5 Easy Steps on How to Wear Cufflinks Correctly

Traditionally, French cuff shirts and cufflinks were mainly worn by top executives and CEOs. So if you were not in a position of such power and influence, French cuff dress shirts worn together with cufflinks were considered to be pretentious — but nowadays, not anymore.

Now, more and more people wear cufflinks even with their casual attire. If anyone tells you that you can’t wear cufflinks if you’re not wearing a formal outfit, don’t believe them because they’re wrong.

Here’s a little trivia for you: Cufflinks pre-date zippers, buttons, safety pins, and Velcro. They’re a great way of adding in your personal style to your work and daily outfit. Also, cufflinks are now available in a wide variety of designs, colours, and sizes, so you can have more options to choose from.

However, a lot of people are still intimidated by cufflinks since they don’t really know how to wear them properly. So here’s a quick guide that shows you how to wear cufflinks with confidence.

Step 1: Choose the right kind of shirt

Cufflinks are typically worn with French cuff dress shirts. This type of dress shirt has extended cuffs that fold back, thus, creating layers.

French cuffs don’t have buttons to link the cuff. As an alternative, small holes were made on each side of the cuff, where cufflinks can then be inserted. This is the most classic style of a dress shirt to wear with cufflinks.

Step 2: Fold back the cuffs of the shirt

With one arm stretched, use your other hand to fold back the French cuffs evenly. But if you’re wearing a single cuff dress shirt, folding back the cuffs are no longer required.

Step 3: Gather the cuff edges

Hold the edges of the cuff together, so the both of them lays flat. This method is called the classic “kiss cuff”, which is often used with cufflinks.

A single cuff shirt will no longer use the “kiss cuffing” technique. Instead, one edge of the cuff should overlap the other one, creating a “barrel shape“. You can always wear your cufflinks even with a single cuff shirt, but it is deemed to be an informal look.

Step 4: Align the cufflink holes

Make sure that the cufflink holes are precisely aligned, as this makes it simpler to insert any types of cufflinks. For a single cuff shirt, adjust the cufflink holes by overlaying each of the cuff edges until both holes align.

Step 5: Insert and lock the cufflinks

It is important to note that the decorative surface of the cufflink should always be positioned outwardly when your arms are at your sides. Then, just insert your cufflink of choice through the layers of the fabric, and secure it on the other side of the cuff.

The way to secure the cufflinks will significantly vary depending on the style of cufflink you’re going to wear. Additionally, be sure to choose a pair that matches the occasion. Wearing casual cufflinks when you’re attending a formal event, would be unwise.

In the end, no matter what type of cufflinks you may choose to go for, always remember to match them with your overall look.