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STYLE
A hint, the slightest glint, but nothing that smacks of ostentation: such must be the maxim of the
gentleman. Understatement is path to the distinction.Wristwatch, cuff links, wedding band or a
signet ring, perhaps, are all that a gentleman ordinarily displays, and each piece should be as
discreetly simple as feasible. ‘Old’ gold is easier to carry off than anything that flashes newness.
Surely this is why a wristwatch with tails remains an awkward anomaly.
The studs, waistcoat buttons an cuff links of evening dress should ideally match, though this is not
essential. What is important is never to mix gold and silver.
Chunky bracelets, gold chains, earrings and the like are not the accoutrement of a gentleman.
TIE PINS
The tie pin (stick pin) is a comparatively new accessory of the gentleman, in as much as it dates
from the 18th century, when the artistically-bound neck-cloth became the fashion. A two-inch silver
or gold pin with an ornamental head was used to hold it in place; it might be topped by a pearl or
precious stones, or a glass or enameled or engraved head. As the 19th century advanced, the pin
heads became ever more imaginative, with fox masks and other sporting motifs very popular. In
1901, the German Kaiser sported a mourning pin bearing the initials of his grandmother, Queen
Victoria.
The stick pin today does formal duty with the ascot of morning dress, or it may be used with a
standard knotted tie, or as a lapel decoration.
TIE CLIPS
The tie clip that clamps tie to shirt in the manner of a paper clip was an Edwardian innovation
revived in the 1950s, not particularly popular nowadays. There are clips of gold and silver or plain
metal, or enameled in club colours. They are not to be worn with formal dress
CUFFLINK
There is a French claim to having invented cufflinks, lodged on behalf of Louis IX in the 13th
century. If correct, it was remarkably prescient, since there would be no need for them for another
600 years.
Even when flapping rectangles of soft white linen beckoned invitingly from the bottom of 19th-
century coat sleeves, linked fasteners were uncommon until the 1840s, when they were not at first
treated as an accessory in their own right, but as ‘buttons’.
Only from the 1850s, with cuffs heavily starched and folded double in the style duly designated as
the French cuff, did the ’golden twins’ of Louis IX at long last gain recognition. The designs were
English, however, not French.
This was in every sense the golden era of the cufflink. Yet not only gold, or silver, but pearls and
gemstones gleamed with each flash of cuff, like shooting stars across the dark night of Victorian
cloth. With the advent of the dinner jacket, less ostentatious sets of studs and links were worn, and
as informality set in with the advance of the 20th century, the fancy cuff link retreated before the
inexorable advance of the plain cuff and the humble button.
The classic cuff link consists of two studs linked by a chain. Studs joined by a bar instead of a
chain are an alternative design. A single cuff-face, with plain clip to secure the unexposed inside
cuff, is an American rationalisation.
Pearl, mother-of-pearl, gold, silver, semi-precious stones and intaglios are the stuff of ornamental
cuff links. The antique trade is well-supplied with all sorts.
WATCHES
Watches have been worn since the 16th century, initially on a neck chain as a most luxurious
piece of jewellery. The 18th-century gentleman carried his watch in his ‘fob’, a small pocket at the
waistband of his breeches.
In the 19th century the watch was tucked into a waistcoat pocket an was such a symbol of the new
age of commerce that a dandy might take pride in NOT carrying one. The gold watch attained its
state of classic rectitude in 1849 with the introduction of the ‘Albert’, a watch-chain passed through
a buttonhole and secured by a bar.
Wrist watches date from the start of the 20th century, but did not become common until the 1920s.
The pocket watch remained the correct accompaniment for formal wear through the 1950s, and
numbers were recovered from attics and antique shops and restored to active duty out of late-
century nostalgia for old values.
The wrist watch has come to more than match the Victorian time-piece as serious body furniture.
Cartier, Rolex and their like confer an instant identity upon those prepared to risk wrist-strain from
the weight of precious metal involved in delivering their message.
Here again, the gentleman needs to take due care and not be swept into making a choice for the
sake of ostentation alone. Select a design that is elegant enough to grace a dress shirt and yet
does not jar with jean: plain-faced, certainly, with Roman numerals, surely, and striking in its
functional simplicity.
A hint, the slightest glint, but nothing that smacks of ostentation: such must be the maxim of the
gentleman. Understatement is path to the distinction.Wristwatch, cuff links, wedding band or a
signet ring, perhaps, are all that a gentleman ordinarily displays, and each piece should be as
discreetly simple as feasible. ‘Old’ gold is easier to carry off than anything that flashes newness.
Surely this is why a wristwatch with tails remains an awkward anomaly.
The studs, waistcoat buttons an cuff links of evening dress should ideally match, though this is not
essential. What is important is never to mix gold and silver.
Chunky bracelets, gold chains, earrings and the like are not the accoutrement of a gentleman.
TIE PINS
The tie pin (stick pin) is a comparatively new accessory of the gentleman, in as much as it dates
from the 18th century, when the artistically-bound neck-cloth became the fashion. A two-inch silver
or gold pin with an ornamental head was used to hold it in place; it might be topped by a pearl or
precious stones, or a glass or enameled or engraved head. As the 19th century advanced, the pin
heads became ever more imaginative, with fox masks and other sporting motifs very popular. In
1901, the German Kaiser sported a mourning pin bearing the initials of his grandmother, Queen
Victoria.
