wa
hahahaah i haven't reached that level of income yet.

other brands? good quality? prefer quality like cuffz and 2 ply best!
egyptian cotton! premium cotton! all best!

ah! cufflink lovers! aloha... I too am in love with these shirts... my threads have a few of them which i am putting up on behalf of a friend who is selling... i also have another good friend who might have a supplier of cufflinks for cheaper prices than retail...

I love Raoul too but i totally agree that they're overpriced! Tang's has some good ones during their sales... esp from giorgio mandelli (smth like that)...

Reason being I have opened this topic is after being thrown heaps of disagreements from several friends on WHO should be wearing cufflinks.

Basically, I'm at executive level, am within media consultancy, and soon will be a management associate for a premier logistics & production organization. i have 1 year working experience.

My friends I would say have around 3-4 years of working experience and would be considered seniors and are within the ranks of:

1. sales & business development
2. owns a small IT consultancy business
3. business intelligence associate
4. technical support
5. advertising

none of them have agreed that a person, me, should be wearing cufflinks to work because it is a status symbol and strongly disagree that i shouldn't even consider. (considering my job designation/ position & working experience)

guys, come on, what is your take on this? i think it is PERFECTLY fine to wear cufflinks. what are your opinions? lets have this discussion. constructive if possible. but a forenote that it will not change my decision on wearing cufflinks.

is there a hidden rule that cufflinks intimidate managers or whatever / directors?

ALSO

i have worn a french cuffed shirt to a club before. velvet zouk and they think it is retarded. what are your views?

don't ask me to disregard their opinions because i have my own beliefs and it does not rattle my decision on cufflinks but I am very interested in knowing what do you guys think or have a take on cufflinks.

This post has been edited by Salience: May 18 2009, 12:56 AM

wear what you feel that you would feel and look good when u go to club

but as for working place , try not to offend your seniors or managers .. but i am not so sure about wearing cufflinks require certain ranks...

anyway hope to hear from others too

it's all about wearing the right things for the right time. i have been wearing them for several years and i think they're alright as long as u groom well and carry yourself well with your clothes. but of course it must suit the occasion and environment...

e.g advertising firm where lots of people tend to be a bit more casual.

think about your own office environment (and not about your friends since they are not paying your salary). if your boss wears a shirt and tie (and it is office protocol to do so), then you should too. and even if he doesn't wear cufflinks, i think it's perfectly ok. for a while people may notice, but after a period of time, no one will care. if you start wearing braces and a bowtie, for the first week, everyone will notice... then they will just take it as it is and stop caring.

conversely, if your boss is wearing a workshirt with company logo on it, you do the same if you're given the same uniform. if everyone in your company is in casual friday mode, and you wear a shirt and cufflinks (even though you're not meeting a customer), then, while there's nothing wrong to it, it's gonna be a bit awkward. this is where you must take some consideration of course and not just blindly follow the stuff people talk about in styleforums or askandy as u must think about the environment you work in. it's much like a dress code where if people say black tie, you don't turn up in jeans just to try to be different - one should respect the host of the event.

actually now i have stopped wearing them due to the fact that i don't wear ties at work anymore. so i've switched to single cuffs and though i can still wearing links on them, imho, i think it's a bit scruffy to wear them without ties during work. i'm currently in a managerial position having delved into the working world for more than a decade fyi. the funny thing is, the higher up i go, and the more people i meet higher up, more often than not, they tend to be more understated (not that their clothing is of any lesser quality).

e.g. those blue blue shirts with white collars and cuffs - i have not met (personally) any CEO or chairman wearing this type of shirt (we are talking about malaysia ya). the irony of it is that i see more of younger guys who want to make an impression wearing something striking at work.

as for clubs - i think u can wear anything u damn well please as long as u're comfy and don't sweat like a pig.

This post has been edited by lanatir: May 18 2009, 01:46 AM

Cufflinks are not status symbols, they are accessories.

It is a matter of dressing better than your boss and whether or not he is bothered by it. If you know your boss well and he does not mind, by all means go ahead and wear them with pride.

If you are worries, my suggestion would be to slowly take your style up a notch at a time as you work in your company. Anything too drastic might draw unwanted attention.

This post has been edited by Fusion[eX]: May 18 2009, 07:08 PM

Cufflinks are not meant only for the exec level but anyone can use it.It's an accesory for a shirt.
But in working environment try to not offend or dress anything ahead of your seniors just for your own "safety".

Try imagine your boss drive a wira to work and you driving a beemer to work, 10am you park your car at the parking lot and walk down from the car just to see that your boss just park his wira beside you, though it's ok for you to drive a beemer but he might feel you are more over than him which might offend him .

Back to topic, if you wearing a shirt which need cufflink then use it. No problem at all.(Still the same thing, try not to offend you senior or make them feel you are trying to climb over their head, unless you really meant to do that)

This one is true. I have come across a lot of people that are rich and not dress like they are rich. I have this customer who have tons of properties and is a millionaire, but he still dresses in a cheap carrefour sports shoes and discount button short sleeve shirts? There is also this one who is also a millionaire and he is always in a linen shirt and jeans and boat shoes. And a lot more who looks like some pasar uncle but at his back is successful guy.

