While originally designed to outfit British troops, khakis have cemented themselves as one of the foundational pieces of any man’s wardrobe – and that especially applies to dads. They’re a lot like blue jeans in that they pretty much go with anything, but with an ounce of more formality.
Button-down shirts aren’t always formal, and the oxford shirt is proof that casual can still look incredibly sharp and put together. Their iconic buttoned collar points are a trademark of classically casual style.
Possibly the most iconic piece of clothing ever created, dads of decades past did a lot of the legwork to get these denim icons where they are today! The most classic blue jeans are also the ones typically favored by dads, from brands like Levi’s, Wrangler, Lee, and other denim powerhouses.
The best dads among us favor sweaters with a bit of extra thickness about them. No wimpy, thin merino knits. Think of chunky shetland wools, lambswool fair isle crew necks, fisherman sweaters, cable-knits.
Until millennials started becoming fathers, you wouldn’t have caught any dad dead wearing a v-neck tee. The way a classic crew-neck hugs the neck just feels incredibly dad-like. Then, once they tucked them into their jeans? That's a fatherly aura, no question.
Remember what your old man wore when he used to mow the lawn? Money has it that he was sporting a pair of classic white New Balances. Other classic chunky sneakers might hail from brands like ASICS, Saucony, or HOKA.
When dad wasn’t wearing big sneakers, he might have been wearing a knockaround pair of loafers. Loved for their ability to traverse the lands between formal and casual, loafers are an enduring staple of classic men’s style, and hence, dad style.
Bad dad style? It’s sloppy. Past its prime. Things don’t fit like they did when the old man was in college, and he seems painfully unaware of this fact. Basketball shorts with flip-flops and hockey jersey from college that’s about to burst at the seams. Bad dad style doesn’t age gracefully.