Next to the navy suit, a gray suit is an absolute men’s wardrobe staple. Why? More than just a good business suit, it can be paired with all sorts of shirt colors and ties, putting it on top of the versatility scale.
Table of Contents
Three Must-Have Gray Suits
The Importance Of Textures
Gray, in general, is a fantastic suit color because it comes in many different shades. A darker color may be better for winter, a really light color is great for summer.
Three Must-Have Gray Suits
Charcoal Gray
First on the list is the most formal shade, the so-called charcoal gray. It’s dark enough that you can wear it in most functions where you otherwise would think of a black suit, such as a funeral, a play, or a business event. A charcoal suit is similarly dark to most navy suits; yet, while a navy suit usually makes a younger man look even younger, a charcoal suit makes you look more mature.In our opinion, the first charcoal suit you should add to your wardrobe is a charcoal flannel suit. The charcoal flannel suit was popularized by Gianni Agnelli,and you can still get the exact fabric he preferred from Vitale Barberis Canonico today.
Medium Gray
A general rule, not just with gray but with all suiting colors, is this: the lighter the shade, the less formal the suit. Therefore, while a medium gray suit is still appropriate for the office and most other functions mentioned earlier (with the exception of funerals), it has a slightly more casual vibe. This is not a bad thing at all; it just means that when you pair shirts and ties together, you can go with slightly less formal options.
Following the above rule, the light gray suit is even more casual, yet it’s certainly still a suit. This shade works particularly well as a fresco fabric in the summer, whereby it will have a light breezy feel, and can be worn with even bolder and more summery colors. Of course, any of those gray shades can come in either a striped version, a solid version, or in other small patterns such as a Glen check or houndstooth, for example. Sometimes, the fabric texture can also be different such as a fresco, a worsted, or a flannel.
Here’s another general rule: the more texture your suit has and the larger the pattern, the more casual it is. On the flip side, a solid worsted suit is the most formal one, followed maybe by a flannel or a faintly striped suit in gray. Now, it should go without saying that choosing the right color is just one aspect of finding the perfect suit.
Shirt & Tie Combinations
White Dress Shirt
The classic staple is the white dress shirt. For a charcoal suit, you probably want something that is very formal; we’d suggest a white dress shirt with a medium-spread collar, no breast pocket, and French cuffs or double cuffs that are worn with cufflinks. Honestly, a white shirt works with any shade of gray suit, no matter if it’s really dark, medium, or light. It works so well because it provides a strong contrast which suits most men.
In the case of a medium grey or a lighter gray suit, you can skip the French cuffs, maybe go with a slightly more textured fabric, and perhaps try an even more relaxed collar style, such as a button-down collar or an unlined collar–something that’s a bit more casual than a fixed, fused collar.
If you go with a solid gray suit and a solid white shirt, it would be best to add some color with your tie, pocket square, socks, or other accessories. A Very classic combination is to add a red tie, maybe a shade of burgundy. If you are not a fan of red and you want to cool down your outfit otherwise, you can go with a navy or blue tie, maybe something in forest green, plum, or even in bronze orange. Basically, any dark-toned tie with a white shirt and a gray suit would be appropriate for co*cktail attire, and if it’s a charcoal suit, you can even wear it for black tie optional events.
Meanwhile, lighter colored ties will work better with medium and lighter gray suits. Also, in terms of a tie pattern, keep in mind that the smaller the pattern, the more formal it is; since bigger patterns are always less formal, they’re better with lighter shades of gray.
Darker Colored Dress Shirts – A Classic Style “Don’t”
Now, let’s quickly talk about a very fashion-forward look: pairing a gray suit with a black shirt. Now, chances are there are a lot of Instagrammers and influencers trying to tell you that wearing a black shirt is hip, trendy and fashionable. This may be so, but in classic menswear, black dress shirts have never been a viable option. If you want to wear black shirts with a gray suit, go for it–but we believe that a lighter shirt color that provides a bit more contrast is always more complimentary to your outfit and look.
The same is true for any kind of bold, darker colored shirts in hues like red, turquoise, blue, green, or orange. Typically, these are shirts worn by guys who haven’t yet learned much about menswear; they’re just too bold, and make you look like you got your outfit from a very cheap rental place.