Sometimes its hard to please people. If you dress nicely, they say u overdo it. Tone it down 2 levels and they say u are sloppy. Hard to please people really. Tell you what, i have seen quite a few Bangla and African foreigners wearing cufflinks with their shirts if that is a consolation. Not like its degrading, but its a common accesory.

just a note about outshining your superiors at work...

at higher up levels, if one is too flashy with accessories (especially expensive ones like watches), there have been cases when the chairman/ceo/MD said, "nice watch... looks like we're paying you too much"

at the end of the day, the crux of the issue is not so much the cufflinks itself but it's all about the 'game' u play in the office. there are times you would want to shine... there are other times when it's better to be under the radar. no one rule fits all situations.

Just tell them you don't realize your shirts don't have buttons on the sleeves when you bought it. Now you want me to roll it up or leave the cuffs dangling?

true its about the situation, sometimes you may not want to overdress in the office.. but sometimes its also about how natural you look in what you wear.. its also about how you carry what you wear.. if you look like you've been wearing cufflinks for years, its rare that someone would judge/question you.. however if you dont carry it well and its clear you purchased a new cufflink, then people are going to take attention to your cufflink.. and i find it natural for people to start questioning and try to "degrade" you for wearing it.. because they want to conform you to the way they think (its natural human behaviour), and i personally feel that their jealous because they want to look like you but they simply cant..

This post has been edited by jind86: May 18 2009, 12:32 PM

thanks guys for the insight.

i was really frustrated that my friends suddenly expressed that cufflinks were not a norm. i was like WTF!

but had to hear them biatch, whine and stare down at my dress sense and it was pretty pissing off.

ultimately, i believe i can carry a shirt with cufflinks well and also, we must wear something decent, not too flashy or even novelty cufflinks but something simple and nice.

my frustation stems from the fact that people are so conventional to think that cufflinks is still a mere status symbol. of course the example of a bmw and a wira is very much obvious because of perception but yes, it is super true that cufflinks is just an accessory. a SMART fashion accessory that gives credit to clothing.

its the clothes that make a man and that clothing sells you and positions yourself, defines boundaries between profesionalism.

THE BETTER A PERSON DRESSES UP, the perception differs: THE MORE EFFORT PUT INTO LOOKING GOOD translates into THE MORE PROFESIONALISM, enthusiam and how IMPORTANT you take your job for. People dress to impress, and create a good impression.

Not to prove that you are better that other people or is in a position far superior. people always have that mistake!

gah.

cufflinks are not a symbol of being rich. but my friends seem to think so and it is impossible to change their mindset. so i am ignoring it.

on clubbing: my response is: I wear what i want, and i want to look this way. this is me. i can ask eg. why the hell would you want to wear a sweater or a cardigan to a club when its always all stuffy and hot inside. Fashion sense, in the end, right? you wear white, or black shoes or leather or sneakers or shirts, people wear slim ties to clubs, what the hell is wrong with cufflinks? people wear bow ties, justin timberlake hats, cowboy shoes, big buckle belts, or even a vest. all in all, at the end of the day its just fashion.

but my friends, that i believe have fashion sense, does not have this aspect and it is very irritating at times.

are there any managers out there to share their opinoins?

how would you see a freshie or executive wearing cuflfinks?

This post has been edited by Salience: May 18 2009, 12:48 PM

One of the reasons why I do shopping alone: being able to buy what I want and wear what I like.

Remember, you are dressing up for yourself, not for other people. Fashion and style is after all another form of self expression.

yeap. i agree and therefore do not shop with them as well

I would agree with Lanathir.

It depends on your company culture and your team culture.

Example. If your boss and colleagues do not wear tie to work. I would not wear tie too. It sort of project the image that you are part of the team.

I would think that cuff links are a bit restrictive. It knocks everywhere, especially if you are writing something or typing. Of course this would depend on the cufflink and shirt. But in general, it's restrictive.

Personally, I used to wear alot of cufflinks during college days. But that's because we wore blazers and the cufflinks looks good sticking out from the blazer. Subtle yet not too dashing. Nowadays, I only wear cufflinks when I wear my suit to meet clients or big boss. I find that cufflinks without suit is just too "try-hard". Again personal opinion. Maybe I'm just too conservative. No offense.

cufflinks without a suit IMHO is not "too try hard" because come on
its Malaysia. no one wears suits that often.

and it is safe to say not everyone would wear suits. especially now with the escalating heats. and therefore cufflinks IYO is not suitable.

but that's a different subject.

i'm saying job designation's / work experience correlation with cufflinks.

but thanks for your input too.

damn what college is that? oversea?

that is so cool i wish MMU have dress code

well anyway alot of people always say that i overdress.. just because i wear shirts with tuck in and shoes most of the time! but i dont care what they say i mean..


This post has been edited by Flizzardo: May 18 2009, 03:18 PM

flizzardo, if u are still studying, if u dress up formally like slacks and shirts with leather shoes, then it does set u uniquely apart; like u on par with lecturers or someone but if its jeans, tuck in shirt, i tink it is fine lo. and shoes, by shoes u mean sneakers/ loafers? or what?

anyhow,
still very unhappy that people fail to understand that why people wear things is just because they like it and not everything must be their standard of norms.

I remember APITT enforces dress shirts and dress pants with leather shoes for their students. I wonder if it is the same now?

As far as I know, they still do. Once a while I still see some smartly-dressed APIIT students having lunch in my neighbourhood.