A Man’s Belt Guide

Wearing a belt well is one of those litmus tests of fashion:  the simple task, done right, confirms you as a man who knows his clothes.  A mismatch or other error shows that you still need to learn about dressing well.  Fortunately, the basics of good belts aren’t hard to learn, and most are common sense.  The rest is personal taste — and belts allow plenty of room to express it.

Men’s Belt Basics:  Belt Length
Dress belts should have a few inches of leather to the left of the buckle once it’s fastened.  Enough to tuck under your first belt loop, or the loop on the belt if it has one, is a good rule of thumb.  Err on the side of shortness if you need to, rather than wrapping a long tail of leather around your hip a second time.  Casual belts have a little more room for flexibility, but an overly long tail end is always an awkward look.

Store-bought dress belts are usually measured with a range of pant sizes.  Pick your belts two or three sizes larger than your pants to get a good fit.  If you wear a 34″ trouser waist, a belt labeled 36″-38″ will probably be in the right neighborhood.  Of course, the easiest check is just to try the belt on in the store, at least wrapping it around your waist over your pants.  Just remember that it’ll sit a bit tighter when it’s worn properly.
Certain types of casual cloth bands have square brass buckles and a brass cap on the other end to feed through the mechanism.  Military surplus stores often have these, and other manufacturers have imitated the style as well.  These are traditionally worn “brass on brass,” with no spare belt beyond the buckle once fastened.  Since the belt is cloth, you can remove the buckle and trim the cloth down until it’s the right length, then clip the buckle back into place.

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