Light Blue Dress Shirt
Turning back to smarter options, the next biggest staple after white is light blue. Light blue shirts can be combined with any kind of gray suit, but look particularly nice with medium and lighter grey suits. Of course, light blue comes in maybe 200 different shades, and there are many patterns and textures. Simply pick one that you like and that provides a contrast to your suit. If you wear a light blue shirt with a medium or light grey suit, we suggest you go with barrel cuffs instead of French cuffs and maybe a slightly more casual collar, but try to forgo the chest pocket for a more streamlined appearance. It looks nice overall because it’s a bit more casual, and therefore the whole outfit flows together.
The sole exception to our advice about darker shirts above is that wearing a denim shirt with a less formal grey suit can work. These have been quite popular lately, and can add a bit of interest to an outfit because of the slight color variance provided by the wash.Overall, though, we would suggest that you try to wear a shirt that is lighter in color than your suit, as this is the color balance that’s most natural and complementary to the eye.
In terms of ties, a solid navy tie is of course a formal staple when paired with a blue shirt and a gray suit–but it can be also a little boring. Other than the usual suspects of red, green, or plum, you could also experiment with the complementary color to blue, which is orange.
Pink Dress Shirts
Pastel pinks can be a great change to the monotony of white and light blue shirts, and they work particularly well with gray. This is because there’s a subtle contrast, yet the pink works to warm up the gray color. Probably for that reason, pairing charcoal suits with pink shirts was a favorite look of Fred Astaire, who was always very well-dressed. Adding a navy tie, or one in purple (violet) to your pink shirt and your gray suit will create an interesting combination that is still harmonious. Of course, a burgundy tie would work too, but we’d recommend that you usually stay clear of a brighter red, since it will likely be too much next to the pink background.
Pastel-Colored Dress Shirts
Following the staples of white, blue, and pink dress shirts, basically, any other type of pastel color can work really well with a grey suit. It could be something like a light green, maybe a light yellow, or a pastel orange.If you opt to wear a colored shirt, a safe choice is always to wear a tie in a darker shade from the same color family. So if I have a light orange or creamy shirt then maybe an orange tie would work. If there is some green in my shirt, a green tie works.
Patterned Dress Shirts
This brings us to our next point: shirts don’t have to be solids. You can have patterned shirts as well, and stripes are the most classic ones. Keep in mind that larger stripes are more casual, and therefore better suited to lighter shades of gray. Of course, you can also incorporate checked shirts into your outfits–they’re a bit more casual than striped ones so they work better with light grey suits.
In general, shirts with smaller and more traditional patterns such as stripes or checks will work better with gray suits than very bold flowery prints. If you want to pair a patterned gray suit with a patterned shirt and a patterned tie, you can maybe pull it off; just make sure that the relative “densities” or spacings of the patterns are all different. Your suit, for example, could feature a pinpoint or something that’s very close to a solid, your shirt could be striped, and your tie could feature a micropattern. In this case, everything would be harmonious and not just the same width and scale. Disregarding these theories on pattern density will likely end up looking confusing to the viewer.
The Importance Of Textures
A solid silk tie is more formal than a knitted tie in the exact same color. Let’s say you have a gray suit with a striped shirt–rather than getting a plain solid tie, we’d suggest going with a grenadine tie, or maybe a knit tie If you want to have even more texture.
In general, the lighter the shade of gray is for your suit, the more texture you can add. At the same time, if you have a charcoal flannel suit which is quite dark, a knitted tie can still work well, because they’re both somewhat casual in texture and so it’s a harmonious look.At the end of the day, pretty much any shirt or tie color can work with a gray suit as long as you understand basic color theory.
How do you put together a gray ensemble? Share with us in the comments below!
If in doubt, wear a white shirt and dark tie with your suit. A pale blue shirt is particularly great for summer weddings. Black shirts are best for formal events – especially at the weekend. Patterned shirts are great for those looking to stand out.
A light grey suit is best paired with brighter colors so that your outfit will stand out. For example, this look works well with ties of brick red, light blue, or even yellow because they are eye-catching colors that can't go wrong.
The most basic and commonly asked question out there. Obviously, you can never go wrong with a white shirt, for any colored suit. This will create a nice contrast of colors and then you can build on with colorful accessories. Our favorite tie colors that go with charcoal grey are pink, navy blue, green, or purple.
For a safe and classic ensemble, pair your grey jacket with matching pants, a white shirt, a dark tie, and dress shoes. When you feel like mixing things up, bring more colour combinations into the fold, such as black pants, muted blue shirts, and so on.
