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When Are Short-Sleeved Collared Shirts Appropriate? Are Button-Fronts Better than Polos?
Is it appropriate to replace a long-sleeved dress shirt with a collared shirt-sleeved shirt in the summer? Is a polo shirt better, or one with a full button front? If you’re not wearing a tie, can you undo the top regular (not collar) button?
If you’re not wearing a jacket and tie, it’s probably okay to wear short-sleeved collared shirts. If you’re in a suit-and-tie kind of setting, the collared shirt under the suit should be long-sleeved. If nothing else it’s easier on the lining of your suit, which is a lot more expensive to replace than a cotton shirt if it gets sweat-stained.
A buttoned front is a slightly dressier and less athletic look than a polo. Either one is appropriate anywhere informal enough that you can get away with bare arms, however. A polo shirt should never be worn with a necktie.
Undoing the top shirtfront button is a deliberately casual gesture and should mostly be reserved for social settings. That said, any time heat is a serious issue it’s better to look a little rumpled around the collar than to be buttoned up tight but drenched in sweat and near to collapse.
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