necktie was a gift from a friend's grandfather some Christmases ago. He had been a state legislator in his day and dressed up even in old age. A black tie can be hard to find a home for, but this tan linen double-breasted has black pinstripes which pick up the tie nicely. I know I usually say to avoid tan and black together, but as part of this combination, I think it's bold enough to work well.

White shirt and square are staid enough to keep people from getting too uncomfortable with my excesses.

Irresponsible Socks

Socks are your chance to be mischievous when wearing a suit. Most people who don't know you very well will never see them, so there's little risk of offending a stranger. I would never wear a square-pattern tie with a suit with this many stripes; the stakes are too high. But here, with colors still coordinated, these socks are about as close as I come to sprezzatura in workwear.

Might I suggest a pair of over-the-calf Pantherella socks in crimson?

Collapsed Waveforms

In a parallel universe very close to ours, I am working on my Ph.D. in English and aspiring to be a professor. Given the influence of genetics, I'm sure I would still be wearing a jacket and tie to work every day, like this Welsh wool tie and "microsuede" jacket from JAB. I would pin the tie for a touch of formality. Pants, a sort of moleskin cotton in green; shoes, brown suede half-wings from Allen Edmonds.

Managed Decline, Part II

This beloved workhorse of a necktie, manufacturer forgotten but had from defunct Filene's, keeps the most luxurious dimple of any of my neckties. The navy accent makes it the perfect tie for court in a navy suit.

But I am not from a stratum of society where everyone else already knows how much family money I have. So the luxury of wearing shirts and other clothes until they are ragged is not mine to enjoy. Best to retire a piece just past its prime than to fall into the complacency of "just one more wear."

After all, that way lies, "But it's so comfortable!"