Last month, I received my first invitation to a tech meetup in San Francisco since starting Minimalists on Aprons. The dress code? Smart casual.
My immediate reaction was indifference. Smart casual feels like one of those phrases people throw around when they could’ve simply said “dress nice” or “wear clothes.” I’ve been studying men’s style and minimalist wardrobes for years now, and smart casual still sends me into existential crises where I want to throw my phone through a wall. TLDR: Smart casual doesn’t have to be stressful!
It’s all about reading the room. HOWEVER.
After years of dread and annoyance, I think I’ve finally cracked the code on smart casual.
Figured out why it’s so dumb and more importantly how to absolutely kill it without over-thinking every item of clothing you’re wearing. Spoiler: it’s not about memorizing some vague set of rules, it’s about knowing how your fellow humans interpret those words. ! [smart casual](https://res.cloudinary.com/mjjmanaged/images/upload/v1617148225/blog_posts/smart-casual_header_ygr12t.jpg) San Francisco friend zone The lightbulb moment for me came when I attended three “smart casual” gatherings in the span of two weeks last year. A work happy hour in SOMA.
A birthday dinner for my girlfriend’s boyfriend in the Mission. Some pretentious cocktail networking event that my college roommate forced me to go to. Despite the wildly different venues and occasions, I dressed almost identically to all of them: dark jeans, white button-down shirt, navy blue blazer, white leather sneakers.
I felt exactly appropriate at one of them, slightly overdressed at another, and completely underdressed at the last. Once I realized that wearing the exact same outfit could send me anywhere from over- to under-prepared based on the audience, I knew smart casual wasn’t a dress code. It was something else.
Something harder to define. Something like… ambiance? Mood?
Context? Doesn’t matter how many synonyms you throw at it, that “smart casual” description still doesn’t tell you much about what to wear. Same amount of helpfulness as “dress nice” or “look good.” Very Ben stealing your shade right here. After years of embarrassing potential and showing up too casual or overdressed, here’s what I’ve learned.
Smart casual is about demonstrating that you know how to interpret the circumstances. It’s social intuition translated into your wardrobe. You’re telling everyone else “hey, I know this is important enough for me to put effort into my outfit, but we’re not going to be super formal or stuffy tonight.” Essentially, you’re pairing one obviously casual garment with something more refined.
Nice jeans with a button-up and suede shoes. Blazer and slacks with sneakers. T-shirt under a sports coat.
The important part is that nothing feels lazy or incomplete. So here’s what I’ve landed on for my personal definition of smart casual: dark denim (not thin inseam jeans from Target), solid button-up shirt, and white sneakers or loafers. Throw on a navy blazer unbuttoned if it’s a more formal crowd. I can use this outfit for around 80% of smart casual events in San Francisco. Side note: geography matters.
Last summer I visited my cousin in Boston and realized that what I typically wear for smart casual in San Francisco wouldn’t even fly for casual dress up in Boston. Everyone was wearing jackets and leather shoes while I stumbled around in jeans and sneakers feeling underdressed. Which was hilarious because I basically was underdressed.
Just underdressed Boston vs SF style. Similarly, your industry matters. Tech smart casual is wildly different than your finance industry counterpart’s idea of smart casual.
Case in point: a button-up and high quality t-shirt works great for tech. Button up and tennis shoes? Showing up to a Wall Street mixer will get you some serious side eyes. Same goes for the event location.
That new Michelin-star restaurant my girlfriend has been dying to try? Swiped through their Instagram once and realized everyone was wearing some variation of blazer and dress shirt. The brewery where my coworkers go for weekly happy hour?
Stumbled across a photo of someone wearing flip flops. Same smart casual description from the invite, radically different answers to what you should wear. Age definitely plays into it too. Men in their 40s/50s can pull off pretty traditional smart casual attire (khakis, button-ups, loafers) and completely kill it.
I wear that exact same combo and look like a nerd trying too hard or like I’m going incognito on family night. Obviously guys in their 20s and 30s have more leeway with sneaks and relaxed fits, but you’ll notice the older gentleman can get away with “classic” looks that us youngsters cannot. Let’s dive into what works and what doesn’t for each category. For the record, I’m basing this off of what I see works and what I see absolutely murder a dress code: Bottoms: Jeans, dark jeans.
Don’t get me started on how versatile a great pair of jeans are. Not the worn, faded jeans you wear on the weekends. Not the boot-cut jeans your dad still thinks look good.
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I’m talking about the dark, non-distressed denim that looks like you put some effort into selecting your outfit. I own two pairs of raw denim that I rotate through for occasions like this. They’re dark enough to pass as smart casual while still letting me feel comfortable.
