Jacob on "Guy's Staple Clothing"

Hello! I'm Jacob Ayres!

Faith and I before we left home at the end of summer last year

I'm the brother that helped Faith get her blog up and going. It's been a really cool experience seeing all of these people connecting to Faith's posts! And it's been a great experience as a Graphic Design major with a minor in Marketing. I get to see in action what I study in class. But anyway, you probably wonder why I'm even posting: since Faith and Jaime are getting everything ready for the big move, I offered to give her a break from blogging for a day. It's the least I could do since I was 500+ miles away and couldn't physically help them.
Anyway, I wanted to make a post because not everyone is aware of this topic. I wasn't aware myself until I left for college. The hardest part of leaving home to go to college 9.5 hours away is having to discern what to take with you and what to leave behind. Okay, so it might not be the hardest part about leaving, but it sure doesn’t make it any easier. During my first semester, I took nearly all of my dress shirts, save one or two that I didn’t really like. And then of course, I had to haul all of that all the way back home. It was a lot of effort and I honestly didn’t wear 1/3 of the clothes that I brought down. By the time the next semester came around, I learned to cut down on the load by packing staple clothing.

          
  Staple clothes are different pieces of clothing that can be combined and mixed with other staples to create a mass load of different outfits. This is ideal for the average guy because it’s so simplified. This is ideal for the significant other who really wants the aforementioned average guy to dress better. Giving him staple clothes is logical because the margin of error is so low. Basic pieces of clothing can be paired with a plethora of other types of clothing without sacrificing style. And they are also ideal because of the cost factor. You spend more for quality articles that you can wear more times than the heavily patterned clothes. You still look good, if not better, but for a fraction of the cost.

            The clothing in the picture is my 'go-to' with staple clothing. Each article can and has been frequently used in different outfits.

Nautica Oxford

            The first of the staple clothing is the blue oxford shirt. These are ideal because of their versatility; they can be dressed up or down. Oxfords can be paired with a tie and dress pants just as easily as it can with shorts and vans. For maximum use, buy him oxfords in subdued solid colors. While bright colors and patterns may be initially enticing, they wont be able to pair well with as much as solid, subtle colors.

American Eagle Khakis

            The second of the staple clothing is the only one your guy will probably already own, the khaki pants. Khaki pants are a go-to for nearly every guy. Every guy has a pair because of their low effort formality. It looks nice but you don’t have to put as much effort into them. Getting him rich colors will contrast well with the subdued shirt. This honey colored pairs well with a wide variety of colors like purples, blues, greens, yellows, etc.

Johnston&Murphy Cap Toes

            The third of the staple clothing is the tan leather dress shoes. Shoes technically don’t count as clothing but it’s a staple nonetheless. Rich, tan, leather dress shoes can be dressed up or down depending on the outfit.

            Along with the shoes, the fourth staple item is the matching leather belt. This is a bit petty seeming but getting him a belt to match the shoes will pull together the use of the tan colored shoes. There have been outfits that would have seemed random had the matching belt and shoes pulled together the ensemble.

Cheap watches and bracelets

            The fifth staple item in this outfit is the watch and the bracelets. The watch is an old birthday present I got my 8^th grade year but it adds interest to my wrists and serves a practical purpose as well. The olive face is subdued enough to not distract and the darkness of the leather band matches the darkness of the bracelets, creating visual harmony and interest to the wrist. Getting him a watch that will go with nearly every outfit will pay off in the end.

            The sixth staple item is the cologne. I personally use Polo Blue or Polo Black by Ralph Lauren on a daily basis. It’s a light fragrance that will last throughout the day. Getting him a fragrance that is light and versatile is more of a present to you. You’re the one that will be closest to him, so why smell something overpoweringly spicy?

eReader case

            I throw in the Fossil eReader case as a staple item, because I believe it should be. Having your guy well versed in literature will benefit you and him for ages to come. And why not get a durable case that would be appropriate to bring to church or the coffee shop? For anymore questions about staples or even starting a blog, email me!

            Well, I hope you enjoyed this post, and if not, Faith will be back tomorrow!