Plus, mastering the art of dressing down; and trousers: are slim fit or wide leg best?.

This week in our advice column, where we open up our expert style knowledge to specific, personal questions from you, our dear readers – we address three points which cover the main aspects of dressing. Firstly: judging your outfit as a whole (how to pull off a casual look without looking shoddy). Secondly: fit (one guy wants to know when a wide- or slim-legged trouser is more appropriate). Thirdly: colour and texture co-ordination. Or more specifically, how to wear double denim.

As always, we have attempted to answer your questions as best we can, below. If you wish to submit your own – just click here.

**How do you nail a chill and relaxed look without looking sloppy? ** **From @officialmvthis via Instagram **

Tricky old question, OfficialMvThis. There is a thin line, possibly littered with broken glass and tears, between dressing with a studied negligence and looking like you work at Google. It is a matter of inflection, of tone. But before we discuss what “tone” means, hear this and hear it well: to dress carelessly takes a lot of care indeed.

There are two things to note. The first is in the choice of clothes, of which more anon. And the second is a matter of attitude. To look “chill and relax” you have to feel just that. You need to be able to relax into your informal look. If you can’t then you will just look like you have been dressed by someone else (possibly your mother, who doesn’t like you). So, think about what you are comfortable in. If you are usually to be found in a three-piece and monk-straps and you are forcing yourself into a pair of Common Projects you are likely going to feel like a wally. To avoid walliness, think about what your limits are. Dial it down slowly. And then when you wear it, do it as if you are a commanding general just home to pick up your laurels. Be ballsy and bold and no one will question you (unless, possibly, you are in an airport).

In terms of what clothes you wear – well, it depends very much what you wear now. If you are addicted to suits, why not try chinos and a shirt… with the sleeves rolled up. Or swap the overcoat for a suede number. Or, if you are feeling particularly jazzy, go for the look of the season and wear a Hawaiian shirt (or a “aloha shirt”, as the garment is known in its islands of origin). Whatever you choose, do it with the insouciance of an aristocrat – in plain clothes, of course.

**What body type should wear wide leg vs slim taper?

From @boaz_walker via Instagram**

The word “should” is always a little problematic, particularly where body types are concerned. While there are certain broad style guidelines to which we recommend you adhere, there is always a degree of interpretation involved – indeed, the ability to interpret rules is how we self-express. Thankfully, where trousers are concerned, common sense tends to prevail. When choosing a pair, think first in terms of practicality. Is that slim-taper pair so tight it’s likely to give you deep-vein thrombosis while sitting cross-legged? Or are you so slim that the wide-legged pair will billow, sail-like while you’re walking along a windy street? As with any matter of style, your proportions should generally match the proportions of the clothes you’re intending to wear. Choose accordingly. Simply put, if you’re on the slimmer side, feel free to wear a tighter fit (and be wary of wider trousers swamping your frame). And if you’re on the bigger side, give yourself a bit more breathing space. As you may have noted, wide-legged trousers are most certainly “a thing” right now. The beauty of this roomier cut is that it is more forgiving and inclusive than its slimmer alternative. While most people, from the rake-thin to the big boned can effectively wear a wide leg, not everyone can squeeze into a slim-fit pair. It’s up to you to decide which works better for your own unique frame.

**How do you wear double denim without everyone calling you “Denim Dave” or saying “nice prarie tuxedo”? ** From @coleklokateer via Instagram

I get the feeling, Coleklokateer, that this dilemma of yours cannot be solved by style advice alone (although there will be some of it in a second). Instead, the issue here relies more on what everyone else thinks, and this is no way for a man to compile his wardrobe – compliments and criticisms often go hand in hand, after all, and if you can’t handle the latter, you’ll likely be starved of the former.

On to the clothes themselves. On a purely practical level, it’s best to stick to tried-and-tested shades of denim when it comes to doubling up – no triple tie-dye pink denim unless you’ve got some serious sartorial chops, I’m afraid. I appreciate your apprehension though, and assume you’ll want to go for something safe but efficacious, so recommend combining the Mr P. jacket and jeans which are cut from the same tough selvedge denim. Invest in those and you’ll be fine – you of course aren’t obliged to wear them together, and although I think they’re a pretty solid take on the ole’ Texan tux, both the jeans and jacket are versatile enough that you can wear them with most things and they’ll hold up rather well.

Don’t feel like you have to match the denim, either – you are free to vary the shades to create a contrast, and doing so will also stop the look from appearing like too much of a fashion statement, if that is your concern. Darker denim on the jacket mixed with a slightly lighter hue on the jeans will work well, for instance. Another rule: if you want to wear black denim, it’s best to keep the fit on the skinnier side, but if you prefer to rock that 1950s American workwear look in blue and indigo, you can go for a more relaxed fit. For the rest of your outfit, go for a striped Breton T-shirt underneath the jacket and pair of clean white sneakers – like these from O’Keeffe – and you’ve nailed the look.

After a certain point though, Klokateer, you have to start questioning if denim-related nicknames bother you all that much. Rest assured that no matter how good you look, there’ll always be someone that hates your outfit and will gladly tell you so, and if “Denim Dave” is really the best they’ve got… well, I wouldn’t worry too much. As someone once said, if you have no critics, you’ll likely have no success – so hold your head high, and wear that prairie suit into the sunset.