056 : Sartorial Genius : How To Dress Nice, But Not Too Nice

I love looking sharp but I don’t love getting super dressed up every day. Here's the sartorial genius guide to looking nice — but not too nice.

A key aspect of the minor genius philosophy is using style and elegance to enhance your lifestyle, and by extension, your mastery of your creative and spiritual journey.

For this edition of our in-house style column Sartorial Genius, we’re going to help you find that perfect edge between put together and totally down.

Let’s dig in!

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I love looking sharp but I don’t love getting  super dressed up every day. 

My platonic ideal for dressing is “very put together but I clearly don’t have to go to the office.” 

Nice, but not too nice. 

TBH, when every single piece I have on reads as formal or dressy, it makes me feel I’m due in court in an hour.  

When the specter of Harvey Specter looms large in my look, I know it’s time to take things down a notch or two. 

For this edition of Sartorial Genius, we’re going to explore some fun ways to subvert getting dressed up through a few key styling secrets that I use myself for occasions that require a liiiiittle polish, and not a whole lot more. 

The usage cases for these style recipes can include: a coffee meeting with a new business contact, a low key first date, going over to a friend’s house for a weekend dinner, an after-work event where you want to exhibit some “soft power”, and a Sunday stroll with your beloved. 

Highlighted here are some of my absolute favorite nice but not too nice pieces: the knit tie, the rugby shirt, and the corduroy pant. 

Let’s go! 

The Knit Tie 

As a former Founder and Creative Director of a tie brand, I find it amusing that my go to tie these days is the one kind of tie that I never designed or manufactured (TL:DR it requires a whole different sort of factory), the knit tie. 

I love knit ties for a few reasons. One is that they read as the most casual tie you can wear (a low key version of something impressive i.e. a work of minor genius). The second is that due to the fact that they are unlined and don’t have much structure to them, they hang in a really natural and unfussy way. 

If your wool or cotton ties are feeling a little stuffy, experiment with a knit tie with a subtle pattern or in an interesting shade of green, yellow, or red. 

A few of my favorites are linked below.

These all go great with a button collar oxford, blue jeans, a blue or khaki or olive blazer, and a pair of loafers. 

Land’s End Red Knit Tie Made In Italy ($29.99)

Vintage Ralph Lauren Black/Yellow (aka Killah Bees) Knit Tie ($69)

Paul Smith Black/White Polka Dot Tie ($50.92)