Can I Wear My Watch Over My Shirt Cuff?
Fancy yourself a pretty cool bloke? Consider yourself on the bleeding edge of fashion? Think you have the confidence to pull off the truly original? Then, maybe you’ve considered wearing your watch on the outside of your cuff?
Ridiculous right? Well, apparently some people think it’s cool. According to fashion guru the Sartorialist, this is
“…still extremely pervasive on Italian Sartorialists…”
Really? Who are these Italians? We want to meet them.
A bit closer to home, the Natty Banker says”
“It’s more a specialized, advanced, and interesting thing to do. But certainly not dominant or necessary! Also the occasion matters. I think it’s best saved for going out to dinner or having cocktails, as opposed to when attending a graduation, for instance, or just going to work.”
Ok, we want to meet that guy too.
In the photo above is Gianni Agnelli, the inspiration for any man that wears his watch on the outside of his cuff. You may ask: who is this Gianni clown? Well, he’s passed away now, but in his time he was a super successful Italian business man. As the head of Fiat, he controlled 4.4% of Italy’s GNP. He’s also known for having impeccable style, a beautiful wife and for “allegedly” sleeping with Jacqueline Kennedy. Basically what we now refer to as a Master of the Universe.
In this case, we suggest you think twice before copying trends from the uber successful. There’s a lot we can learn from them, but there are also certain things they can get away with that us mere mortals cannot. For example, while we strongly advocate dressing more like Brad Pitt, we also suggest you think twice before copying his new moustache.
So, in conclusion, no matter how gutsy and fashionable you are, we suggest you take Daphne Galizia’s advice:
Tags: Cuff, Dress Shirt, Fashion, Gianni Agnelli, Italian Style, Jackie Kennedy, Men's Dress Shirt, Men's Style, Mens Shirt, Watch“Watch – strictly to be worn BENEATH your shirt-cuff; when you wish to know the time, push up your cuff; this can also be used as a signal that a meeting is over and you wish the annoying person sitting across from you to be on his way.”
Had to add this important note about Agnelli that I found in a comment on the sartorialist:
the style godfather of all modern italian men…the originator of the brown shoes with a suit, brown leather/suede boots with a suit, the watch over the cuff, the big italian tie knot, the shortened tie, the long part of the tie longer than the short end of the , silk knit ties with suits, the sweater over the suit shoulder, the unbuttoned shirt cuff under a business suit, unbuttoned buttondown worn with a tie under a business suit…hall of fame playboy from the 50s and 60s (the terms playboy and jet set were inspired by him)