THE JOURNAL

From left: Mr Troye Sivan in Paris, 27 September 2023. Photograph by Mr River Callaway/WWD via Getty Images. Mr Oscar Isaac in New York, 8 September 2023. Photograph by Ms Madison McGaw/BFA.com. Mr Deon Hinton in New York, 17 October 2023. Photograph by Mr Brendon Cook/BFA.com
“Don’t step out of this house if that’s the clothes you’re gonna wear,” is the order barked by the derided matriarch in “(You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party!)”, the Beastie Boys’ 1986 hit. Parenting styles have developed somewhat in the years since. As for party attire, well, that’s even harder to keep up with. It might not include jewellery purloined from a parked car, but what singer-songwriter Mr Troye Sivan was seen sporting at the YSL Beauty Party in Paris this September – or, frankly, on any occasion that requires him to leave the house, for that matter – would make Ad-Rock’s mother’s head spin.
A sheer shirt is obviously not for everyone. However, with party season looming, it is an option for those with the chutzpah to pull it off. Sivan goes all in, teaming his with leather trousers, which is something you can afford to do when you model for SAINT LAURENT. And while the storied Parisian label is the place to go to really nail this look, a similar piece would also add a modern flourish under a blazer or suit jacket – and without going fully shirtless. Either way, it might be worth getting your chest hair under control first.
Speaking of suiting, Mr Oscar Isaac, as ever, also provides a reliable barometric reading of what a man today should be wearing to a social event – in this instance, a dinner with Mr Haider Ackermann during New York Fashion Week. Perhaps more conventional, it is still rock’n’roll in its own way. A white T-shirt and corresponding pocket square neatly break up the rakish Thom Browne suit.
“If your mission is to go out and enjoy yourself, then that should start with what you wear”
Elsewhere, model and poet Mr Deon Hinton makes the case for the double-breasted blazer, as well as the colour brown. Rather than the stuffy threads of yore, there’s an innate awareness of streetwear sewn into this new generation of double-breasted looks. So, while this piece – in fact, more a one-and-a-half breasted jacket – offers the broad shoulders and pinched waist of the male ideal, it also works with generously sized distressed denim, which here echoes the earthy tone.
There are no set rules to party dressing, just as there are no set rules to parties – that’s what good parties are, a lack of rules. If your mission is to go out and enjoy yourself, then that should start with what you wear. However, we will offer this one piece of advice, based on all that we’ve learnt above: the best kind of outfit is always one that you feel confident in.