Navy blue blazer - short DLA guide

Navy blue blazer with gray flannel trousers is a combination that every man should have in his wardrobe. Take any book written about classic men's clothing or style and you'll surely find this mention.  There are certain garments in men's clothing that are iconic. These are garments are the cornerstones of the male wardrobe. And navy blue blazer is one of them. It does not really matter whether your style is classic, modern, British, Italian or street wear-based, you can find the right navy blazer for yourself.

The navy blue blazer

When it comes to versatility, timelessness, and effortless, the navy blazer is a piece of clothing that's hard to beat. Naturally the navy blue blazer is a standalone article of clothing that does not come with a matching pair of trousers. This means that the blazer is an excellent pairing tool with other clothing and accessories.

The classic blazer

Are you looking for a sport coat or a blazer? If you take practical approach you don't really need to make any difference between these two. If you have a sport coat, especially a blue one you can just call it a blazer. However there are a few elements that defines the classic blazer:

• It is a stand-alone jacket that you usually wear with trousers of contrasting color or pattern
• It is solid colored or has bold, vividly colored stripes. Solid color here means blue with very rare exceptions.
• It is usually made of navy blue wool fabric. Hopsack, worsted or wool flannel are classic alternatives. Summer blazers are usually made of fresco or linen.
• It is single- or double-breasted.
• It has buttons made of contrasting mother of pearl, silver, brass or gilt embossed with anchor and a scroll

History of classic blazer

There are different versions regarding the fact how the blazer was born. One of them is that the sartorial term blazer originated with the red 'blazers' of the Lady Margaret Boat Club, the rowing club of St. John's College, Cambridge. The Lady Margaret club jackets were termed blazers because of the bright red cloth. Another story of how the blazer got its name goes back to 1837. Queen Victoria decided to carry out an inspection of one of the vessels of the Royal Navy, named the H.M.S. Blazer. In his effort to impress the Queen, the Commander of the H.M.S Blazer decided to get new uniforms for his men as he felt that the current uniforms were hideous. This outfit included a double breasted jacket with brass Royal Navy buttons. If you want to read more about the history, take a look at the article here.

Formality of the blazer

The blazer ranks in dressiness somewhere between a suit and a sport coat. The formality can be naturally be influenced by simple changes in model, material, details, or accessorizing. For example double-breasted blazer is little more dress-up and formal than single-breasted model. Flap pockets are more formal than patch pockets and peak lapels more formal than notch lapels. Finally navy blazer paired with dark trousers is more dressed-up alternative than the blazer paired with light colored slacks.

How to wear navy blue blazer

But then let's move to the navy blazer. Fact is that the navy blazer is equally at home when dressed up with a grenadine tie and flannel trousers or dressed down with button-down shirt and denim. It is a piece that helps you to navigate between formal and casual occasions. You can basically wear it not only at the office but also from wedding parties to dinner dates. So a navy-colored sport coat is always a safe choice as it can easily be dressed down. Just be sure that you choose a single breasted jacket featuring horn or mother of pearl buttons instead of those medal ones.

Shirt and knitwear with navy blue blazer

The shirt you choose depends on the look you are going for. In principle you can combine the navy blue blazer with everything. White, light blue and striped button-up shirts are safe choices. If you look for something a bit more casual, try a chambray shirt with your blazer and cotton slacks. For winter roll neck sweaters in shades of brown and gray as well as in burgundy or bottle green are good options. Also remember that cardigans are a good way to layer and give a new look to your navy blazer. Take a look at how to bring a little color to your outfit with a cardigan from here.

Trousers with navy blazer

Light colored trousers are the most classic choice. For example khaki or off-white pants give an excellent contrast to the navy blue blazer.  Classic chinos blend well with a light blue dress shirt, navy tie, matching pocket square and brown shoes. Another classic choice to match the navy blazer is gray flannel trousers. Experiment with light or dark shades of grey. It is basically very difficult to mess up coordinating this combination and in my opinion every man should have three shades of this trouser type in his wardrobe. For more casual occasions, go for denim. But keep in mind that blue jeans look best when they are lighter than the blazer jacket and create contrast. The problem arises when the hues match up too closely as from a distance it can look like a suit. Check here how to wear jeans with navy sport coat.

Three ways to pull off navy blazer

To help you out, here are three different ways to wear a navy blue blazer:

• For a business meeting combine the navy double-breasted hopsack blazer with gray lightweight wool pants and white button-up shirt. Finalize the look with gray wool tie, matching pocket square and brogue shoes.

• If you want to go for classic smart casual summer style, pair your blazer with light colored cotton trousers, light blue shirt and navy grenadine tie. Add a pair of brown suede loafers and you are set.

• For casual Saturday lunch take your favorite light blue jeans and pair them with white lightweight oxford shirt, cashmere scarf and navy wool blazer. Put on some suede boots and simple white linen pocket square.

 

Navy blue blazer with gray flannel trousers

This is an outfit from spring 2015. But it could as well be from yesterday. I wear navy blue blazer and gray flannel trousers combined with off-white merino wool roll neck sweater. In terms of footwear I chose to wear black calf leather double monks. Finally the floral printed wool-silk-blend pocket square to give the outfit a little splash of contrast.

Navy blue flannel wool blazer

The blazer is unstructured and unlined with a soft shoulder structure. It is made by Italian brand Mabro which unfortunately has by now gone out of business. I bought the jacket from Sauma a couple of years ago and since I saw it for the first time this jacket has been €œthe navy blue blazer€ for me. It can be used for all occasions ranging from business to leisure. The jacket is made of thick Vitale Barberis flannel wool. As can be seen of the detailed pictures the texture of the fabric is intensive and depth in color. This feature makes the jacket suitable for more dressed-up occasions as well. On the other hand details such as the patch pockets and soft shoulders keeps the jacket on the casual side of the range.

Gray flannel trousers and off-white rollneck

Light grey trousers are made by Korean Finealta. They are made of in fact quite thick and warm flannel fabric. The thick fabric helps the trousers to settle very nicely and easily. In addition the trousers feature some nice details such as the extended waistband. This time I thought that there was no need for button-up shirt or a tie. Therefore I decided to wear the jacket and flannel slacks with a merino wool roll neck sweater instead. The off-white color first of all highlights the texture of the jacket. Secondly it unites the upper and lower part of the outfit with ease. It also gives room for the pocket square to pop out. The ensemble as a whole is still very simple and  restrained. Smart casual during fall does not get any better or simpler than this.