Chinos are great too, especially in darker colors like navy or olive. I personally avoid khakis at all costs because I can’t help but picture Jimmy Carter wearing them every time I see a pair. But khakis work for smart casual too, I swear. Shirts: You can’t go wrong with button-ups.
They don’t necessarily have to be “dress shirts” but something tailored and structured looks a lot better than a big ol’ cotton t-shirt. I personally prefer Oxford cloth or chambray because they look great on camera and don’t wrinkle as easily as button ups. Fit is key here.
You can absolutely wear a fitted t-shirt under a blazer for less formal smart casual gatherings, but that t-shirt better be $50+. No-one likes a dude rocking conference swag as his shirt of choice. Blazers: Speaking of blazers. Having a nice, high-quality blazer you can throw on at a moments notice is a surefire way to elevate any smart casual outfit.
An unstructured sport coat says “I put effort into this outfit” instead of “I didn’t feel like putting a jacket on.” Navy is universally flattering and goes with almost everything. I have an Everlane one that I wear about twice a week – it’s that perfect in between of formal enough to not look silly, but casual enough that I feel comfortable wearing it. Bonus points if you can find one that doesn’t need dry cleaning! Footwear:Sneakers are your best friend.
But the type of sneakers matters. White leather low tops are my go-to, but only because I tend to wear minimalist-style sneakers like Common Projects or equivalents. Sneakers that don’t scream “I play basketball for a living.” Loafers are also a great neutral shoe that go with basically everything in your wardrobe.
I have a nice brown leather pair I keep solely for instances where I want to look sharp but not overwhelm my outfit with oxfords. Maintainance: This is another thing I couldn’t have told you a few years ago but makes all the difference. How you care for your clothes matters. It’s unacceptable to wear a wrinkled shirt regardless of the price tag or brand name embroidered on your jacket.
Shoes need to be shiny, not scuffed. I didn’t realize how wrinkled my blazer was until I actually hung it up on a hanger rather than tossing it over a chair. Literally changed my entire wardrobe.
Here’s some things I did that ended badly when I wasn’t using my new SMART CASUAL framework: Forgot what city I was in and rocked a hoodie to a fairly formal smart casual event. Showed up to what I thought was a smart casual event in a full suit because everyone else was wearing jeans and button-ups. Wore nice jeans and a button up to a tech company holiday party that said smart casual on the invite only to find everyone else in t-shirts and shorts. Again, SF vs tech versus actual professionalism culture. Think you get the idea. Approach every smart casual event as you would a social experiment.
What’s the appropriate level of dress? Once you find your sweet spot, you can dial it down or up based on your actual invitation. Typically I’ve found it’s better to be slightly over dressed than under.
There’s nothing wrong with showing up to an event with a blazer and then taking it off because you’re too hot. Can’t really insert a blazer into your outfit if you showed up in board shorts and a t-shirt. Something I’ve also noticed? Smart casual has changed over the years I’ve been running into it.
Fabrics you used to ONLY see on sneakers or athletic apparel are now being used for trousers that look like wool but stretch like leggings. Blazers made from technical fabrics that don’t wrinkle. The lines are continuing to blur between what’s acceptable as smart casual. Fits perfectly with my push for capsule wardrobes too.
If I can get the same pieces to work for smart casual gatherings as they do for work or casual weekend outings, I’m doing something right. Long story short: smart casual doesn’t have to suck. It really is all about knowing your audience and applying some level of effort. Stop stressing about what other people think smart casual “should be” and just wear clothes that fit the occasion.
So next time you get freaked out by “smart casual” on an invitation, take a second to analyze your environment. Who’s hosting the event?
Where are you going?
What time of day? What season? Who else will be there?
Dress slightly nicer than what you think the majority will wear and you’ll kill it 9 times out of 10. It’s stupid we even have a dress code like smart casual. Vague enough that no one can actually agree on what it means, but strict enough that we’ll all freak out when planning our outfits. Once you take a step back and realize it’s literally just a consensus that we should look nice but not too nice, it becomes way easier to approach. These days when I receive an invitation that says smart casual, I don’t sweat it.
Throw on dark jeans, solid shirt, nice sneakers, grab a blazer if I’m feeling it. Show up looking like I gave some thought to my outfit, but didn’t spend hours trying to find the magical combination of clothes that fit the dress code. Worked for me every time.
One of these days I’ll learn and stop posting absolutely braindead emails as blog posts. – Ben PS: seriously though. Help a guy out and fix my email settings. 🙏🏻
