Dressing is a way to express your personality, reveal your self-confidence, and feel in tune with your time.

Yet, many men face the same dilemma: how to choose their clothes well? With the multitude of cuts, the richness of colors, and the range of styles, it can be difficult to find pieces that truly highlight you.

Model: Florian B./ Photographer: Cédric Vanier

At Harold, a men's ready-to-wear boutique located in the heart of the Marais in Paris, we have been guiding our clients through this process for several years. Far from fashion diktats, our approach focuses on understanding your identity and lifestyle.

Discover our guide to best advise you and help you build a coherent wardrobe that reflects who you are.

The importance of color choice in your wardrobe: revealing your complexion.

Choosing a clothing color is not just about following trends. Each shade can either brighten the face or darken it. That’s why it’s essential to consider your complexion.

A man with fair skin benefits from favoring deep and contrasting colors. Navy blues, forest greens, burgundies, and even some anthracite grays create an intensity that balances the complexion. Conversely, a sweater that is too light risks dulling the silhouette. The dark blue jeans from Selected or the forest green overshirt from Les Deux prove to be valuable allies.

For olive skin, the range of possibilities is wide. Warm tones like camel, rust, or khaki naturally complement the complexion. Pastels can also work, creating a subtle contrast. One can easily imagine a light beige chino from Selected paired with a brown sweater from Drykorn for a perfect balance.

Men with dark skin can dare to wear bolder colors. A deep red, emerald green, or cobalt blue instantly energize the look. But the most effective trick remains contrast: a bright white t-shirt under a navy blazer creates a powerful and elegant silhouette. This is a combination we often recommend in-store.

Beyond complexion, colors are also chosen according to the seasons. Autumn calls for earthy shades, spring for fresher and brighter tones. The important thing is to dare to vary, while building a base of neutral tones like green or blue around which stronger pieces revolve.

Model: Pierre-Jean R./ Photographer: Davide Carson

Clothing cuts according to your body shape: highlighting your assets

While color catches the eye, the cut defines the silhouette. It should flatter without constraining, balance without distorting. It is important to choose cuts that highlight you. We explain everything below:

For men with an athletic body shape

If you have an athletic build, with broad shoulders and a defined waist, we recommend wide and loose cuts that can naturally highlight you. Loose pants like the Rick Nickle Pant from Woodbird provide comfort, fluidity of movement, and a contemporary casual style without compressing the thighs or calves.

The right compromise is often found in regular, tapered, or slightly loose straight cuts, which structure the leg while allowing great ease, like the Regular Malik Sun Trousers, the Como Regular Houndstooth Suit Pant, or the Randall Pleated Twill Suit Pants from Les Deux which offer natural volume and light drape.

Model: Pascal / Photographer: Cédric Vanier

For men with a slender body shape

If you are more of a slim or slender type, the goal is to add visual volume without forcing it. We often advise slim people to opt for slim, tapered, or straight cuts to lengthen and structure the leg, while adding volume elsewhere to balance.

Slim pants like the 175 Slim Fit Ben Kori Jeans or straight cuts like the 196 Straight Fit Ben Kori Jeans from Selected slim the silhouette and create a clean, elegant line. We recommend avoiding very tight models like skinny jeans, as they can emphasize slimness even more. Straight or regular tapered cuts structure without compressing. For example, the Ajend Pants from Drykorn offer a straight leg with slight tapering for more comfort.

Model: Pierre-Jean R./ Photographer: Davide Carson

For men with a rounder body shape

If you have a rounder body shape, the goal is to create a fluid and light silhouette by adding movement and controlled volume, without emphasizing shapes or weighing down the overall look. Contrary to the common idea that slim or straight cuts are always best, loose or wide pants are often the ideal ally for people with rounder shapes. The choice of fabric will be important.

Loose pants like the 220 Loose Finn Flex Pants from Selected offer a loose cut, create movement, and their pleats give a silhouette that is both chic and casual depending on how you style it. Another good example is the straighter model from Les Deux, the Randall Melange Suit Pants, which adds controlled volume at the waist and hips to balance proportions without compressing.

We advise against models that are too wide or too long, as they risk weighing down the silhouette. The right compromise is found in Loose Tapered or wide straight cuts, which slim without forcing, like some relaxed jeans or chinos from Selected available at Harold.

Choose the right materials: a necessity

Depending on the seasons of the year, materials vary. The outside temperature obviously impacts the composition of the clothes you will choose for your wardrobe. To help you choose your clothes, Harold reminds you of some tips you probably already know:

In winter, for example, there is the essential winter material: wool, found in many pieces in our selection, notably the Matesso Coat from Drykorn. We also find cashmere with the tartan patterned scarves from Joshua Ellis.

In spring, we lean more towards cotton, like the Kent Stripe Peached from Les Deux. It’s also the start of wedding season and its share of suits and chic outfits, notably the arrival of linen blazers like the regular Malik Sun from Selected.

Model: Pascal / Photographer: Cédric Vanier

In summer, we welcome seersucker, a slightly puckered fabric usually made of cotton. At Harold, we offer several pieces made from this fabric, such as the Randall Suit Shorts from Les Deux. Linen is obviously more than ever at the heart of the wardrobe, a very light material perfectly suited for summer, for example the Slim Tape Brody 172 Linen Pant from Selected.

Finally, in autumn, one of the key materials remains corduroy cotton, present on the Marchall Corduroy Coach Jacket from Les Deux. It’s also the start of wool’s return to the men’s wardrobe, whether fine like on the Tray LS Knit Merino Crewneck, or boiled wool like on the Nealy LS Knit Workwear Cardigan.

Style: adapting your choices to your occasions

Beyond complexion, body shape, and seasons, your clothes must correspond to your lifestyle. You don’t dress the same way for a professional meeting, a night out with friends, or a weekend in the countryside.

Model: Pierre-Jean R./ Photographer: Davide Carson

The business casual style appeals to more and more men, especially those who want to move away from the strict suit while maintaining a certain presence. Here, a slim chino, a fine knit, and a wool blazer like the Regular Ben Wool Double-Breasted from Selected create a perfect balance between casual and serious.

The casual chic style is probably the most sought-after today. It combines comfort and elegance, with simple but well-chosen pieces. A regular jean, an overshirt, and a pair of leather penny loafers are enough to compose a versatile outfit.

The relaxed weekend, on the other hand, invites more freedom. Loose pants, patterned sweatshirts, and Drykorn caps offer comfort and style. You just need to combine them smartly to avoid a sloppy look.

What makes a successful style is coherence. Each piece must interact with the others, not like a fixed uniform, but like a personal language.

Model: Sébastien F./ Photographer: Nicolas Aristidou

Choosing your clothes well is not an exercise reserved for insiders. With a few simple guidelines – colors adapted to your complexion, cuts suited to your body shape, styles matching your occasions – it becomes possible to build a wardrobe that is both elegant and functional.

Find all our green clothes in-store and online at harold-paris.com!

Our team supports you in finding the shade of green best suited to your style and daily life. To follow our inspirations and new arrivals, find us on Instagram.

Stay informed about our latest arrivals and exclusive offers by subscribing to our newsletter directly from the homepage of the site.