Don’t be shy, get dressed up for Christmas
Put on the sweater, coward
Welcome to the Prep Club holiday party, though the black-tie soirees are likely behind us by the time this meeting reaches you, there’s still opportunities to dress with the festive season in mind, principally Christmas Day itself. What follows is not at its heart a guide to dressing for Christmas, but rather a word of encouragement, with a couple recommendations for good measure.
Lets Get Kitsch
Whilst festive dress guides are abundant, they will often opt for more discerning options when it comes to knitwear. Cable-knits and Muted Fair-Isles are fine choices for those who prefer a subtler look, or those who’d rather not have a specialist piece for the occasion. If however, you’d like to make more of the occasion, you should not be afraid of going for an unabashed Christmas Jumper. This is not even a matter of hipstersish irony, a bright and exciting knit can genuinely be styled in a manner which communicates the proper excitement one should feel for the season, and in a manner which still appears rather classy.
The classic brands we love here have made a few over the years, Polo, Brooks, J. Crew, and they can be had for a lot less too. As always pick something in a natural fibre, this is your greatest ally in maintaining a sense of style in the face of overwhelming kitsch, but let yourself go a little too. One ought to be spending Christmas Day with their most trusted, if there is any occasion to dress somewhat unseriously, this surely is the season.
That said…
Wool on the Lower Half Too
There’s always that cheap joke, that suggests one might opt for elasticated trousers on Christmas Day, to accommodate for the overindulgence. If you'd rather wear something more formal, might I suggest turning to your flannel trousers, should you own a pair. Wearing them with braces/suspenders beneath your knitwear can afford you some room for… …expansion, and flannel is as comfortable in feel as it is dressy in appearance. This is an occasion, after all, an occasion worth wearing a pleated trouser for.
The brilliance of the charcoal flannel trouser is set to be the subject of a meeting itself in the new year, visit again to learn why it might be considered the sartorialist’s blue jean.
The Christmas Day Balance
The essence of this meeting is to suggest that one should strike a balance, between the sartorial and the silly. Serious consideration can be made toward dressing in an unserious manner, yet in juxtaposing this with the more formal pieces which likely constitute club members’ wardrobes, there can be found an exciting style of dress. One that aligns entirely with the ethos behind modern Ivy style.
The Finest of Fabrics
One final recommendation: velvet. Blazer, trousers, slippers, smoking jacket, whatever it is you have. One might even suggest that there is no fabric more closely associated with the festive season than velvet, the rich colours are as indulgent as the foods. And having established that one likely desires comfort, it is a fine option in that respect too. If the kitsch isn't quite your speed, why not trade it for opulence and regality.
So, don’t take dressing on Christmas Day too seriously, but also do. Make comfort a priority, but do so in a way that suits the occasion. Enjoy picking out an outfit, that’s why we do this. Have a very Merry Christmas and we’ll convene again just before the New Year in line with our usual schedule, if not a little before then.