Collar Stays

Learning to dress well is just like developing any other skill. You start off making major changes that take some getting used to and a lot of times it feels like you make progress pretty quickly. It’s like the newbie gains cheap custom essays (that I personally have yet to experience) from going to the gym regularly.

However, just like at the gym, dressing well gets to a point where you have to start making smaller, more subtle changes to get the end result you want.

One of those small changes is getting the right collar stays.

A collar stay is a fairly simple thing. It’s an insert, usually made of plastic or metal, that slides into a specific slot on the underside of your shirt collars. Its purpose to to help keep your collar in place and prevent it from rolling up or popping out from under jacket. They should be worn with any button-up shirt that doesn’t have a button-down collar when you’re wearing a tie or when you’re not.

Now you may be thinking, “why would I ever bee worried enough about something so minute as a collar stay?” The answer is because it prevents pancake collar.

Imagine you’re going out with your friends and you have your High/Low look dialed down. Allen Edmonds dress shoes; a pair of dark, slim jeans; thick, wool socks, a crisp, white button-up, and your favorite blue blazer. You have the right watch on and even the topcoat that pulls it all together. But something just isn’t right. Rather than looking like the embodiment of GQ or like a movie star who’s about to grace the city with his presence, you look like your jacket is too big and your neck is too long.

This happens because your shirt collar can’t stand up on its own – even if you starch and iron the hell out of it. When a collar can’t stand up on its own, it certainly loses any battle with a jacket and/or an overcoat with it. As a result, you’ve invested time and money into dressing like the alpha male you know you are but you don’t look like the rake you could.

Not all collar stays are created equal. I have a bunch of plastic stays I use for when I’m wearing a shirt and tie but they don’t really help out when it comes to wearing a shirt without a tie and with a jacket.

The best solution I’ve found is an metal stay made by Wurkin Stiff’s.

Not only are they metal, they come with small, detachable magnets that help you put your collar exactly where you want it and keep it their all night. Want to look like Clooney and Pitt from Ocean’s 11? You’re going to want some stays that can get the job done.

They aren’t cheap, but they’re an investment. The reason an open collar looks good is because it frames your face and keeps people looking at you instead of your clothes. It can help your neck look more proportionate and even give you a stronger-looking jaw line. Really a proper frame makes you look like more of a man.