Death of the 'casual Friday shirt'

Ok guys, I'm going to be blunt with you for a minute... this is one of my biggest pet peeves of all time... and if you are a client of mine, you've definitely heard me say this at least once. This fashion fail has somehow made its way into casual Friday dress code, and sometimes even regular Monday to Thursday ensembles at the office, and it is time to give it up. Please, please, please don't wear your DriFit golf shirts to the office. If you have an early morning tee time and don't have time to go home to change before going to the office, I will give you a pass, but if you're simply getting dressed in the morning and decide to put one of these on... you're going to make me sad. And please god, if you are getting the pass because of a tee time, don't put your sport jacket, or even worse, your suit jacket on over top to try to make it look more formal. Just don't.

I know what you're thinking... ok so I can't wear a DriFit polo, but can I wear a regular polo? The answer is yes. If it is made out of cotton, wool, cashmere, or anything other than DriFit (and it doesn't have those athletic looking stripes seen on most golf shirts), then you're good to go. Don Draper makes it look sexy as  H E double hockey sticks below.

Side note, I tried to find a photo on the interweb of a guy wearing a golf shirt with a blazer to show you what not to do, and couldn't. I think I might start my own photo collection just to prove it does happen. ;)

I don't know what it is about Calgary, and when it became popular, let alone acceptable, to wear athletic wear to the office, but let's just go ahead and let this trend die and meet the going out shirt in shirt heaven. To me, it's the same as a woman going to the office on a Friday in a pair of Lululemon pants or a sports bra & tank top combo. Which, ladies, if you're thinking of trying to pull that one off, I wouldn't ;). 

Rather than resorting to your golf shirts, I'm going to give you a few other... more stylish options to incorporate into your business casual wardrobe.

OXFORDS
If you're looking to take the formal level down a notch, oxford shirts are a great way to do it. You can button it up all the way to the top for the 'invisible tie' look, or leave the top one or two (depending how low they go) buttons undone for that effortlessly casual yet dapper vibe.

SHORT SLEEVE BUTTON UPS
These are a GREAT alternative to golf shirts. Not only are they really on trend, they allow you to stay cool while looking put together. One trick I like to do is roll the sleeve up once, or twice if the sleeve is long, to cinch the sleeve in and make it fit your arms nicer.

POLOS... that aren't DriFit
As mentioned above, it is ok to wear a polo as long as it isn't of the DriFit variety.  Here are a few nice alternatives ;).

I love you all, and I apologize if this is your regular Friday outfit and I've offended you. I'm here to help, not to hurt... and it's better for you to read it here than to have the women at the office talking behind your back. So go ahead and wear that DriFit Nike polo to the golf course with pride... and keep a nice little backup alternative in your car for when you're finished & ready to go to the office. 

Xoxo - Ensemble Style