How to Layer Clothes in Summer and be the Coolest Guy Around
Look cool during this hot season!
One of the many great things about summer is that you don’t need to wear clothes like your life depended on it. During winter, function takes over form and you would sure want to not freeze to death instead of looking great. With summer comes more options to look cool even when in the heat. The cardinal rules of layering such as the importance of mixing textures and the further away from your body, the thicker the layer still stands whatever season it is. Thankfully, the warmer months bring with them lighter materials like linen and seersucker, both of which have different properties to their stuffy winter equivalents, so you needn’t resort to shorts or any streetwear and you can exercise much more variety, here are some tips to remember when you layer clothes in summer:
Keep it cool
On hot days, linings will cook you like a chicken wrapped in foil, especially those inside impermeable synthetic materials. Not all unlined jackets will keep you cool, though. But fabrics like cotton or linen are so lightweight that removing the lining does make a difference, so look for visible taping on the back when shopping for a summer suit.
Dark colour options
Contrary to popular thought, lightweight linen and cotton are not only available in all colors of beige. This is great news for you because it means being able to get all the cool of the fabric without looking like Col. Sanders. Mid-brown, tobacco, and deep green linen are really nice. They’re also considerably easier to pull off due to the neutrality of the color. A white striped seersucker shirt is another stand-out addition to layer clothes in summer.
Going over and under
Overshirts– also known as ‘shackets’ – are the Swiss Army knife of summer layering, taking the place of a jacket when it’s hot and adding insulation when it’s not. There’s no hard-and-fast definition of it, but they tend to be a little thicker than the average shirt, with classic distinct details like multiple pockets or military-like epaulettes. Undershirts soak up sweat and prevent staining your fancy shirts. If wearing one for that purpose, you don’t want to show it: a V-neck won’t be visible under an open collar.
How do we put it on?
As a general rule, coarser, matte-finish fabrics like cotton and linen are less formal, as are lighter colours. So, if you have a highly structured jacket in one of these materials and/or hues, there’s going to be a disconnect. If you are to layer clothes this summer, you need to keep this in mind and you’ll be okay.
