How to elevate your everyday wardrobe, with a little help from a subtly-styled shirt.

During winter, we can get bogged down in thinking about what we should be investing in to prepare ourselves for the elements. Similarly, we often think a lot about what we might consider the more important things in our wardrobe. Things that stand out, or serve a specific purpose. The blue blazer, for example. Or the perfect pair of black Oxfords. Less is said, however, about the more functional mainstays in our clothing arsenal. The things that hang quietly, not saying much for themselves – things that don’t like to make a fuss. These things are no less critical to a well-dressed man, however. We’re talking about things like a good casual shirt. While they are not something to write home about (we are well aware of the irony of that statement) – casual shirts are valuable for exactly that reason. They’re not particularly special, but they do their job well – whether worn at the weekend or at the office. If nothing else, they give you an opportunity to introduce a bit of pattern to the proceedings. Here, we give you a rundown of our favourite casual shirts new on site recently, and what we’d wear with them.

As we have written previously, there has been a tendency for designers to take a walk on the Wild West side of things of late. And it’s a trend that shows no sign of abating. This shirt not so much walks on the wild side as flirts with it, mildly. At first glance, it looks like a classic, blue Oxford shirt, but – on closer inspection, you can see the unmistakable signs of a Western-style influence with the pearlescent snap buttons and the details on the shoulders. A straightforward shirt with a gentle twist – we are big fans. Wear it with some slim-cut jeans, such as the above pair from Rag & Bone, for an easy weekend look.

The beauty of a casual shirt is just that – it’s casual and it’s laidback, so you can have a bit of fun (we don’t get out much). Not like those stiff formal shirts with their double cuffs, buttonless collars and plain colours. We like this Club Monaco piece because the pattern is relatively restrained (it’s winter, we’re not in the mood for loud colours) with its mini foulard motif. Oh, and the cotton is brushed, so it will feel extra soft against your skin. In the spirit of having fun, but not too much fun, mind, pair the shirt back with some simple chinos.

Here’s another shirt which has been lightly brushed to give you that extra bit of comfort in the winter cold. However, the design on this casual shirt by Alex Mill is an altogether different proposition from the shirt above. A pleasingly deep red hue – which is somehow apt as we approach a more festive time of year – is broken up with an interesting, but extremely subtle, houndstooth pattern. We see this as the thinking man’s plaid shirt, and you can balance out the bold tone with some all-white Converse All Stars.