The stick pin today does formal duty with the ascot of morning dress, or it may be used with a
standard knotted tie, or as a lapel decoration.
TIE CLIPS
The tie clip that clamps tie to shirt in the manner of a paper clip was an Edwardian innovation
revived in the 1950s, not particularly popular nowadays. There are clips of gold and silver or plain
metal, or enameled in club colours. They are not to be worn with formal dress
CUFFLINK
There is a French claim to having invented cufflinks, lodged on behalf of Louis IX in the 13th
century. If correct, it was remarkably prescient, since there would be no need for them for another
600 years.
Even when flapping rectangles of soft white linen beckoned invitingly from the bottom of 19th-
century coat sleeves, linked fasteners were uncommon until the 1840s, when they were not at first
treated as an accessory in their own right, but as ‘buttons’.
Only from the 1850s, with cuffs heavily starched and folded double in the style duly designated as
the French cuff, did the ’golden twins’ of Louis IX at long last gain recognition. The designs were
English, however, not French.
This was in every sense the golden era of the cufflink. Yet not only gold, or silver, but pearls and
gemstones gleamed with each flash of cuff, like shooting stars across the dark night of Victorian
cloth. With the advent of the dinner jacket, less ostentatious sets of studs and links were worn, and
as informality set in with the advance of the 20th century, the fancy cuff link retreated before the
inexorable advance of the plain cuff and the humble button.
The classic cuff link consists of two studs linked by a chain. Studs joined by a bar instead of a
chain are an alternative design. A single cuff-face, with plain clip to secure the unexposed inside
cuff, is an American rationalisation.
Pearl, mother-of-pearl, gold, silver, semi-precious stones and intaglios are the stuff of ornamental
cuff links. The antique trade is well-supplied with all sorts.
WATCHES
Watches have been worn since the 16th century, initially on a neck chain as a most luxurious
piece of jewellery. The 18th-century gentleman carried his watch in his ‘fob’, a small pocket at the
waistband of his breeches.
In the 19th century the watch was tucked into a waistcoat pocket an was such a symbol of the new
age of commerce that a dandy might take pride in NOT carrying one. The gold watch attained its
state of classic rectitude in 1849 with the introduction of the ‘Albert’, a watch-chain passed through
a buttonhole and secured by a bar.
Wrist watches date from the start of the 20th century, but did not become common until the 1920s.
The pocket watch remained the correct accompaniment for formal wear through the 1950s, and
numbers were recovered from attics and antique shops and restored to active duty out of late-
century nostalgia for old values.
The wrist watch has come to more than match the Victorian time-piece as serious body furniture.
Cartier, Rolex and their like confer an instant identity upon those prepared to risk wrist-strain from
the weight of precious metal involved in delivering their message.
Here again, the gentleman needs to take due care and not be swept into making a choice for the
sake of ostentation alone. Select a design that is elegant enough to grace a dress shirt and yet
does not jar with jean: plain-faced, certainly, with Roman numerals, surely, and striking in its
functional simplicity.
SPECTACLES
Anyone who considers it curious to include eye glasses is either unaware or forgetful of times past
, when the monocle was a most formidable social weapon. Even his greatest foe admitted of
Victorian statesman Joseph Chamberlain, “he wore his (gold-rimmed) monocle like a gentleman”.
The monocle was yet another casualty of the First World War, and eye wear went into sartorial
eclipse until the 1980s, when ‘designer frames’ became the focus of attention.
Those whose business it is to know about such matters aver that girls most certainly do make
passes at men who wear glasses; further, the style of frame that is most flattering to an individual’s
particular facial make-up can bring out character qualities not otherwise discernible.
There is a set of obvious structural guidelines. Horizontal frames, for instance, help to balance a
long face; a vertically-aligned frame has the effect of stretching a round face. A high bridge lends
stature to a short nose; a low bridge, set in the middle of the frame, ‘shortens’ a long nose.
Rimless glasses are frames have been observed to make many a man look serious and sensitive.
Anyone who considers it curious to include eye glasses is either unaware or forgetful of times past
, when the monocle was a most formidable social weapon. Even his greatest foe admitted of
Victorian statesman Joseph Chamberlain, “he wore his (gold-rimmed) monocle like a gentleman”.
The monocle was yet another casualty of the First World War, and eye wear went into sartorial
eclipse until the 1980s, when ‘designer frames’ became the focus of attention.
Those whose business it is to know about such matters aver that girls most certainly do make
passes at men who wear glasses; further, the style of frame that is most flattering to an individual’s
particular facial make-up can bring out character qualities not otherwise discernible.
There is a set of obvious structural guidelines. Horizontal frames, for instance, help to balance a
long face; a vertically-aligned frame has the effect of stretching a round face. A high bridge lends
stature to a short nose; a low bridge, set in the middle of the frame, ‘shortens’ a long nose.
Rimless glasses are frames have been observed to make many a man look serious and sensitive.
How to dress like a gentleman- A guide on the style of jewellery of a gentleman: dress like a true gent
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