SMART CASUAL INSPIRATIONS

Smart Casual with the Liquor Store

The Art of High/Low Dressing

Us men usually have a couple of clear and defined methods of dress. We are either formal and dressed up to the max, or casual and very much dressed down. Of course, these are not the only options, but most find it easier to stick to one of the other. Its easy to do, has simple rules, and doesn’t take a huge amount of thought.

As the modern workplace evolves and more and more of us are working from home, or on flexible arrangements, the lines between formal and casual blur more and more. Often we want to look presentable for the zoom meeting in our diary, but also feel casual too. We want to be able to dress up and down at the same time. This is known as high/low dressing. It is the art of mixing the formal and the informal, casual and business, and making them your own.

We wanted to demonstrate how to do this and give a visual guide to pairing these 2 worlds together. So we partnered with our good friends over at the Liquor Store on Colmore Row to create these images showing how to pair tailoring and workwear to create a modern, flexible look.

Flick through the images below

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If you like your clothes you will like the Liquor Store. Located over on Colmore Row they provide an excellent curated selection of workwear pieces. All with a focus on craft, quality and service. Phil and the the team have a deep knowledge of their products and they boast the largest selection of high-quality denim I’ve ever seen. The are the perfect fit (pardon the expression).

Click the link below to check them out, although we do recommend visiting them as the service is outstanding.

https://liquorstoreclothing.com/

Most of the cloth for the Colmore Tailors items was from our Seasonal bunch and comes in limited amounts. We always recommend early viewing of these fabrics as the cost of the cloth comes down considerably when we bulk buy each season.

Its worth noting that there are a few simple basic keys to making high/low dress work.

Fit is everything.

Keep the fit consistent across the garments. If you like fitted jackets then choose fitted jeans. Its worth having an idea of what you are shopping for before you leave the house, and dressing in a similar vein. It makes trying on garments much easier and provides the tailor/retailer with a guide for fit too.

Gallery - Liquor Store Shoot

PATTERN MATCHING

Pattern matching principles always apply. The same principles carry across from tailoring into casual too. Keep pattern scales different across each piece and vary directions. Over the years I have personally fell into a dress pattern without realising it, but it serves me well and I like the look, so it stays. For an easy look pair one plain item with texture (usually trouser), with a narrow stripe (usually shirt) and finish with one large checked item (usually jacket). Its simple, it works with the fabrics available, and the patterns do not clash. If removing a patterned item then its a good idea to replace with a textured plain or similar pattern

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COLOURS

When it comes to colours, we advise to match their tone and depth across an outfit. And with high/low dressing this remains true. However if in doubt, then just use a single non-neutral colour, such as green or burgundy, and keep the rest neutral. This is a loose interpretation and can easily be turned on its head, but its a good start.

ASK FOR HELP

If in doubt, ask your tailor/retailer for help. We spend all day, every day putting together looks and designing garments. Use our knowledge, we are here to help.

There no denying it, high/low can be tricky. But it is a learned skill just like anything else. The more you do it the better you will get at it. So get get practising!

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