This is probably one of the coolest outfits you can put together this Spring.

What you’ll need to put together a similar look:

Blazer: J.Crew $148

Pocket Square: Vineyard Vines $40

Shirt: Alexander Wang $74

Shorts: Old Navy $19

Belt: ASOS $27

Watch: Timex $29

Be bold, practical and throw in a touch of runway charm for a fashionable look in the warmer seasons.

Essentials

Every man should own the following foundational items:

• A pair of khakis, white jeans and some shorts in different colors (e.g., navy, gray, red)
• Colored polos and dress shirts

You can grab all of these for a low price at Uniqlo.

The key to the foundational items is to balance bold, bright shades that pop with lighter tones (whites, light blues, etc.)

Here are some examples:

Shoes

You should invest in a pair of shoes that will be comfortable and stylish when worn barefoot or with liner socks. Sperry Top-Siders are the classic boat shoe, and look great with any Spring/Summer outfit.

Light brown loafers or dress shoes can be worn in both casual and professional situations. Suede wingtips are also trending this summer, so grab a pair and take it up a notch.

Layering

You’ll also want to have items to layer with when weather permits. Pick a light colored sportcoat like this one from J.Crew or go with something a bit more fashionable. For example, checks and seersucker are both great patterns that are trending this Summer.

Accessories

Paying close attention to detail always pays off.

For example, if you want your outfit to have a good sense of congruence, try matching your watchband to the color of your belt and shoes. If you want to be more fun and creative, go for something more colorful like the yellow watch in the photo above.

Be sure to pick up a great pair of sunglasses this season! RayBan offers a nice variety of shapes, colors and styles. Sunglasses are the summer accessory.

Do you wear eye glasses? If you need an affordable pair of prescription sunglasses, check out Warby Parker.

Oh, and while you’re at it, make sure you buy a pair that fits you right.

Have fun shopping!

Remember, summer fashion is meant to be fun and expressive. Don’t be afraid to get creative and stand out from the crowd!

Before you go: If you found this article helpful, please share it on Facebook, RT on twitter. Follow us on facebook and twitter. Subscribe to receive email updates. Thank you for your support!

Guest Contribution By  Megan Collins

I have less than zero desire to see the new Avengers movie (sorry guys, this girl is not a ‘comic book movie’ kind of girl), but I have to give Robert Downey Jr. (aka Tony Stark) props for looking super sharp in mixed textures and a cool color palette at this press call for The Avengers.

Does it hurt that he’s standing next to always gorgeous Scarlett Johansson?

No, but the outfit is solid, I promise.

What you’ll need to put together a similar look:

Herringbone sportcoat: J. Crew (in Ludlow fit), $325

Pants – Bonobos, $98

Shirt: Thomas Pink, $195

Wool tie: Alexander Olch, $70 (on sale)

Belt: Levi’s $35

Shoes: Aldo, $135

Sunglasses: Warby Parker, $95

Author Bio

Kinowear introduces guest-author Greg O’Gallagher, who we found through his website Kinobody. Is the name a coincidence? Nope. Greg told us he’s been a long time reader of our blog and our name may have influenced his. We’re flattered but more seriously impressed by his expertise. He’s a personal trainer, but not some fat guy sitting at his desk writing about bodybuilding. He has the most ripped body we’ve ever seen – which makes us want to absorb and share whatever comes out of his brain. Enjoy. 

Bulking Up Hollywood Style

When it comes to packing on muscle Hollywood actors do it right!

They add muscle strategically to their body, in the right places and right amounts while getting ripped. This is why guys like Christian Bale, Ryan Reynolds, Daniel Craig and Brad Pitt can completely transform their physique in only 4-6 months of training.

The end result of the Hollywood bulk up is an incredibly lean, muscular and fit physique. A physique that looks totally spectacular in and out of stylish clothing. A physique that commands attention from women and respect from men.

The Adonis Debonair

The “Adonis debonair” is a term I coined for the ultimate physique to shoot for. The Adonis debonair is where muscle meets style. Being muscular and built while still having the crisp GQ look. My two favorite examples of people who perfectly fit this description are Christian Bale from American Psycho and Daniel Craig from Casino Royale. Both of them are incredibly fit while still looking great in tailored suits and fashionable attire.

