Dressing your age, or even knowing how to dress well, can be tricky at any stage in your life. While there are no set rules on how men should dress, fashion for older men compared to younger men is different, so make sure you’re getting things right. Here are some tips for getting the most out of your looks and for dressing appropriately.

How to Dress in Your 20s

• Experiment. Guys in their 20s are the most ‘catered-to’ audience when it comes to clothes. This is your chance to try out bold looks and trends before committing to more classic styles as you get older. Don’t be afraid to try out bright colours, unusual cuts, bold prints and the trends that everyone hates, but you secretly kind of like. You can look back and cringe at your choices when you’re older, but for now, just enjoy the oddities of fashion.
• Bag Yourself a Good Barber. Clothes aren’t the only thing that can affect your style, and a decent haircut can definitely improve your overall look. If you’re unsure what cut to go for don’t try to go for anything too ‘crazy’. Man buns and pompadours can look great but they need to be regularly maintained to look their best. So if you’re not confident in hair styling, you’ll just be adding more stress to your daily routine. Stick to simple tapered cuts that look good left on their own but can be changed up with some simple products.
• Buy a Good Watch. Accessories are just as important as clothes when creating an outfit. A staple watch that you can wear with anything is never, ever a bad investment, so don’t be afraid to spend a little more to get a good one. If you prefer warm toned clothes then a gold watch will go perfectly with them, while a silver one will match well with more muted, cool tone outfits.

How to Dress in Your 30s

• Choose Classic Styles. Fashion for 30-year-old men can be varied, and while you can still get away with the trends, you can also begin incorporating more classic styles and shapes into your wardrobe. This is honestly the best time to dress, as you’ve got the perfect balance of youth and maturity on your side, ensuring you can pull off a range of styles.
• Mind your Body Shape. One general rule in the fashion guide for a 30-year-old man is to keep your body shape in mind. While you can get away with some questionable cuts when you’re in your 20s, 30s men’s fashion is less forgiving, and you need to work on flattering your form.
• Make Suits the Most Important Thing in Your Wardrobe. A good 30-year-old man’s fashion should include something like a well fitted, patterned suit, as it is the perfect way to keep your figure in mind while maintaining a unique style. You might have got yourself a decent suit in your 20s, but when it comes to 30s male fashion, the more suits the better. It’s time to expand in color, quality and patterns – try out tweed, see if the crop leg trouser is for you, get something specially tailored. There are so many ways to wear a suit casually, so you don’t have to wait for a formal occasion to pull one out. Learn what colors work for you and suit up.
• Invest in Go-To Items. It’s likely that you’ll be a whole lot busier in your 30s than you were in your 20s, so free time is going to get eaten up faster than a receding hairline. The last thing you want to do is spend hours putting an outfit together. To help with this, invest in well made, staple pieces. A fitted blazer, a few classic Oxford shirts and a good pair of formal shoes are a great start. Other investments like jeans that fit you perfectly will also help make putting an outfit together that much easier.
• Indulge in Labels. While your 20s is all about experimenting and playing around with fashion, 30-year-old man fashion is all about honing-in on your personal style. This involves steering clear of cheap, trend-focused disposable pieces and investing in fewer, more expensive ones. The extra money is usually worth it.
• Appropriate Your Fit. It’s unlikely that you’ll be quite as trim as you were in your younger days. You might have been able to get away with a skinny fit suit in your 20s, but It’s better to avoid these styles when you’re in your 40s and opt for a more conventional fit instead. The best jeans for men over 40 are the ones that aren’t too skinny, though you’d want to go for slimmer fit jeans as they’ll give your body an all-round better shape.
• Revise Your Wardrobe. It’s likely that you’ll have a decent amount of clothes from your 20s and 30s in your wardrobe. Although many of these may well work for you, others might be a little past their sell by date. Chuck out the pieces you’ve grown out of and stick to simple, flattering pieces instead.
• Black is Beautiful. All black is great at any age but as you get older it should become a uniform of sorts. The hair is also a great focal point. Although you might think it’s boring to have the same hair as you get older, there’s a lot less room for it to go wrong. Sticking to one style is ideal.

How to Dress in Your 40s

• Develop Your Style. Dressing in your 40s is all about developing style, as opposed to trends and fashion. Filter out the more dubious outfits you tried in your 20s and 30s and instead pay more attention to the fit of your clothes and a color palette that suits you.
• Stick with a Definite Haircut. Clothing styles for men over 40 are important, but a haircut can drastically change a person’s overall appearance. Men in their 40s might start to see their hair thin and their hairline to recede a bit. A shorter, tapered style can flatter your features as well as help to disguise any male pattern baldness that might be going on.
• Appropriate Your Fit. It’s unlikely that you’ll be quite as trim as you were in your younger days. You might have been able to get away with a skinny fit suit in your 20s, but It’s better to avoid these styles when you’re in your 40s and opt for a more conventional fit instead. The best jeans for men over 40 are the ones that aren’t too skinny, though you’d want to go for slimmer fit jeans as they’ll give your body an all-round better shape.
• Revise Your Wardrobe. It’s likely that you’ll have a decent amount of clothes from your 20s and 30s in your wardrobe. Although many of these may well work for you, others might be a little past their sell by date. Chuck out the pieces you’ve grown out of and stick to simple, flattering pieces instead.
• Black is Beautiful. All black is great at any age but as you get older it should become a uniform of sorts. The hair is also a great focal point. Although you might think it’s boring to have the same hair as you get older, there’s a lot less room for it to go wrong. Sticking to one style is ideal.

How to Dress in Your 50s

• Focus on Fit and Colors. Fashion for men over 50 is pretty similar to men’s fashion over 40, with a focus on fit and colors rather than trends. Although you’ll still look great in a tailored suit for more formal occasions, when it comes to casual clothes, footwear such as trainers may become a little harder to pull off. Go for smarter looking shoes such as loafers and Chelsea boots. These can easily be mixed into casual looks yet have a more mature, sophisticated edge.
• Splash Out on Accessories. Accessories can be the perfect finishing touch to an outfit. No matter if it’s a simple jeans and T-shirt combination, or a more refined suit and tie look. You shouldn’t feel restricted to plain, simplistic outfits all the time. It’s best to go for classic, versatile accessories that won’t look out of place when paired with a range of looks. A leather strap watch with a clean gold or silver frame is ideal. Spending a little more on a good quality model is always worth it. You’re a refined older gentleman now – no more cheap crap.
• Keep your Hair in Check. The worst thing you can do in your 50s is let your hair and beard go. They need love and attention as well. Use good hair products, cuts that work with the texture of your hair and, hey, even a good beard oil. There’s no shame in having a beautifully scented beard.
• Dressing more Formally. By now you should be used to dressing more formally as you get older. However, now that you’re in your 50s, you should be doing it all the time. Never leave the house without a blazer or a collared shirt. You’re trying to look as well dressed as you can all the time.

Summing up on How to Dress Your Age

• Your 20s should be experimental and exciting, so don’t worry too much about getting things wrong.
• Your 30s should be about streamlining your wardrobe and adding a few luxury essentials.
• A 40-year-old man’s style should be all about investing in luxury pieces to stand the test of time.
• Men’s fashion over 50 is about essentials and updating wardrobe staples.

Despite the message of this whole article, there are no real rules on how to dress for your age. Only bits of advice that you can choose to follow if you want. We do recommend going for more classic cuts and simple colors the older you get.

However, if you’re not afraid to stand out, wear whatever you want. There’s no reason not to break out the neon jacket, board shorts and camo prints when you hit 50. Just, don’t tell anyone we recommended it.

Source: https://theidleman.com