25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 18

Green Gingham Le Tigra shirt $3.99 from Goodwill  Red shorts by JCP $2.97 on Clearance

It has been extremely warm recently so it has made dressing Christmasy even more difficult than usual. Luckily, last month I found red and green shorts on clearance at JC Pennys for $2.97.

25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 17

Dress Stewart Tartan pants $4.99 from Goodwill    White polo shirt by JCP $4.97 on clearance

25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 16 (First day of Work)

Olive Green Suit $19.99 from Goodwill   Black Stewart Tartan Tie $9.99 from JC Penny

 

Today has been the hardest day to dress festively because I also had to dress professionally enough for my first day of work at Fort Lee Federal Credit Union.   I know that I had to wear a suit and dark green suits are some of my favorites to wear because they are classy enough for work but are unexpected enough to allow you to subtly stand out from the crowd.  I could not think of a better way to incorporate Christmas into my attire than to wear a tartan tie. 

25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 15

 



































Plaid Shirt $19.99 by American Living from JC Pennys

                                                                                                                                                      
Some days don't call for dressing up but instead call for more casual clothes so that you can play outside and goof off with your dog.   Days like today warrant jeans and a nice warm shirt.   Before they stopped making clothes, American living made some of the greatest Christmas themed clothing and they were definitely the best priced.  Getting rid of this brand was by far the worst mistake that JC Pennys ever made.



25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 14

 

Black Stewart Tartan Blazer $40 on Ebay

Black Watch Tartan Umbrella by Ralph Lauren  $25 on Ebay

Rain was not going to put a damper on Amanda and I from having a great time this Saturday in Williamsburg.  In fact, there were a lot less people there which made shopping and getting a table at the Blue Talon Restaurant a whole lot easier.

 

I had to search long on hard to find this black Stewart Tartan blazer but it was really worth the wait because this jacket is sweet. 

25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 13

 

 

Red Blazer $6.99 from Goodwill



Wool Tartan Tie $2 from Goodwill

25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 12



Royal Stewart Tartan Pants $40 on Ebay   Blue Blazer $8.99 from Goodwill





 

 

With less then 2 weeks left until Christmas I decided to break out the big guns.  I looked forever on Ebay to find this pair of Royal Stewart Tartan pants.  As with every article of clothing this loud, it needs to be paired with other simple clothing.  You can never go wrong with a white shirt and blue blazer it works with literally everything.

 

You don't have to always wear a blazer or sportcoat when you go out but it never hurts!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

kk

25 Days of Donning my Gay Apparel Day 11




Black and Red Buffalo Plaid Bow Tie $15 at TheTieBar.com   Red and Black Sweater By Tommy Hilfiger $70 
Red Belt By Dockers $2.95 at JC Pennys on Clearance

I decided on rocking the simple and subtle holiday attire today.  I really like the way that this outfit looks together. It is Christmasy, but not overly so.  It can actually be worn just about any time of the year. 

 

Buffalo plaid, red and black checks, is in my opinion one of the most manly patterns.  It exudes a rugged lumberjack or mountain man vibe while still looking classy and dressy. I actually own a buffalo plaid blazer that I plan on showcasing in the next two weeks.



25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 10

Reindeer Sweater by American Living $19.99 

L.L. Bean Duck Boots $50 on Ebay

 Today was another nasty day so I was a bum and just hung around the house. 

You can never go wrong with a simple, un-tacky Christmas themed sweater and khakis. Unfortunately, American Living, who made the best and most affordable Christmas sweater, went out of business. Luckily, I was able to snag up three different ones before they were all gone.

Every man should own a pair of duck boots. They are extremely comfortable and versatile. Be it hunting, fishing, working outside, or walking through the snow, duck boots can handle it

 

25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 9 (CNU Alumni Christmas Party at the Jefferson)

Black Watch Tartan Suit by Paul Frederick $225 on Sale

Tonight Amanda and I attended the CNU Alumni Christmas Party at the Jefferson.  I could have went very loud, bold, and garish but I decided to tone it down and go subtle with my Black Watch Tartan suit.  To keep it classy, I paired it with a white dress shirt, black bow tie, white pocket square, and black tassel loafers (for a less formal vibe).  The suit stood out but in a good way and garnered many compliments and second looks.

I had been looking for a black watch suit for quite a while and only found one last month at Paul Frederick and for a pretty good price too.  Between you and me, they also have a pretty sweet Royal Stewart suit as well that I will be checking on after Christmas to hopefully fine it on clearance.

25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 8

Plaid Flannel shirt by American Living $10 on sale

Red Corduroy Pants by Jos. A Bank  $10 on Clearance

Harvey is Drooling for a lick

Being such a softy, I gave in and let him lick the spatula

 

The weather today was super nasty, so we spent the whole day inside. To stay warm I decided to wear flannel and corduroys.  The best time to buy Christmas apparel is after Christmas.  I do not believe in spending a whole lot of money on festive holiday attire because you can only wear it for a little over a month each year.  I bought both the shirt and pants in today's post at an extremely deep discount after Christmas a few years ago.  This also explains why they are a little bit on me.