The problem with adding too much mass is that you begin to look cheesy and sloppy. You lose definition in your face and nice clothes start to look awkward and try-hard. The over-bulked physique is undesirable and most women do not find this attractive.

How much muscle do you need to gain?

There is a perfect amount of muscle for your physique that will maximize your appearance. The amount of muscle required varies from person to person but is usually within 10-20 lbs range. Adding more muscle or size than this will take away from your appearance and you will lose the GQ look.

It is also imperative that you focus on adding muscle in the areas that complement your physique to the highest degree. Upper chest, shoulders and upper back make the biggest visual difference followed by arms. Everything else should be kept in proportion.

Stay away from workout programs that emphasize large amounts of training towards the legs. These programs result in an over bulked lower body that take away from the upper body and look terrible in nice pants.

Leanness and Definition is the Key

The most important factor in bulking up while still looking sharp comes down to leanness. If you can maintain a low body fat while gaining muscle you will look great.

Kellan Lutz is an example of someone who is on the bigger side yet looks great because he stays lean and chiseled. If you keep your body fat in check, it will be hard to gain too much muscle. This is because excess muscle usually comes with fat gain, unless of course you are taking steroids.

How to Build Muscle while Staying Lean

People always seem to debate whether it is possible to gain muscle without gaining fat or better yet gain muscle and lose fat. The short answer is yes, it is definitely possible. The problem is that most people follow bodybuilding advice that endorses large amounts of excess calories. If you are eating a massive surplus of calories each day, your body will store fat. It’s inevitable. If your body can only use 300 extra calories per day to rebuild muscle tissue, then anything beyond that will be driven into your fat cells.

The key to building muscle while staying lean is to eat slightly more food on workout days and slightly less food on rest days. By modestly overfeeding on workout days you can provide your muscles with excess calories when they are the most responsive to muscle growth. Limiting calories below maintenance on rest days will allow for fat burning, which will ensure you stay lean. This is a very simple strategy but works extraordinarily well.

Lateral Raises: 2 x 10-12 (60 seconds rest)

Rope Extensions: 2 x 10-12 (60 seconds rest)

Barbell Curls: 3 x 5-8 reps (3 minutes rest)

A few months ago, the fashion experts at Bonnegueule.fr approached Kinowear asking if we wanted to help them bring an English version of their popular e-book to our readers.

I told them to send it over and that I’ll read it when I got a chance. To be honest, I didn’t bother reading it for quite a while – since we get so many of these type of requests. I went to their french fashion blog (which is ranked #2 in all of France in popularity for men’s fashion), but I didn’t know what to make of it since I don’t speak an ounce of French.

Finally, while enjoying a cup of tea on one quiet Sunday, I opened the file. As I kept reading on, I was seriously impressed at what these guys put together.

After finishing the book, I quickly contacted one of the authors (Geoffrey), and told him I’d love to work with him in writing the best English translation to share on Kinowear. His team even stopped by New York to visit, and met up with me for dinner. I was blown away by their knowledge of fashion and how passionate they were about what they did.

If you’ve been a fan of Kinowear for quite some time, you already know that we rarely – if ever – promote any products on this website. That’s because we’re so cautious about what we share.

We’ve always hoped to launch our own advanced style guide in the past (our Science of Style article series hinting at it), but these guys created exactly what we wanted to – with very impressive execution. Which is why we decided to take the opportunity to partner up with them and share it with you today.

If you read Kinowear, you’re probably very much into self-development and growth. Along with that, you’re here to improve your style. Get this e-book and you’ll save yourself from a lot of confusion, and be able to build your most attractive style.

While nothing beats a 1-on-1 personal styling session, this e-book is the closest thing you can get to a 1-on-1 style coaching session for a fraction of the price.

Here are some reasons why I love this e-book:

• Hundreds of images and examples
• No fluff, just principles and steps that will give you results
• Teaches you how to become a shopping master
• A list of must-haves in your wardrobe and how to utilize them in outfits
• A guide that helps you find your best style for your age and goals

Recently the Kinowear team has become great friends with two style experts from France – Geoffrey Bruyere and Ben Wojtenka. These guys are top class with helping men build a uniquely killer style, and run the best men’s style blog in France (bonnegueule.fr). 

Kinowear is teamed up with them this year to bring you guys the greatest style e-book!

Here’s an article by them (just a tiny preview of what kind of information you’ll get in the e-book)!

