Hey All, I have limited dress clothing and have been invited out for a nice evening with a friend. Dressing up in a suit is not an option for me right now. Business Casual is acceptable for the event I am going to. Please tell me what is good, bad and/or awful about what I have going on here. I can maybe spend $20 to buy something that pulls together better. I was thinking a solid colored tie might be good, but the only one I own is a light green. I also have tan khakis if they would be better than the grey pants. I feel like the khakis are kind of frumpy though. I have more casual shirts as well I could wear under the sweater. One white with blue dots and one dark blue with lighter blue dots. I don't have any other color of sweater. Anyway, I kind of feel hopeless at dressing myself at the moment. Please feel free to rip my "ensemble" apart so to speak. :help: I do plan on ironing the wrinkles out. Thank you all!
If you enjoy looking like Mr. Rogers, it's fine. And nobody tells Fred he lacks style, the man had his own neighborhood. But to be serious, what you have on is acceptable. If it fits the dress code and you are comfortable with it, wear it. Wearing an outfit you dislike can affect your mood and presence, just as wearing an outfit you do like can. Ultimately, it is you that should matter, as it is you that will be making the impression and scoring connections.
You look nice. I will say the thing that draws my attention most are your shoes, but shoes will probably be more than $20. I personally prefer khakis (worn them all my life and don't consider them "frumpy" :lol". For your $20, I'd either buy a brown leather belt (unless you already have one) or a nice tie. Marshalls might have some good options for under $20, and I found several in your city. If you can, at least make sure it's 100% silk (bonus points if you score a Brooks Brothers tie).
I forgot to mention I was wearing a brown belt. It was just hidden by the sweater. I do have another pair of cherry brown slip on shoes, but they are really beat up to the point I don't like wearing them. I guess I could switch out my black oxfords, but I was thinking maybe they are too formal for what I am wearing. I only consider those khakis frumpy because of the way they fit me. I am a pretty tall and slim so it is hard for me to find clothes that fit me well. Regular fit pants if they are long enough they tend to look really baggy on me. If they don't look baggy, then they tend to ride up too high at the ankles. Shirts are worse. I am either swimming in them, or the sleeves are way too short. There is no in-between. Maybe I just need to find a boyfriend who is a tailor. :icon_wink The thing is I see shirts, pants, shoes, etc. that I really like the look of, but I seem to be clueless how to combine those things into a cohesive ensemble.
Haha, oh the joy of being tall and skinny (I'm neither :lol:, but I'm lucky most clothing off the rack fits me well). Maybe in Europe you'd find better clothes since they're generally taller and leaner and us. But I will still say what you're wearing is nice.If you do wear black oxfords, try to wear a black leather belt and not a brown one. Maybe one day you can go to an outlet mall and (without buying anything) go to all the stores that sell men's clothes and try on shirts and pants and see what fits. If the salesperson asks if you want to buy it, say you're still comparing sizes with different brands (that way they don't try to sweet talk you into buying). Then, based on what fits, buy it when it's on sale. Brooks Brothers has a line of very slim fit dress shirts that might work for you, but are definitely more than $20 a shirt.
As others posted looks good so far, esp. based on your available inventory. If anything, for $20 I'd change the tie. Maybe open collar/no-tie could work as well, depending on the event. Personally I think the shoes are fine given the rest is somewhat casual. Other options for $20, get your haircut a few days before the event if it's something you don't do regularly or is due. Or get some nice smelling bodywash/shampoo/hair product. Best part of your outfit will be a confident smile - have fun at your event.
