Summer 2024 Menswear Capsule Wardrobe

It’s often repeated in the zeitgeist that Summer is the worst season for fashion. Because of the hot weather you can’t layer like you can in the other seasons.

While I love layering, part of the joy of each season is the constraints they give us. Yes, you can’t layer much in the Summer but it means you’ll need to nail the fundamentals.

Also, because you can’t wear much, people dress the hottest during the Summer.

Summers here in NYC are hot and humid, as such, my Summer capsule wardrobe is characterized of light colors, breathable fabrics, and loose silhouettes.

Here’s my capsule wardrobe for Summer 2024:

Footwear

• Casual Sneakers. Last year, I would’ve recommended a white sneaker. But I find myself reaching for my pair of chunky dad shoes (Karhu Fusion 2.0 is my current choice) more often. Especially with the more relaxed, loose silhouettes of Summer, a chunky shoe compliments them well.
• Loafers. I bought a pair of brown suede loafers last Summer and I got a ton of wear out of them. GH Bass makes a great, affordable loafer. I recommend Morjas if you’re looking for a higher quality pair and got the money to spend.
• Sandals. I’m not the biggest fan of sandals, but they’re great to have in warm weather. Especially for beach wear or resort wear. You can’t go wrong with a Birkenstock Arizona.

Bottoms

• Light wash relaxed fit denim. I love Japanese denim but selvedge denim is bulky and not the most breathable in the Summer months. Instead, I’ll swap my dark wash selvedge denim for my lighter wash denim. A relaxed fit will be more breathable than a slim fit and more timeless than a looser fit. You can’t go wrong with Levi’s. But next year, I’m looking to upgrade to a pair of 3Sixteens.
  
• Linen Pants. Linen garments are a staple of any summer wardrobe. Uniqlo sells some linen blend pants. Check out Todd Snyder for an elevated pair.
  
• Fatigue Pants. I wrote about Fatigue pants earlier this year, I’ve since worn my pair at least twice every week. I bought mine at my vintage plug but you can also find plenty second hand on eBay.
• Shorts. Personally, I don’t like wearing shorts too often. But I am looking at maybe trying out some shorts from Buck Mason. They’ve got a great selection of shorts for all occasions.

Tops

• Tank Tops. I’m going to be wearing tank tops near every day this summer. They’re great for layering underneath a button up or on their own. The Uniqlo ones are great Ive got 4 tank tops from them.
• T-shirts. Buck Mason’s becoming my favourite store for elevated basics. They’ve got the best t-shirts in my opinion. For Summer, I’d opt for a lighter fabric in either a white or light shade.
  
• Linen Shirts. Another summer staple. You can get these pretty much anywhere.
• Short Sleeved Shirts. These are the workhorse of the Summer capsule. There are so many types of short sleeved shirts: camp collars, lace, knitted, patterned. Corridor NYC has some beautiful short sleeved shirts. I love the ones from Abercrombie as well.