Absolutely!If the bride and groom both agree on the color, wearing a gray or charcoal suit (and even a tuxedo) is a suitable option for all weddings. What should men look out for when purchasing a gray or charcoal suit? If possible, it's important to get a suit tailored to fit perfectly for the event.
A dark charcoal suit and brown shoes won't always look somber, but they will always look classy. So this is your grey suit, brown shoe pairing to bring out as a default. The fancier the event, the darker you should go.
Any shade of red complements charcoal, from lipstick to cranberry. Purple also works well with charcoal, creating a warm vibe in dark shades such as grape and eggplant. To cool it off, choose a top in lilac or lavender.
Choosing a color palette to complement charcoal gray is simple: keep with other cool tones and go with blues, purples, whites, and some greens. Or, you could also contrast the cool gray hues with warm colors, such as pink, yellow, or orange.
Grey jacket with blue navy pants: versatile and traditional
As in the previous case, just interchange the colours to get another great classic: grey jacket and blue trousers. Once again the blue and white striped shirt will make the look lighter.
Most of the time, with suit jackets or sport coats, your buttons will not be the same color as the cloth, but neither will they be strongly contrasting. For example, you might have black buttons on a grey suit or brown buttons on a navy one. Both colors are dark and subdued.
Because grey comes in all different shades and often has hints of different colors, it can truly go with almost any color. The main thing to be wary of is wearing multiple shades of grey at once. If you're going to combine greys, keep them the same shade.
With a grey suit, a beige or light blue suit, brown leather sneakers are for example a sure bet for a casual-chic look. With or without socks, white minimalist sneakers are also a popular option to complete your outfit.
Neutral-hued shoes are fantastic because they go with anything, including all colors, patterns, and prints. In this case, it's best to stick to basics like black, white, cream, beige, brown, and gray, or switch things up and choose navy, which, yes, is considered neutral, too. Why are neutral colors best for traveling?
So, light grey suits with black shirts bring a lot of contrast to the table, making it the more attention-grabbing option. A dark grey suit with a black shirt will tone down that contrast considerably.
Dark brown shoes are your most versatile combination with gray suits, suiting both light and dark grays equally. They will always be appropriate in smart-casual settings and can also work well in most formal settings. The darkest browns look best with charcoal and a slightly lighter shade with mid-grays.
Fortunately, a casual dress code gives you a lot of freedom in terms of color. A classic grey suit is always a safe yet sleek option for a casual wedding, and can be customized with the right accessories depending on the right season. Additionally, consider a simple navy suit paired with a crisp white button down.
Light gray looks casual for summer occasions, outdoor parties, or going out to dinner and dancing. Most traditional offices require dark gray, black, or navy blue suits, so it's probably best to avoid wearing your light gray suit to the office.
While black tie and white tie are very specific wedding dress codes, there is wiggle room for summer tuxedo hues. As a guest, you can opt for navy or grey instead of black.
Gray suits are less formal than navy blue suits, but they're equal in terms of flexibility. You can pair them effectively with all three shoe colors. They're not ideal for proper business wear (since they're rather light).
A grey suit looks so classy when worn with a silver tie in a modern man's look. To infuse a carefree touch into this look, add brown leather oxford shoes to this ensemble. Combining a grey suit with a silver tie is an on-point option for a sharp and polished outfit.
As navy and black can easily look mismatched, pick a brown leather or silver watch band. Gray Suit: Regardless of how dark the hue, gray tends to be the most versatile, complemented by black, brown and silver.
One way to keep it simple, but colorful, is to match the tie and pocket square to the cool color of the socks. If wearing a crisp, white shirt with a grey suit and brown shoes, a classic complementary color is navy; navy for the tie and pocket square, and maybe a navy pattern for the socks.
Most dark-toned ties will work perfectly with a charcoal suit. Lean into deep bronzes, burgundies, and plums to bring a little warmth to the table, or keep it cool with a classic navy or forest green. A brighter red can also work but this will depend on where you are wearing the suit.
A general rule when it comes to picking out the perfect tie is that your tie should be darker than your shirt. This way, it will stand out against your chest, and draw attention to the fact that you've made that extra effort.
For a classic, conservative look, you should always choose a tie that is a darker color than your shirt. So you can wear a tie that is the same color as the shirt you are wearing, as long as the tie is the darker of the two.
