This column is about cufflinks. You need a French cuffed shirt. You are not George Costanza — you cannot remove the buttons from a regular dress shirt and poke a hole with a letter opener.
With that said, cufflinks are a yet another way to add some style and versatility to the mundanity of men’s business attire. They might be subtle, but they are eye-catching. They draw attention to themselves, and to the fact that you’re wearing a French cuffed shirt. Again, the point being: you stand out.
Cufflinks are also a great reminder that some part of your sleeve’s cuff should be visible when wearing a suit jacket. The sleeve of your suit jacket should not engulf your cuff – French, or otherwise.
In terms of versatility, your best bet is a pair of silver cufflinks. These, in my opinion, match well with almost any outfit.
If your cufflinks are primarily metallic — silver or gold, in particular – then your belt buckle should generally match them. Preferably your watch should also match primarily metallic cufflinks (but this might be asking for too much). If your cufflinks are not primarily metallic, or if you’re wearing a three-piece suit, then the metal of the belt buckle is immaterial, but you should aim to match your cufflinks with some other part of your wardrobe – tie, pocket square or socks.
If you want to wear “fun” cufflinks, like dice or skulls or something equally ridiculous, then make sure that you have the appropriate work environment and personality to pull it off. Few people do; and chances are, you probably don’t either.
I’d also like to take this moment to declare purple to be the colour for fall. I’m not selfishly being a patriotic alumnus of the University of Western Ontario, merely observant. Some hint of purple seems to be making an appearance in most stores and magazines, therefore, purple is in.
Emir Aly Crowne is a Law Professor at the University of Windsor, Faculty of Law. He has made a donation to the ‘Human Fund’ on your behalf for reading this.
Image: Kili via Wikimedia Commons