Thread by @dieworkwear

Style lessons from Robert Redford, one of the most stylish men in the last century. 🧵

A tailored jacket continues to be one of the most flattering things you can wear. However, for it to look good, it has to fit right. That means a jacket that bisects you halfway from your collar to the floor when you're in heeled shoes. Also trouser + suit jacket silhouette flows

It also helps to know how to use this visual language, especially with regard to ideas about formality. For instance, a dark business suit cries out for a tie. If you don't want to wear a tie, try a more casual garment, like a sport coat.

Or work within the langauge of ties. A matte silk rep stripe of foulard tie is great with a suit. For something more casual, consider a knit tie. Black is a surprisingly useful color for knit ties.

In the 1978 film The Candiate, where Redford plays a politician, you can see the full spectrum of tailoring language. Dark worsted suits, esp in pinstripes, call for neckwear. More casual jackets, such as tweed sport coats, can be worn with casual turtlenecks and chambray shirts.

You can also dress your jacket down with jeans. But it helps to make sure you're wearing a sport coat — not a suit jacket.

Turtlenecks are great for the fall. Get a smooth, merino one in a dark color if you plan to wear it under a sport coat. Or go chunky and textured if you want to wear it with casualwear. But the chunkier the knit, the warmer it'll wear, so be aware.

Black tie is aided by some kind of waist-covering, such as a formal waistcoat or cummerbund. This will hide the shirt that might otherwise peek out from beneath a single-breasted coat's buttoning point when it's fastened. It also looks tidier.

For more relaxed eveningwear, try velvet.

The 1970s is often written off as the "decade that taste forgot." But Redford shows how to do it well (these are actually 1969, but close enough). Start with big eyewear frames, a leather jacket, bootcut jeans, and roper boots or side-zip boots.

Or you can mix it up with a Western suit and casual shirt. Nina Penlington is a British bespoke tailor who tours the US every few months. She specializes in making Western suits, among more basic business styles.

Speaking of Western style, Redford was a fount for Westernwear inspiration. Consider the Lee 101 over the Levi's Type 3. It has slanted chest pockets that mimic the line of peak lapels. Or consider a puffer jacket from Rocky Mountain Featherbed.

You can also go full gusto. Or get something as basic as a pair of black jeans, a pair of boots, and raw denim Western shirt (although this one is technically just a basic work shirt).

If you live in an area that gets real seasons, consider a heavier coat for winter, such as something made from 32oz Melton wool or shearling. These can be worn with jeans, whipcord trousers, chambray shirts, chunky knits, and boots.

Consider the difference between dress watches and sport watches. A dress watch is simple, often worn on a leather strap. A sport watch will be chunkier, often have various complications, and is typically worn on a metal bracelet. Sometimes a dressy outfit calls for a dress watch

Some will complain that the outfits above were choosen by costumers, as they are from films. But even off-screen, Redford held to these practices. Here he is throughout his life as a dad hanging out with his kids.

If you want to dress more like Redford, start with a navy sport coat, the most versatile tailored garment. It can be worn with jeans, tailored trousers, dress shirts, casual shirts, tie or no tie.

Gray herringbone tweed also works well if you mostly wear blue jeans.

No matter his role or outfit, Redford also often sported a thin little chain, showing the veratility of this accessory.

Rest in peace to a man who has given us much.

Consider watching some of his films this week. My favorites include Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, All the President’s Men, Three Days of the Condor, The Sting, Jeremiah Johnson, and All Is Lost.