I have had a recent surge of gents writing in to ask me about wearing belts with suspenders.
I thought that with Spring just around the corner now is the perfect time to dust off your man-cessory skills and Spring clean away some bad habits.
Here is the bottom line guys, a belt and suspenders should NEVER be worn at the same time. What is the purpose of suspenders? To hold up your pants. What is the purpose of a belt? To hold up your pants. So then, what the *$#@ are you thinking wearing them together?
“How can you trust a man that wears both a belt and suspenders? The man can’t even trust his own pants.” -Henry Ford.
I would hope that you all know how to wear a belt so I’m going to discuss how to wear suspenders.
Suspenders come in a variety of styles. Thin clip-ons that channel 70s-80s punk-rock and medium width clip on and button attaching styles that scream Brooks Brothers Prep while wider, button attaching versions- also called braces–deliver more of a classic gentleman message.
The traditional way to wear suspenders is with pants that DO NOT have belt loops. Although recently designers and trend experts have declared that it isn’t a total faux pas to wear them with belt loops.
If you are going for a steampunk or gentlemanly vibe you may want to pay your tailor a visit and have he/she remove the belt loops from your trousers and add some buttons to attach the suspenders.
Jeans + Suspenders? Go ahead and rock it!
This ultra versatile accessory paired with jeans can look totally GQ , have a hipster-esc appeal or even a modern R&B vibe like Swizz Beatz.
For a more laid back and casual feel wear you suspenders down like these John Varvatos ones:
Make sure your shirt is tucked in while wearing suspenders. Nothing looks like more of a fashion fail than a sloppy untucked shirt with suspenders.
To get that “indie” look try using a 1/2 tuck with a t-shirt or button up shirt and let the center of the shirt fall loosely in front.
They aren’t just for the boys!
Girls can rock suspenders too! For Spring 2014 designers continue to draw influence from menswear using suspenders in a variety of forms from knits to metallics and even leather studded at Rodarte!
What do you think? Will you be adding suspenders to your look this season?
14 Comments
Awesome! Thanks for clearing up the belt & suspenders no-no. I always thought that was the case, but the Ford quote seals the deal.
I’m gonna try to rock some suspenders at work. Hope they don’t accentuate my beer gut. :/
Thank you. Nice to see something for the gents. Have 4 pairs of suspenders.
Suspenders are cool!
I was truly laughing at the Henry Ford quote.
Great read too.
My gf recently bought me a pair of suspenders, and I absolutely love them. They are so comfortable, but Like many other guys, I don’t feel at ease when I wear them in public. Why?