Choosing a collar is more than just a matter of style.
As the closest part of clothing to your face, your collar has a surprisingly strong influence on your overall appearance.
You should always select a collar style which counter-balances your most prominent features.
Let's use four Tom James clothiers to illustrate the rights and wrongs of collar selection.
| Feature: |
Narrow Face |
| Clothier: |
Jason Dial, Nashville TN |
| Strategy: |
Use wider collars to broaden face |
|
| The Traditional |
 |
| The Medium
Spread |
 |
| The Wide Spread |
 |
| The Como |
 |
| All with a normal back and front
|
|
  |
Wrong:
If Jason wears a narrow point collar, his long and narrow facial structure is accentuated,
and he looks even thinner. |
  |
Right:
If Jason wears a spread collar as wide or slightly wider
than his face, his face will be counter-balanced by the additional width of the collar. |
| Feature: |
Round Face |
| Clothier: |
Ken Aoki, New York NY |
| Strategy: |
Use narrower collars to lengthen face |
|
| The
Narrow Point |
 |
| The
Conservative |
 |
| The
Continental |
 |
| All with a low back and low front |
|
 |
Wrong:
If Ken wears a wide spread collar, it will make his head look larger. If he wears a collar that is too small, he will look heavier than he really is. |
 |
Right:
If Ken wears a collar that is slightly narrower than his face, his face will look thinner. A shorter front and back height contributes to this effect.
|
| Feature: |
Long Neck |
| Clothier: |
Kevin Miller, Austin TX |
| Strategy: |
Use higher collars to shorten neck |
|
| The
Traditional |
|
| The
Medium Spread |
|
| The
Wide Spread |
|
| The
Como |
|
| All with an extra high back and high front |
|
 |
Wrong:
If Kevin wears a normal collar height in a narrow point collar, his long neck will be accentuated and
look even longer. |
 |
Right:
If Kevin wears an extra high back
and high front collar, he will appear more proportionate. A collar that is slightly wider than his face
will help achieve even more balance. |
| Feature: |
Short Neck |
| Clothier: |
Josh Smith, Cleveland OH |
| Strategy: |
Use lower collars to lengthen neck |
|
| The
Narrow Point |
|
| The
Conservative |
|
| The
Continental |
|
| All with a low back and low front |
|
 |
Wrong:
If Josh wears a collar with a normal height
in the front and back, it will make him look as if he has no neck at
all. He will also appear heavier. |
 |
Right:
If Josh wears a collar slightly narrower than his face, with a lower back and front height,
his neck will appear longer. He will also
look thinner. |
|
Jason's
Best Collars