To Tuck or Not to Tuck?

The general rule is that un-tucked shirts appear casual and tucked shirts lean towards smart-casual. However, there are certain situations where it's black or it's white - either you tuck in your shirt or you don't.

Without further ado, let's get to the gist of it.

Shirts (Button-downs)

Some shirts are born to be un-tucked and some just aren't. As a general rule, if the hem of the shirt is longer than your crotch, tuck it in if you don't want to look like you're wearing a dress. If it's shorter, un-tucking is an option, especially if you're at an event where you want to convey a more relaxed casual style.

Tee Shirts

Unlike button-downs, there is virtually no occasion to tuck in a tee shirt. Look at it this way - your dad is probably doing it. Enough said.

Don't do it.

Polo T-Shirts

Polo T- shirts on the other hand, are in a very special category of their own. Polo shirts can generally be worn un-tucked or tucked, the latter being subject to certain conditions.

To look good in a polo and to qualify to wear a polo t-shirt tucked-in, you (and your shirt) must fulfill the following criteria:

• The shirt has fitting, ribbed sleeves
• The shirt is slim fitting and contours to your body
• You do not have a short torso
• You are reasonably well-built

Consider the following graphic illustrations:

Exhibit 1: Short torso, ill-fitting shirt, sleeves exceedingly long.

Exhibit 1

Exhibit 2: Again, sleeves rather long and not contoured to the fit of the arms.

Exhibit 2

Exhibit 3: Members of The Gay Polo League

Exhibit 3

Exhibit 4: How a polo-tee should fit - contoured to the body of the wearer with short, ribbed sleeves.

Exhibit 4

Epilogue

When it comes to the art of tucking, there is an advanced, sacred technique that only a few are consciously aware of. I'd like to call it the "tuck-untuck". The tuck-untuck occurs whereby the shirt hems are deliberately partially tucked in so as to make it seem like it was indeliberate. In other words, you're purposely tucking in part of your hems to make it seem like it was not done on purpose.

You have no idea how many hours he spent getting it right.

The tuck-untuck works best with shirts and polo-tees with a shorter hem. If executed flawlessly and carried well, it conveys a sense of cool and collected aloofness. If not, it conveys the sense of a stockbroker who just lost his life savings at Wall Street.

At the end of the day, whether to tuck in your shirts or not is akin to your underwear color preferences - very individual. My suggestion is to go with what makes you feel comfortable, because when all is said and done, looking good boils down to feeling good.