How to Wear Collar Stays for Men

Posted by wahab on January 30th, 2020

Whether you are a dress shirt novice or expert, you might not be aware of the amazingly handy little addition to your dress wear called collar stays. With all the different accessories out there ranging from cufflinks, ties and tie bars, and pocket squares, you might think that you know it all! But in fact, there is something that is extremely vital to a sharp formal look that isn’t even visible from the outside – the collar stay. Maybe you’ve heard the term before but have no idea what they do or how to wear them, or maybe you’ve never heard of collar stays in your life. either way, this article will give you all the information you need about collar stays and how to wear them. 

What Are Collar Stays?

Collar stays are small, almost arrow-shaped pieces of plastic or metal that are placed in special pockets in a dress shirt collar. They are worn to keep the shirt collar in place and to keep it sharp, pointed, and flat against your collar bone. They are necessary because many shirts have rather flimsy collars that can turn up and curl away and lead to a look that can be rather unsightly. After all, you want to look your best after investing time and money into all the different aspects of your outfit – from the suit, the pressed shirt, tie, socks, dress shoes, cufflinks, watches, tie bar, pocket square, etc. You wouldn’t want a sloppy looking collar! 

Different Types of Collar Stays

So now that you know what collar stays are, you need to know about all the different types of collar stays that you can wear. There are two main types of collar stays: plastic and metal. Plastic is obviously the cheaper option but it can be easily bent or even break completely. Metal collar stays, on the other hand, are studier and more durable and are definitely worth the investment. They can come in a variety of metals such as stainless steel, brass, gold, and others. One great feature of metal collar stays is that they are engravable which can make a great gift or personal touch to your look. 

How to Wear Collar Stays

Finally, we are at the most important part – how to actually wear collar stays to improve your look. The good news is that wearing collar stays is extremely simple and doesn’t take more than a minute or so to do. Taking the extra minute is well worth it to make sure that your collar stays looking sharp all day long! So what you need to do is to lay the shirt down before you put it on and flip up the collar. Locate small pockets on either side and slide the collar stay inside with the pointed side towards the inside and the flat or rounded side towards the outside. The collar stay should not really stick out from the flap, and if it does, then it should be a very small amount. It’s also important to make sure that you have the right shape of collar stay for your shirt – rounded collars need a rounded collar stay and pointed collars need a pointed collar stay. Once you are done wearing your shirt, make sure to remove the collar stays from both sides before laundering or dry cleaning to make sure that the collar stays do not get damaged, damage your shirt, or even damage your washing machine! Also, make sure to remove the collar stays before you iron the shirt as well because this can cause creases or damages to the fabric.