It's not what you wear, it's how you wear it - how would an older man wear these clothes?

I found this photograph which, to me, illustrates so well how it is not so much what you wear, but how you wear it. I apologise to the blog I borrowed this from, but it shows a fairly young man wearing perfectly good clothes in a way that (to me, judging it as an older guy) flatters neither them nor the wearer. The shoes are not designed to be worn without socks, the tie should be done up properly and the shirt buttoned. It verges on the "trying to hard". Wearing smart clothes in a casual, verging on the slovenly, way does not add up to smart casual.

I emphasise that this is a very personal view and you may disagree - what I am doing here is describing my own search for style and the influences on it. I acknowledge I'm much older than the model here, but I look at this picture and it encourages me to wear a tie properly and wear socks with desert boots. Think how that would improve this look (I'd probably also add a splash of colour in the tie, or with a pocket square, but that's another issue).

[I've since been told that the clothes are from H.E by Mango’s SS12 collection. So, I was right about their quality; but this doesn't affect my view that they are not shown at their best even though I accept that they are being marketed at a younger age group.]

The Monsieur