Dress to impress - Fundraiser Dinner attire

(Black Velour sport coat, the perfect cocktail jacket)

We've all heard the term "dress to impress" or "cocktail" attire.  Though they're commonly used, I often think many people may still guess at what they truly mean and how to accomplish such. If you want to dress to impress at any cocktail party.  Here are a few tips you should start repeating.

I wore the outfit above for a fundraiser dinner I threw on Jan 22nd.  I had 5 top chefs from Seattle and over 100 VIP guests in business, food and fashion.  With that many guests, that much fashion and style in the room, what was my approach to standing out?

Well, I take a simple approach to the way I dress every day and that night was no exception. The formula I use looks similar to this:

• Texture
• Color
• Classics

Like anything you do, mix and match til something just pops.  The percentage of texture vs. color vs. classics, is dependent upon you and honestly the mood, the event and the season, so they'll change frequently.

For this night. I let my Velour sport coat be the texture.  It was a main piece and everyone takes notice of it.  That was my anchor to my outfit and I emphasized everything else around it.

The color I brought in was in my tie and pocket square.  I liked the texture that the tie actually brought to the whole outfit because of the pattern on it.  It stands out, but not overly so; which is good.  I added depth to my outfit through my yellow/blue/white pocket square and before you say it doesn't match.  In reality it does.  The colors compliment each other and because I didn't do the same color as my tie, it actually seems like I'm not trying very hard --which guys again, is a good thing.

The Classic.  Well.  That's simple.  My slacks, my vest, my shoes, my belt... all black.  My shirt, bright white with french cuffs.  You do not get more classic then a black and white color combination.

So, when you tie in a simple classic look (cocktail) and add in a few pops of color and some texture as your main piece.  You now have a formula for "dress to impress."

I'll be upfront.  Dressing this way is easy to me.  For you, it'll seem confusing.  As it should. You just haven't ventured out enough to see what works and what doesn't.  My advice, you'll never stand out if you don't try, try, try.... and try.  Just own it when you walk out the door and trust me, your confidence will seal the deal on anything you wear.

Info on the event: http://www.eatinseattle.com/2015/01/cityguru-hosts-to-table-dinner.html
Info on me: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drewmorrisonseattle
Info on my company: www.cityguru.com
FB: https://www.facebook.com/00.Drew
Twitter: @citygurusea