The Blazer: Why You Need One

A well-cut blazer is the ultimate must-have. Choose your blazer properly, and you should get a ton of mileage on it due to it’s versatile nature.

Can’t think of what to wear it with?

Here are some examples:

• Printed t-shirt + blazer left open
• Dress shirt + cardigan + blazer
• Scoop neck t-shirt + shirt left opened + blazer
• T-shirt + hoodie + blazer

As long as your wardrobe is built on a strong foundation of basics, almost any combination you try will give you satisfactory results.

Quality for Your Money 

If you’re on a tight budget, not to worry, cheap blazers can easily be found. However, be warned that it may be tough to find one that will remain clean and lean more than a couple years.

The padding (which reinforce and give structure to the shoulders) may crumble, and bubbles may soon appear due to the cheaper manufacturing (the inner layers are sometimes glued instead of being sewn to kill some costs).

Below is an example of a shoulder seam that is puckering too much instead of properly structured and tight:

Avoid buying a blazer like this. 

We recommend shopping at these low-cost retailers for great looking blazers:

Zara blazers may suffer from low quality but their great cuts make them an excellent low-cost option. 

H&M quality is far from top-notch, but very affordable for guys on a tight budget. 

Uniqlo gives you great quality for a lower price, especially their Jill Sander or Undercover collaborations.

Have a good amount of money to spend on clothing? Then drop some cash on a serious blazer that will last you a decade.

Here are some high-end brands that are worth your money: 

Gant (and especially the line Gant Rugger) sells great blazers for $400 – $500.

Woolrich Woolen Mills come in awesome fabrics and modern cuts. All made in the USA for $300 – $400.

French brand Melinda Gloss is one of the best quality/price ratios on the market for $400 – $500.

Swedish brand Acne. Their “Aktie” (1-button) and “Wall Street” (2-buttons) jackets are solid choices with a good quality/price ratio at $300-$400.

Filipa K, another Swedish brand but cheaper than Acne. Don’t expect Filipa K to offer very original clothing, but great if you want a quality middle-range blazer for $250 – $300.

Korean brand Woo Young Mi is the cream of the crop. Perfect cuts, amazing quality, subtle shades of colors. But an expensive move for a first blazer. WYM is an equivalent of Dior Homme but less expensive for $500 – $600.

The Style of Your Jacket 

What about color and style?

Unless you really need one, steer away from a black blazer because this color is harder to create interesting outfits with. A black blazer is really common and tends to look boring (unless you find one with very fashionable details).

Instead, aim for a gray blazer that will match a whole spectrum of shades (gray has the power to blend with almost any color in your outfit).

Once you have your gray blazer, you can explore more colors like anthracite gray, sand, taupe, light blue… and a range of patterns of course.

Choosing different fabrics are also a great way to make your gray blazer more original and fun to wear (e.g., raw wools, cotton twill, mix of wool and cashmere or other cool materials).The range of possibilities is infinite here, making your blazer a loaded piece you use to create many different looks.

As for style, choose a simple cut with 1 button (more casual), or 2 buttons (the industry standard).

However, it’s also a fashionable trend to go for a bigger jacket lapel on a fitted blazer.

(Balmain Homme Leather Lapel Blazer)

Search For the Perfect Fit!

A blazer that is too big is an instant fail. The jacket will fold everywhere and make you look terribly sloppy.

A good fit test: see if there is too much extra space under the armpits or around the chest.

We know it’s hard to find a perfect fit off the rack. Sometimes your shoulders might fill the jacket, only to realize that the rest of the jacket is too big or too small. Be patient and keep trying different styles before you settle on the one that flatters your body type.

Still, you should know when your blazer is too tight. A blazer chosen too small will have exaggerated tension folds on the buttons, and the jacket lapels may “peak” whereas it should gently lie against the curve of your chest. Avoiding this, know that it’s normal if you feel a slight tension – which is characteristic of a well-cut piece of clothing.

How to Find the Right Fit in 5 Easy Steps

Here’s a checklist to remember when you’re out there trying different types and sizes on:

1. Check the shoulders. They must be sharply cut, and never be creased.
2. There should be no creases in your back or collar.
3. When undone, the blazer should follow your hips with a nice curve.
4. When done up, you should feel a slight pressure in your upper back and only be able to fit one fist between the button and your stomach. If so, you have the right size.
5. Length: The blazer tails should stop at the middle of your hand when you stand up. The sleeves should be short enough to allow 0.5 inch of your shirt sleeves to be visible when you stand up, and 1 inch when you give a handshake.

