Formal Shirt Styles

Choosing the Right Style Formal Shirt for You

As you can see from the links on the right, there are plenty of different styles, colours and materials to choose from when it comes to men's formal shirts. We hope our site can help you make the right choice, and so we have included a brief run down of some of the different formal shirt styles around. Making the right choice will mean that you feel comfortable and confident in your formal shirt, and look smart and fitting for the occasion - whether it's formal business or a social event.

Below we have included information regarding men's formal shirts for business and general formal wear. If you are considering buying a dress shirt, for example if you are to attend a "Black Tie" event and need a shirt to go with your bow tie and dinner jacket, then see our choice and information on evening shirts and dress shirts here.

Classic or Slim Fit?

When browsing through all of our different formal shirt choices, you may see 2 styles of "fit" offered by many of the shirt retailers: either a "standard" fit; or a slim fit.

Standard Fit

A standard fit formal shirt is also sometimes referred to as a "Classic" or "Jermyn Street" fit or style. A standard fit shirt is quite generous and looser around the body, and often comes with a longer shirt tail. Jermyn Street is the traditional home of British shirt making, and this style is referred to as a "Jermyn Street" cut or fit because it is the standard, or classic style produced by those traditional shirt makers. If in doubt, choose a shirt a standard hit shirt.

Slim Fit Shirts

Slim fit shirts for formal wear are quite popular these days too. These are sometimes referred to as a "tailored" fit. Most likely they are better suited to a slimmer man, as the tighter fit can feel a little uncomfortable after a long day at work. A slim fit shirt is created by placing 2 darts in the back of the shirt, resulting in the smart, slim, tailored look. Slim fit shirts usually have a shorter tail than a standard fit. Too much shirt to tuck in would take away something from the overall slim fit look, and you would have too much "bunching" around the trouser waistline.

Standard, Cutaway or Button Down Collar

Standard Collars

A standard collar on a formal shirt will suit most people's needs and preferences. It is the classic look for a formal shirt, where a crisp, sharp collar points downwards, with room for a suitable tie knot.

Cutaway Collars

A cutaway collar however, can add an extra stylish touch. These allow the wearer to have a much wider tie knot, tied in a Windsor knot for example, and therefore show a bit more colour from the neck tie. Cutaway collars are also referred to as spread collars, and some shirt makers give their styles particular names, such as the cutaway collar shirts from T M Lewin, which are called the "Windsor" and the "Prince of Wales". A cutaway collar is probably most suited to a slimmer built man. Wide tie knots and spread collars tend to accentuate stockier builds a little.

Button Down Collars

A button down shirt can also look smart, but may still be considered too casual in some formal circles. The fact the collars need to button down means the collar is generally softer, and not as crisp and smart as the standard formal shirts. So if you want to look really smart, choose a cutaway or standard collar, and leave the button down shirts for dress down Fridays. The classic button down collar shirt is usually made from the softer Oxford weave.

Plain, Stripe or Check?

Every man should own at least one plain shirt, in a versatile colour such as white or light blue (one of each is better), made from quality material (100% cotton, in poplin or twill weave) and made by one of the quality shirt makers, such as T M Lewin, Joseph Turner or Charles Tyrwhitt.

After that, you can introduce a little variation into your business look. Stripes, as they old adage goes, can make you look slimmer and taller. But stripes, and also checks, are a great way to add a bit of colour to your look that you couldn't get away with in a plain shirt. A blue striped shirt, with touches of a strong colour such as orange, purple, red, or yellow, will look stylish and elegant, compared to a shirt made completely from these colours. For added variety, also consider a contrast collar shirt.

Shirt Colour

If you're not 100% sure, always choose white. Every businessman needs a quality white shirt in his collection. Your first thought might be that this is a boring colour and a dull option, especially if you're buying a high quality formal shirt. However, every man should have a white formal shirt in his wardrobe simply because it is one of the best and most versatile items of men's clothing and you will undoubtedly use it again and again and again, for work and business, smart evening events, and even black tie events. After you've purchased your white shirt, and if you're still looking for something a bit more interesting, consider other mainstay colours of business and formal wear, such as a light blue shirt, perhaps a darker blue such as French blue, and these days you will see plenty of pink and lilac shirts in formal business wear. Stay fairly conservative with your choices, and if you need to introduce more colour to your look, try out some ties in bolder colours and patterns. It is far easier to play with colour and pattern for a tie than it is for a shirt. The plainer the colour shirts that you choose, the easier you will find them to match other items in your wardrobe. Plus there's so much choice in men's neck ties these days, you'll also find many ties to match, either patterned or plain. Also, a more subtle coloured shirt will stand the test of time. It's tempting to buy trendy, up-to-the-minute shirts with wild patterns, but you really need to ask yourself how long they will be in fashion for. Probably only a year or so at the most. Your choice of colour will also depend on the event you are about to attend. White is traditionally the smartest, but if you have a job interview, blues and greys always work well too.