Adding a humble belt to your outfit can
instantly improve your look, and allows you to look stylish with minimal effort. Accessorising in men’s fashion is often something which most men try to avoid. But accessorising doesn’t have to mean adding loads of bling.
Mainline Menswear sells a large range of belts, in many different styles and colours. To help you out, this blog should enlighten you on how to wear a belt, and what to wear a belt with to allow it to be most effective and not merely hold your trousers up. 
Sizing
The first thing you need to know about belts is the size. Getting the correctly sized belt for your body is very important, and can make or break your belt look. Ideally, when you fasten your belt you want to be using the third or fourth hole. This allows enough of the belt left over to pull through and slide through the loops on your trousers, but there’s not too much so the belt hangs down.
When you’re buying a belt, make sure you try it on. Don’t just presume you’ll be a medium because you’ve always been a medium; different brands have different sizing’s. Ensure that it’s comfortable, and is easy to put on and take off. If your belt is the wrong size, it won’t matter if it’s the most stylish belt in the world, it still won’t look good!
Formal Belts
Your formal belt, to be worn with tailored trousers and suits, should be subtle and understated. Find a belt between 2.5cm and 3.5cm in width, in a neutral colour like black or brown. Keep the belt simple, so avoid large buckles, and try and match the colour to the rest of your outfit.
A black belt will go with everything, but brown belts look best paired with navy trousers, to give a slightly contrasting look. Another trick is to match your belt with your shoes, pair a brown belt with brown brogues, or a black belt with black shoes. Wearing all different colours like black shoes, grey trousers and a brown belt can make your outfit look too ‘loud’ and will take away from the formal attire.
Finally, match the metal finish on your belt with your other accessories. For example, if your belt has a gold buckle, wear a gold tie clip, or pair a silver belt buckle with a silver watch. This will complete your outfit and ensure everything looks smart and matching. 
Casual Belts
Pairing belts with casual wear gives you more scope to experiment with colours and patterns. The width of belt you choose can vary, but as a general rule choose thinner belts for skinny jeans – between 1.5cm and 2.5cm. Stick to slightly wider belts with all other trousers, like chinos, jeans and shorts, but if you’re considering buying a belt over 4cm in width, stop and think: will it actually look good? And will it fit through your belt loops?
For the style, you can really choose anything. Woven leather, fabric, studded, embroidered, printed straps – there are endless belt styles out there, so you have no excuse to wear your formal belt in casual situations.
You don’t have to match your belt with anything in your outfit, and can choose a bold coloured belt to add a bit of flare to your look. The main role of a belt is essentially to divide your body into two halves, so keep this in mind depending on your body type.
If you want to look taller, matching your belt with either the colour of your trousers or your upper half can lessen the effect of halving your body. Opposing, if you’re already tall then a brightly coloured or textured belt emphasises the divide, and can break up your vertical line. 
There really are no rules when choosing your casual belt, and you can be as subtle or as eccentric as you like. Just make sure the size is right and it’s a comfortable fit – so when you sit down your belt remains in place and doesn’t start to pinch you in the stomach.
If you want to find your new signature belt, head over to our website to browse our large collection. We supply belts in many colours, textures and styles, including discreet formal belts, and more stand out designs too – so there’s something to suit everyone.
