Forget the one-versus-two-buttons debate, or the can-you-wear-colourful-socks-in-the-boardroom question. When it comes to dividing men along fashion lines, nothing is more heated than the topic of shirtsleeves. Short or long? That is the question.
And despite the fact that we are fast approaching the dog days of summer, for most men, it seems, there is still only one answer.
“Only T-shirts and polo shirts can have short sleeves”, declares Rufus Albemarle, the British-born designer who last year launched a collection of hand-stitched shirts.
Dress shirts and business shirts all have one thing in common: long sleeves. “Short sleeves should never be worn unless you’re on safari,” says the Earl of March, of Goodwood fame. Meanwhile, at the other end of the style barometer, London mayor Boris Johnson adds: “Long sleeves are best because you can always roll them up.”
Italian Vogue’s Carlo Ducci knows exactly what’s happening on the catwalk. He says, “In my opinion, shirts must always have long sleeves unless that is they are Hawaiian style or something you would wear to the gym. Besides, long sleeve shirts are more adaptable. The only accessory I like for men are cuff-links and even if I buy a shirt from say, the Gap, I’ll have the cuffs adapted to fit them.”
New York lawyer and author Roger Kirby is another advocate of the long sleeve. “Long sleeves, always – except during sporting exertions. Short sleeves, after all, carry the whiff of the simian: isn’t it the chimpanzee that generally performs in something less than a long sleeve?”
Gianluca Vialli, ex-manager of Chelsea football club, also bats (or should that be shoots) for the long sleeve. “I only ever wear short sleeves to play football or golf – but they’re polo shirts – not shirts.”
French fashion designer Emanuel Ungaro adds: “What I find deeply unattractive are short sleeves,” while Diego Della Valle, chief executive and president of Tods shoes, says, “I only wear light-blue (white for special occasions) buttoned-down Oxford cotton or jean shirts, and I’ve only ever worn long sleeves. They’re just smarter.”
According to Palestinian-born Middle East affairs writer Said Aburish, short sleeves are equivalent to short socks. “Both of these expose parts of the body that aren’t particularly attractive,” he notes.
Similarly, Luca di Montezemolo, chairman of carmaker Fiat, says: “I absolutely never wear short-sleeved shirts, nor short socks. If it’s extremely hot, then I’ll simply roll my sleeves up a little.”
Count Giberto Arrivabene, a Venetian glass designer who lives on the Grand Canal, admits to having only ever owned one short-sleeved shirt: “It was a green one, from when I did my military service. I still wear it sometimes, but only at sea.”
Film director Hugh Hudson, (Chariots of Fire, Greystoke, Revolution) also restricts his short sleeves to a specific context. “I made three films in Africa,” he says. “It’s so hot that you can only wear short sleeves on set.” But there is, he says, another exception to the rule. “If you have tattoos, then short sleeves are essential wear, because the tattoo becomes the sleeve. I’m thinking of getting some.”
But it’s not only men in the boardroom or at the peak of their careers who seem to favour long sleeves. So too does a 15-year-old Etonian, who asked not to be named. “For a start, the shorter variety look quite odd – they make you look as if you are in the armed forces, not dressed for dinner.”
The length of the sleeve seems to be one area in which a man’s fidelity is rock solid. Like the political party they choose to support their entire lives, their allegiance to the long-sleeved shirt shows no sign of swaying.
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From crystal cufflinks to elastic armbands
There is something childish about short-sleeved shirts, suggestive as they are of school or cub scout uniforms, writes Josh Sims. Besides which, long sleeves can always be rolled up, resulting – hey presto – in a short-sleeved shirt that still has the suggestion of a man at work.
Long sleeves also create a rare opportunity for self-expression in formal men’s wear, in the cufflink. Just as a man’s tie can send a clear message about the wearer, translating that via the cufflink has become even more of a fine art.
According to Simon Carter, managing director of the eponymous men’s accessories brand, crystal cufflinks are the big sellers, replacing enamel as a way of introducing colour.
However, classic, plain, Georg Jensen-style textured metals are also in the ascendant. “Call it credit crunch chic,” says Carter, “but when times are tough, there is a demand for a more business-like appearance.”
Indeed, self-expression can go too far: novelty cufflinks should be understated, such as the precious metal cigars and crocodiles from William & Son.
Meanwhile the choice of a link-free cuff also makes the long-sleeved shirt a point of difference: double cuffs may allow for printed or contrasting inserts, but even the single cuff is now, as Touker Suleyman, chairman of Jermyn Street shirtmakers Hawes & Curtis, puts it, “a key but understated way of making a shirt look different.”
Piping, three-button fastenings and a variety of cuts – longer or with curved edges – all assist in reviving the long-sleeve shirt as an interesting garment after years as a commodity item.
Don’t, however, be tempted to take the idea of accessories too far. Although Simon Carter is seeing increased orders for elasticated armbands, these are, he says, “more practical than fashion items – for keeping your sleeves out of the ink”. In other words, a look more suited to croupiers, saloon keepers and sheriffs in westerns.
www.simoncarter.net
www.georgjensen.com
www.williamandson.com
www.hawesandcurtis.com
