Way back In the 19th century when the 2 piece suits became the pillar of men’s fashion, it occurred to well-dressed men that they didn’t want their immaculate handkerchiefs mixing with the coins and other dirty objects carried in their pockets and hence shifted it to their top left breast pocket, and hence the “Pocket Square”
The use of pocket square continued to become more and more popular into the early 20th century as different folding techniques became common, and the pocket square had now established itself as a key fashion component for the man that would change his appearance with squares made of cotton or silk, either plain or patterned.
Now in modern times Since the turn of the millennium pocket squares have started to enjoy a resurgence in popularity and becoming an essential part of the outfit of high-profile celebrities and fashionistas alike. As the working environment has become more and more lenient, ties have been lost and ill-fitting suits have become the norm. For the man that wants to stand out from the crowd, the pocket square provides a certain level of elegance and style.
Table of Contents
Styling The Pocket Square
The pocket square is the single most vital tool for defining style these days. But how do you make it look all casual? What color pocket square to choose for an occasion, Should your square match, contrast or complement with your outfit? are some common questions
First things first the size of a pocket square has a large impact on the fold and pocket square styles that you can achieve, and therefore how it looks in your jacket or suit pocket. A pocket square should be lightweight and therefore anything less than 16 inches (which happens to be the standard size). There’s no hard and fast rule for choosing a pocket square. It should simply complement your shirt and tie, not match them. If it looks right and feels right, great.
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Some Color Schemes
-Triadic Color Schemes are colors that are composed of three colors evenly spaced on the color wheel. formed by creating an equilateral triangle. Hence, green, orange, and purple form a triad color scheme as do blue, red, and yellow.
While these contracts are not as strong as a complementary color scheme, these colors accent each other well. Triadic color schemes create a balance between warm and cool colors. A blue tie with a red pocket square or a navy blue tie with a maroon/burgundy pocket square will create visual contrast.
-Analogous color schemes involve choosing two warmer cooler two cooler colors. For example a pair of a blue tie with a purple pocket square. This scheme is soothing on the eye, as adjacent colors on the color wheel tend to create a great combination.
-Neutral Color Scheme is one of the easiest to pair one of your two accessories either tie and/or pocket square is a neutral color, then the other one can be any color. Neutrals can be paired well with almost any color.
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Some Patterns
There are n number of possibilities when it comes to mixing and matching patterns between pocket squares and ties but the most basic ones being
–Solid Colored Tie and Patterned Pocket Square
The primary color in the tie is one of the secondary colors in the pocket square For a more subtle, analogous look, you can opt for the same color of the tie in a different shade.
–Patterned Pocket Square and Tie
Now as both of them are patterned the proportion and pattern spacing differ, necktie with small checkered/squares pattern would work well with a dotted pocket square- provided that they are big, spaced polka dots versus pin dots. The end goal is to create visual contrast.
–Solid Colored Pocket Square and Patterned Tie
The secondary color in the tie is the main color of the pocket square; this combination will be the most visually appealing.
That’s pretty much how you should style your pocket square. But still at the end of the day “Simplicity is the ultimate Sophistication”