Being cooped up all day really made us crave something sweet so while we let Amanda chill on the couch for a change Harvey and I decided to make some white chocolate and crazen cookies.   Of course I had to give Harvey a taste.  I even got Amanda's seal of approval.

25 Days of Donning My Day Apparel Day 7 (Prince George Christmas Parade)

 

Royal Stewart Tartan Blazer by Paul Smith $50 on Ebay

Jeans by JCP $4.95 on Clearance at JC Pennys   Tassel Loafers $4.99 at Goodwill

 

Making Christmas Ornaments Like A Boss!!!

 

Today was the Prince George Christmas Parade and to celebrate I decided to break out the first Christmas Blazer of my 25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel.  The loudest and most eye-catching in my collection is my Royal Stewart Tartan Blazer.  The cut is a little weird but you have no idea how hard it is to find this blazer. I searched Ebay for a year until I found one in my size.  Weirdly enough, this year Ebay is filled with them.  

 

In order to tone down this amazing jacket I decided to pair it with a plain white button-up, dark wash denim, tassel loafers, and bright red socks for fun.  This simple base really allows for the jacket to shine. 

25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 6

Green Shorts by JCP $2.95 on clearance   Red Gingham Shirt by Seville Row $35  
Red Belt by Dockers $3.95 on clearance

                          

Green Tie with Red Christmas Tree by Nelson and Gwatkin in Richmond, VA $2 from Goodwill

Today was close to 80 degrees so it was a little hard to get in the Christmas spirit and just as hard to find an outfit to wear.  I decided to get my "ELF" on and rock some green short with a gingham red dress shirt and I threw on a tie just to be fun and a little rakish.  This picture was taken in front of my parent-in-laws' Christmas tree because we are putting ours up this weekend.

25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 5

 

Red Chinos by Stafford Prep $10   Green Hounds Tooth Shirt by Merona $10

                                  
I know that this outfit today seems a little uninspired but I was preparing all day for a phone interview.  I promise that I'll step it up tomorrow.

With that being said, I was asked to come in for an in-person interview tomorrow.

Big interview tomorrow:

A big question that many people have is "What should I wear to an interview?"   For Men the answer is easy; a classically cut suit in either navy blue or grey with a white spread collar dress shirt  and a simple tie in a reddish hue (I am planning on wearing burgundy).  Do not wear an overly large or overly tight suit.  This is a time to make a statement but just not with your clothes so make sure to wear a suit and stay away from loud or controversial patters. As you can imagine, I had a hard time deciding on what to wear.

As always if you wear a blue suit, wear brown leather round toe oxfords. If you wear a grey suit you can wear either brown or black shoes. If you go for brown shoes, which I think that you should at least consider because it actually looks quite good, wear light brown with light grey and darker brown with charcoal grey.  Or you can wear maroon/ox blood oxfords with either suit, this really separates the men from the boys.   DO NOT wear loafers, shoes with pointy or square toes or any shoes without a leather sole.

While dressing correctly will not guarantee that you get the job it will definitely help you make a good first impression.

25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 4



Dress Stewart Tartan shirt by Ralph Lauren $4.99 at Goodwill

Hunter Green chinos by Merona $4.99 at Goodwill (New With Tags)

With festive Christmas apparel, it is usually best to only wear one piece at a time.  This outfit is the exception because both are very subtle and pair extremely well together.  I actually found both of these items at the same time at the Goodwill and bought them specifically to wear together. 

On the subject of Christmas plaids or tartans.  The Stewart Tartan is by far the most Christmasy and it comes in a few different styles. While each style can vary slightly the pictures below are what they typically look like.

Royal Stewart

Dress Stewart

Hunting Stewart

Black Stewart

Another popular tartan for this time of year is Black Watch, which is not actually a Clan tartan but is more of a generic one.  It is actually my favorite tartan to wear because it can be dressy and is very versatile. Black Watch actually varies quite a bit but below is one of the more standard versions.

Black Watch

Tartan can and should be worn as almost any article of clothing from ties, shirts, to pants, to blazers and even whole suits if you are lucky enough to find them.  Just don't mix and match them, because they are an ancient version of gang colors.

25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 3

Tartan Bow tie $10 by Stafford

Red Snowflake Sweater $40 by American Living
Brown and Red Air Colton shoes by Cole Haan $80 on Ebay

25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 2

 

Yellow Lacoste $5 from Goodwill  Red Bow Tie by $10-Saddlebred  Plaid Pants $30 on Ebay

 

25 Days of Donning My Gay Apparel Day 1

Blue half zip sweater by Joseph A . Bank $15

Custom Made Holiday Party Pants (St. Johns Bay Khakis cut in half, dyed and sewn back together)    
Clarks Desert Trek $50 on Ebay