Style Site of Note – The Lost Art of Being a Modern Gentleman

James Cagney wants YOU to dress for the occasion

Today we spark a revolution.

So, Gentlemen, rise up. The Douchebag is winning and he takes many forms (aside from the one seen on the Human Planet).

The trouble with being a Gentleman is that it seems like merely a wardrobe choice , but it’s so much more than just knowing how to tie a tie. Anyone can cram himself into a well-cut suit, but what defines a true gentleman is ownership, not only confidence, but a true command of oneself. Confidence implies victory over insecurity. Ownership implies total acceptance of self.

So says Douglas Nyback who designed an ongoing series of articles in Quip Magazine to examine in turn the various elements that affect a gentleman’s life. Key among them is the manner of his dress. As Nyback puts it,

Wearing a jacket is not getting “dressed up”; it’s getting dressed. You’ll know I’m dressed up because I’ll be wearing a tuxedo, we’ll be at a ball and if you’re wearing a worn sweater with a jacket two sizes too big, you’ll be kicked out for looking like the guy who got lost on his way to McDonalds.

Just relaxing? There is proper attire to make that an event too.

What I like is the specific point that Nyback makes about how dress is always tailored to what the gentleman is intending to do. The outfit is begat by the situation into which the gentleman propels himself, or as Nyback writes,

Wardrobe is determined by event. People should get dressed up for the theatre and yes, people do wear tuxedos to formal events because the situation requests, nay, demands it.