Flannel suit with denim shirt - business casual

Gray flannel suit is a men's wardrobe classic. There is no doubt about that. If you are looking for one versatile suit to wear at work or at parties, it is this one. One of the best aspects is that you can combine it in many ways. If you want a casual office outfit, try gray flannel suit with denim shirt. Last week I wrote about checked gray flannel suit and how to combine it with brown overcoat and brown accessories. This week I take even a more classic piece, a plain light gray flannel suit. And I combine it with casual denim and soft cashmere. Flannel suit with denim shirt - business casual for fall and winter season.

Gray flannel suit with denim shirt - make it casual

The classic way is to wear your flannel suit with white or light blue button-up shirt. That combination is appropriate for any business meeting or formal occasion. But sometimes if you have those casual Fridays or other more relaxed occasion, you can go for something else. Therefore you should have at least one good denim shirt in your rotation. Earlier in the fall I wrote about cotton suit with denim shirt. During fall and winter you don't have many opportunies to wear cotton suits. At least if you are leaving in the Nordic countries. But for a casual occasions you can easily replace the cotton suit with flannel one. If you do so, I suggest you choose a suit that features details such as patch pockets and lightweight construction. As you can see I once again trust to the combination of gray and blue. The suit features pretty light shade of gray and the washed blue denim gives it just the right kind of contrast. The shade of your denim is also one thing to pay attention. If you choose too dark shade of blue you end up with an outfit that is too dark without any contrast. For example the shirt I have worn here with my cotton suit, would in my opinion be too dark. On the other hand if you go with very light colored denim, it can make the outfit too casual and create too much contrast. And it can be hard to find a right tie to pair with the outfit. Striped cashmere tie tie with a double four-in-hand knot. If you use the double FiH with ties featuring thicker fabric, make sure the knot does not become too bulky.

Flannel wool, denim and cashmere - keep the balance

The shirt I wear here is from our DLA-essentials line. The fabric is pre-washed which gives it a bit more soft and casual feel. And make it perfect to combine with soft and thick flannel wool. I personally like to wear it with a tie but the soft spread collar makes it appropriate to wear it without one. Actually I could wear this outfit without a tie as well. But for business casual purposes I suggest you wear your suit and shirt with a tie. The pocket square repeats the blue and red shades of the tie and shirt. The tie I chose here is a striped cashmere piece from Drake's London. Again, it is important to match the texture and weight of the tie to the suit and shirt. Of course, if you combine flannel and cashmere, you really can't go wrong. This combination could actually be called as a perfect winter season combination. And even though denim is probably considere more as summer shirt fabric, there is no reason why you couldn't wear it during winter season. Flannel suit with denim shirt - play with colors, materials and textures.

Sum up - ways to dress your flannel suit up or down

As I have mentioned many times, in my opinion versatility is one of the key aspects of your wardrobe. Especially if you are dealing with lower budget, it is important to think how you combine the pieces you have in your rotation in different ways. If you think about gray flannel business suit, there are multiple different options to wear it with. As said, for a formal business meeting, pair it with white spread collar shirt, navy blue wool tie and black oxford shoes. On the other hand there are also many option to how to dress down your business suit. First of all you can always try to find a suit with pattern. Patterns like windowpane or other checks makes your suit always a bit more casual. If you have plain suit like I have here, try a shirts with soft collar. And choose a tie which have a little texture instead of wearing a plain and smooth silk tie. And if you want to go really casual, try a roll neck sweater. Actually an outfit like this would work very nicely with a dark gray or even burgundy roll neck sweater. And of course one way to dress down your suit is to wear it as separates. If I would change the jacket here to a navy blue blazer and drop the tie, I would have a perfect outfit for Friday night drinks. Flannel suit, denim shirt and cashmere tie. All three parts are essential pieces of men's wardrobe in my book. What is your favorite business casual outfit? Flannel suit with denim shirt or something else?