Here is the standard length for a blazer:

Note that most suit jackets would be longer. A blazer is not a suit jacket worn without it’s fellow trouser.

Depending on your body type, discovering the right fit might take some time. So get used to try at least 10 or 15 blazers before picking one. This way you will develop both your taste and eye for style!

Happy shopping!

The Style for Modern Men Method e-book is here!

Check out our previous article on Kinowear:

• A beginner’s guide to colors without headaches

How to Make Achieving your Goal Inevitable

It’s easy to put things into momentum. We start off passionately, excited to take the first step towards our goals. The difficult part is keeping the fiery enthusiasm we had when we first started – and following through.

It could be a new habit, like going to the gym more often or getting started on a personal project. Perhaps you’re taking steps to become better at something, like improving your style or networking with professionals in your field. Maybe you want to work at learning a new language or how to play an instrument.

The term “new year’s resolution” has become dulled, and often met with skepticism. We start with grand goals, but then comes the stage where we don’t want to get our hands dirty.

Initially rough rituals become easy habits as long as we give them time to settle in. Yet we’re all faced with discomfort when we’re pushing ourselves harder than we’ve pushed before – stepping out of our comfort zones. How can we get past this seemingly endless plateau?

One simple method:

Put your money where your mouth is.

Take a look at this story.

How did two economists manage to lose thirty pounds in nine months, and keep the weight off for over four years?

John Romalis and Dean Karlan, two economists, adopted an ingenious arrangement for weight loss. When John and Dean were in graduate school in economics, they noticed that they were putting on weight, especially during the period when they were on the job market and being wined and dined by potential employers. They made a pact. Each agreed to lose thirty pounds over a period of nine months. If either failed, he had to pay the other $10,000. The bet was a big success; both met their target. They then turned to the more difficult problem of keeping the weight off. The rules they adopted were that on one day’s notice, either one could call for a weigh-in. If either was found to be over the target weight, he would have to pay the other an agreed sum. In four years, there were several weigh-ins and only once was either one over target (the resulting fine was paid in full immediately). Notice that as in the case of David’s thesis bet, Dean and John were acknowledging that without the bet to encourage them, they would have eaten too much, even though they still would have wanted to lose the weight.

- Nudge, by Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein

You want to commit yourself to a goal?

1. Enlist the help of someone from your mastermind group or a close friend to keep you accountable.
2. Give them a lump sum of money. Not a small amount, but something that would hurt. Let’s say, hypothetically, $2,000.
3. Then give them a deadline that you have to reach your goal by. If you haven’t achieved your goal by 11:59PM of the deadline day, then the money is his or hers to cash and will be used to throw a party to which you will not be invited to. (Naturally, you want to scale up the sum of money according to your income. Make it painful to think about! Similarly, you’ll also want to take your goal a lot more seriously and really commit to it.)

Want a new habit?

1. Find an accountability partner. Give him or her $2,100.
2. It takes 21 days to create a new habit. So for every day you don’t check in with him/her, or every day you fail to accomplish your daily task, you lose $100.
3. Scale up the sum of money according to income. Unless you lie to yourself and your friend, you won’t get away with slacking.

If you’d prefer not to get anyone involved, there are services online that take the role of an accountability partner. If you’re at a loss for where to start, try http://www.stickk.com/. (It takes your money and donates it to a friend, a charity, or an organization you hate.)

Make your Goals and Resolutions Inevitable

The beauty of this method is its simplicity and its effectiveness. This system takes very little time and effort to set up. It has been proven to generate results, and will give you that extra boost of energy you need to take you closer to your goals.

If you’re really sure you want to achieve a certain goal, make it inevitable.

Why Wait?

Sure, 2012’s starting to settle in and your new year’s resolutions may be on their way out. That doesn’t mean it’s quitting time! Re-commit yourself to a resolution you feel passionate about, or think carefully and pursue a goal you’ve always wanted to. Find a friend or set up your Stickk.com account, and finish what you started.

“When you’re dealing with simplicity, which I am as a designer, it’s really a matter of how you put things together…mixing things up a bit…It’s a nudge rather than a push.” 

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