It's time to replace that old black suit. What to wear with a navy suit (The LBD for men) 

Grays and blues are the two most popular colors when it comes to suits. There are thousands of variations of each, but navy still remains the most versatile, classic look available. It gives you a suit that can be worn for weddings, funerals, happy hours, the office, really any occasion to look stylish and classic.  A classic navy suit has replaced the need for the black suit of old.

Not only does this give you a classic and sophisticated suit, you also get separates that can work for many occasions as well. You can wear the pants on their own with a nice button up shirt or dress it up with a tie when you need the full suit. The navy jacket can also be worn with jeans or lighter gray dress pants to give a few more options other benefit is navy works with brown or black. Honestly, it's hard to mess this one up. Read on if you want some ideas on how to put together navy for any occasion.   

We are here to give you general guidelines and remove the overwhelming fear of style, but adjust according to the culture of your work place as you see fit. 

Download our color guide cheat sheet here.  

The Suit: Business Professional

Creating a business professional look that will impress your co-workers is not a difficult task. The first priority is fit- (learn more here). Picking out the color navy can feel like an art because there really are endless options. It's hard to go wrong with a color or pattern, trust your gut on what you like visually. However, here are a few tips to help you. Solid is the safest, naturally. If you're looking for a pattern go with a subtle pattern, it will still be extremely versatile and give you the look you're going for.

Look for fabrics what have some texture to them- this can be true in a solid, a textured fabric or subtle patterns can give you the same effect. In a full suit that texture will give the suit depth and help it look richer. 

 As far as shade of blue, there is wide range. For the sake of the classic navy,  I would go for a darker blue verse the more modern bright blues popular today. They are beautiful suits, but depending how light blue you go, they do not replace the navy. Saying that, don't be afraid to get a suit that is clearly blue and not confused with black. 

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Once you've covered fit and the color or pattern you want in your navy suit, it's time to put the accessories with it. There seems to be a passionate debate whether you can wear black with navy. If you are of the strong opinion black and navy do not go together- rock and and stick to brown. If you aren't sure- we're here to reassure you black and navy work great together. However, the rule that should never be broken- if you wear brown shoes, wear a brown belt and vice versa and you'll be fine. 

Shirts: Business Professional 

Since we're talking about Business Professional attire stick to light colored solids and light colored or subtle patterns. Do you like louder patterns and colors, not a problem, but save those for more casual days. 

White shirts and light blue shirts can be worn interchangeably. I say treat your light blue shirts as a white shirt in the sense of pairings. They provide a slightly different look, but are extremely versatile and go with literally anything. Make sure you have a handful quality shirts in each color. 

A few other colors to consider with navy: purple, pink and subtle patterns. Again, sticking to the lighter, pastel shades. These are almost as versatile as the solids mentioned above, but they add a little bit of personality and depth. 

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Ties

The great thing about ties, is that they are an easy and fairly inexpensive way to make your wardrobe feel bigger. Your options are generally open here as it’s your personality.

Recommended colors for navy- Red, purple, green, yellow, gold, and lighter blues. For a more business professional look I wouldn't get an incredibly loud pattern. However, don't fear patterns- they are actually better then a solid. You gain multiple colors and some depth to the look when you have a nicely selected tie with a pattern. 

Date Nights, Happy Hours and Mix and Match

A buttoned up business professional look is a very common way to wear a navy suit, but it's not it. When looking to wear your navy suit to a wedding, date night or in a more casual situation- the options are still endless. Everything I mentioned above still applies and can be used. But here are a few more ideas to mix it up. 

• Ditch the tie- wear the suit with a nice button up, sans tie for a put together but relaxed look
• Different pants- wear the navy jacket with a different pair of slacks, for example a light gray or a khaki. 
• Don't wear a button up- But wear a shirt when in public. A common misconception is that you must wear a button up shirt, not necessarily. Pair it with a nice pair of chinos or jeans, a henley or nice "t-shirt" and a nice pair or tennis shoes.