If I'm wearing a short-sleeve polo and dressing casual (untucked, shorts) which buttons should I leave unbuttoned?
I leave them all unbuttoned. I'm pretty sure in most people's eyes there's an inverse ratio between how many buttons you leave fastened and how laid back you are. With that said, if you like to go casual, don't bother buttoning.
In the end, though, it's all about what you're comfortable with. As long as that top button never gets touched, you're fine.
7 Answers
I agree with Adam you defiantly never button the top button!!! If its a 3 button polo I normally leave the top button undone. I've tried leaving the top two buttons undone but the collar and front of the polo tended to swing forward way to much and it looks a little strange, but I'm pretty skinny so if your more square in the shoulders then I am try leaving the top two undone. On 2 button polo shirts I've noticed the fit is a little bit tighter, so I leave both buttons undone because the collar stays at home LOL and I do like to show a little bit of that plunging neckline too. However if you want to be safe unbuttoning the top button on a 2 button polo looks good too.
I leave them all unbuttoned. I'm pretty sure in most people's eyes there's an inverse ratio between how many buttons you leave fastened and how laid back you are. With that said, if you like to go casual, don't bother buttoning.
In the end, though, it's all about what you're comfortable with. As long as that top button never gets touched, you're fine.
If you can see chest, hairy or otherwise, you have gone beyond casual into sloppy. How many buttons should be decided on a shirt by shirt basis.
Depending on the shirts fit you might want none buttoned or one. Some of the tighter fit should be unbuttoned but a looser fit with a deeper V need one buttoned. Never all the button (David Duval).
Leave the top two unbuttoned and the last (bottom one). If you have a belly un-buttoning the last one fixes that :)
For polos with two buttons, definitely leave both unbuttoned.
Most of the polos I wear have three buttons, and they're my favorite kind of shirt cuz you can mix it up based on what you see fit:
- I rarely have 2 of the buttons fastened - looks better in more formal situations. Sometimes I keep the bottom one buttoned while I'm working or out on a date with the gf or somethin.
- But for me I usually just wear all three buttons out freely and don't bother buttoning any of them. Plus, I always wear a pendant or chain around my neck that looks really cool with a polo on, and the three buttons out give it an even more awesome look.
Bottom Line: Whenever wearing a polo, always wear one with buttons. The more casual you wanna be, leave the buttons undone and don't bother fastening them.
I don't really know if there is a rule of thumb to this, except for NEVER BUTTON THE TOP BUTTON! I have never understood why people do this with polo shirts, it looks horrible. Other then that some Polo shirts have only 2 buttons, some have 3. When dressing casual, your comfort should be a priority, so if it has 2 buttons, button the bottom, and if the collar feels tight then crack open the bottom button. On a 3 button shirt, I would say you will almost always have the bottom button fastened. Also if you are going casual and wearing a full button down dress shirt, don't achieve douche status and have you shirt almost all the way unbuttoned. 4 buttons loose would have to be the maximum.