Men's Accessories: A Guide to Styles and Function

July 17, 2022

Ah, the age-old debate – fashion over function, or function over fashion? If you ask us – why not have both?

From neckerchiefs and hats to leather bracelets and an eye-catching belt buckle, there are countless ways to enhance even the most simple of men's outfits if you follow through with the right approach.

It’s all about the little extras – a stylish bracelet here, a distinct watch there, maybe a pair of cufflinks for a more formal look. When shopping for men’s apparel, how do you know which are the best accessories?

We’re about to find out!

Ties, scarves, and neckerchiefs – oh my!

Nowadays, men are lucky enough to have a bit of a cheat sheet to hand – and that’s because you can turn a simple shirt and chinos combo into a smart-casual or work-friendly look with little more than a simple necktie.

Far less subtle than the likes of men's bracelets or a wallet chain, a tie is an immediate statement piece. You’re here, you’ve arrived, and – if you’ll pardon the pun – you mean business.

Yet historically, ties have more in common than you might believe with neckerchiefs – always a winner for that hipster gentleman edge – or, indeed, the humble scarf. Step back in time and you might well be amazed to discover a version of what would become scarves and ties being worn by the Ancient Egyptians.

It’s perhaps no wonder that one of the most famous time travellers in fiction is famous for his love of scarves, then – but if you ask us, The Doctor would look far sharper in a BOING bracelet.

Belt buckles – is bigger always better?

Many a man about town today is proud to have a gleaming belt buckle shimmering atop a tucked-in shirt and some comfortable jeans.

Belts are perhaps the ultimate marriage of fashion and function – they are often decorative, yet they also perform that all-important task of making sure one’s trousers don’t fall down. Always important, that.

Yet nowadays, you can just as easily find belt buckles symbolising your favourite superheroes, your family motto, your heritage, your football team – you name it. As you can imagine, belt buckles have garnered so much positive praise in their role in shaping men’s looks over the years that there are entire expos and conventions for them.

Of course, sometimes a big belt buckle can be a bit much – and that’s okay. Often, the best men's accessories are little touches like a simple leather bracelet or collar pins – accents to your look, rather than statement pieces defining it.

Men's jewellery has come a long way over the ages

Nowadays, you can add some artisanal flair or a touch of distinction to even the most casual look with little more than a men's leather bracelet – yet the notion that male jewellery could be understated just as often as it was ostentatious is a relatively recent development in society overall.

Peel back the history book’s pages, and you’ll find that men of all social standings in society – from kings and noblemen to pirates and thieves – were lavish in how they wore their jewellery.

This wasn’t just to show off wealth and status – but there was also plenty of symbolism in play. It could be aristocrats wearing matching pearls with their sons to boast of a powerful family lineage, or a buccaneer wearing a gold hoop earring engraved with his home town – an instruction of where to be buried when his life of crime came a cropper.

Nowadays, men like to be judged by their actions – not just their appearances. Yet a big gold chain isn’t always the way for many men, and as a result, men's leather bracelets have become such a staple of the more thoughtful and mysterious male.

Similarly, men's bracelets are often accented with little details that remind the wearer of what means the most to him. For example, many BOING men's leather bracelets are engraved with the names of loved ones or memorable dates – or simply softie bracelets in the colours of their favourite sports team.

There’s much more to men's accessories than even the depths of history can truly tell – men's leather bracelets included. What stories will yours come to tell as time goes by?

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