In descending order (from most to least attractive), the colors were rated this way: Red, Black, Blue, Green, Yellow, and White. White was the least attractive.
Whatever shade of gray shirt color you choose, neutral pants will pair nicely. Try a dove-gray shirt with black pants or a charcoal gray sports coat with light khaki pants.
There are many color options to go with for dark grey pants matching shirt ideas. You can choose white, black, or burgundy shirts for a perfect formal look. Or you can go with floral print, striped or pink colored shirts for a smart casual look. Grey is one of those color tones that goes well with almost all shades.
Not to be confused with gray, charcoal is one of the most versatile colors. Gray is a mixture of white and black, but charcoal has a hint of blue added to the mix.
'The rule of thumb being match cool greys with other "chill" colours such as blue, pale greens and cool white. And match darker grey tones with warm tones such as burnt orange, mustard, and teal.'
On more formal occasions, grey socks go well with a navy blue suit, as they create a more professional look. Brown socks provide pleasing contrast when worn with navy tailoring. Make sure that your shoes are a different shade.
In general, buttons look better when they're closer to the colour of the shoes. So a black or navy button will look best with just black shoes. Perhaps very-dark brown at the most. A dark brown button can just about bridge black and brown shoes.
The top button is all you need. The two-button jacket should never be buttoned completely. The three-button suit, like others, comes with a simple rule: "sometimes, always, never." This means you should sometimes fasten the top button (if you want to), always fasten the middle button, and never fasten the bottom.
If it's made of nice fabric and has matching pants, it's a suit jacket. These jackets can all be worn with denim or khakis, as long as the colors and fabrics complement each other. However, a suit jacket should only be worn with the appropriate dress pants.
Choose deep colors for ties: navies, greens, and burgundies. A darker suit, particularly in grey, can be paired phenomenally with a deep navy tie. Since charcoal grey suits are on the darker end of grey suits, you'll want to liven up the outfit with a flash of color.
"Men can wear a tux, but are also fine to wear a nice black, gray or navy suit," says Mayer. If you're wearing a suit, you should plan to keep it minimal; choose a dark color and wear a bow tie.
Whether you are looking for dark or light grey pant matching shirt options, a white shirt is always a winner. Whether it be a turtleneck or a crisp button-down, white shirts are meant to fit perfectly well with grey pants. The shade of the grey color doesn't matter, because this combination can never go wrong.
Can I wear a grey suit with brown shoes? Yes, of course. It will be a little bit less formal than if you wear your grey suit with black shoes but it will work perfectly. The darker the shade of grey your suit is, the darker your brown shoes should be.
In general, if you're not confident in pairing up your grey suit with brown shoes, you want to start by matching the mood of the overall shade. The charcoal will look good with dark brown. Midtones look good together, like a medium grey with a chestnut. A light grey suit needs brown shoes, which are also light.
Given the fact that Black-Tie Optional events, as with standard Black Tie events, take place in the evening, a light-colored suit would look informal and inappropriate. You can get away with something like medium grey in a pinch, but it's best to stick to the dark colors we outlined previously.
Wearing dark grey or deep blue is just as appropriate as black, while brown and lighter greys are suitable for the vast majority of funeral services. However, unless specifically requested by the deceased or their family, you should avoid any bright colors such as yellows, oranges, pinks, and reds.
With your dinner jacket, you will want to pair your jacket primarily with tuxedo pants and cumme*rbund in the same color fabric. However, that isn't going to always be the case — for example, a green velvet dinner jacket would pair better with black tuxedo pants, and the same is true for an ivory dinner jacket.
With light colored suits, use a dark tie or a muted pastel color if it goes with your complexion. Light suits paired with brightly colored ties are generally to be avoided. With patterned shirts and coats make sure that the tie complements all of the colors in the shirt, with an emphasis on the core color.
You should try to find a tie that matches the vibrancy and tone of both your jacket and trousers. It's not a hard-and-fast rule — and, if your suit is lightly-coloured, your tie should still be darker. So try to judge each case individually, but know that your tie should always be complementary.
For a classic, conservative look, you should always choose a tie that is a darker color than your shirt. So you can wear a tie that is the same color as the shirt you are wearing, as long as the tie is the darker of the two.
Introduction: My name is Kelle Weber, I am a magnificent, enchanting, fair, joyous, light, determined, joyous person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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