The Complete Guide To Men’s Dress Shirts

Whether you like it or not, chances are you’re going to have to shoehorn yourself into a tuxedo at least a couple of times over the course of your existence. But don’t worry, contrary to what many men would have you believe, getting dressed up to the nines doesn’t have to be a painful battle between man and mirror. Well, not if you know what you’re doing.

First off, you’re never going to fully channel your inner covert MI6 agent if you don’t have a Bond-like confidence in your outfit. So, if you know that underneath your immaculate dinner jacket, you’re concealing a shirt so ill-fitting it could give Jeremy Clarkson’s favorite pair of jeans a run for their money, it’s going to have an impact on the way you hold yourself during your next black tie soirée.

A quality dress shirt will provide a solid foundation on which to build the rest of your eveningwear and so it’s not a purchase to be taken lightly. “It’s just a white shirt,” you might think. “How difficult can it be?” However, picking the right one out can take a masters in menswear because there’s a surprising amount to bear in mind if you want to elevate your black-tie attire from Dr No Idea to Double-0-Heaven.

To school you in the minutiae of this most troublesome formalwear component, we’ve prepared an in-depth guide, covering everything you ever wanted to know about dress shirts but were too afraid to ask. Starting with the basics…

What Is A Dress Shirt?

Just to make matters that little bit more confusing for you, definitions of the term ‘dress shirt’ will vary based on who you ask. Query an American, and he’ll tell you a dress shirt is anything with a collar and cuffs, that’s smart enough to be worn to the office. However, here in the UK, our definition is a little more specific than a work shirt, and for the purpose of this guide, that’s what we’re going to be talking about. Sorry, America.