NOTE: This guide is not for fashion experts or men who have really honed in on their personal style. If you absolutely love roll neck sweaters, chunky cardigans or flannel work shirts, you won’t find them in this guide. Instead, the following recommendations are based on wardrobe basics.
Let’s start with casual shirts and work our way up.

4 Casual Shirts

At a minimum, you’ll need 3-4 casual shirts. These include t-shirts (crew or v-neck), polo shirts and Henleys.

To maximize versatility, the best colors are medium blue, navy, light grey, dark grey (charcoal), black and white. In my opinion, light grey will always be more versatile than white, and navy or charcoal will always be more versatile than black.

Here’s an example of a minimalist casual shirt collection:

1. Crew neck t-shirt, navy
2. Crew neck t-shirt, light grey
3. Polo shirt, navy
4. Henley shirt, charcoal

Of course, you can include different colors that are less “neutral” but still versatile, such as olive and burgundy. For example, here’s a slightly different take on this collection:

1. V-neck t-shirt, olive
2. Crew neck t-shirt, navy
3. Polo shirt, black
4. Henley shirt, grey

Colors like burgundy and dark olive green go well with grey, blue, brown and black, so feel free to work them into your wardrobe.

Less neutral colors like orange, yellow, purple and bright red will be less versatile. If you really want a minimal wardrobe, I recommend avoiding these colors.

3 Smart Casual Shirts

Your “smart casual” shirts can be dressed up or down. The casual button up (or “button down”) is the epitome of a smart casual shirt, and the Oxford Cotton Button Down (OCBD) is probably the most quintessential example of a casual button up shirt.