商務男士年底派對怎麼穿 The men's guide to party dressing
The Christmas party season gets a bad press on the style pages, and not without good reason. As a religious festival, as a commercial opportunity or as a chance to drink one’s own body weight in spiced wine while treating the boss to a few pointed “home truths” about the way the business is run, clearly the holiday period has much to recommend it. But it’s hardly what you’d call a triumph of good taste.
聖誕派對季對流行時尚造成了負面影響，而且完全是事出有因的。聖誕既是個重要的宗教節日，又蘊含着無限商機，而且在縱酒作樂的同時、還可趁機就公司管理向老闆進一些逆耳忠言的話。對聖誕假期的穿着，可以提供很多建議，但完全不是想象中的高大上風格的。
All that tacky tinsel, all those gaudy baubles. All that forest green and fire-engine red. All those simpering fairy-lights and despairing trees. All that cheap sentimentality and expensive kitsch. And, oh, my dears, the noise! The people! And the menswear!
聖誕假期之間，到處是俗不可耐的裝飾亮片、華而不實的小玩意、大紅大綠之色、毫無生氣的聖誕樹小彩燈及聖誕樹。全都是無病呻吟之舉以及拿錢堆出來的粗俗世界。哦，我的老天！全是喧鬧鼓譟之聲！
It’s not just the jolly festive jumpers (although it is those, too — the scene from Bridget Jones in which poor Colin Firth is forced into a knitted reindeer sweater continues to haunt the dreams of men’s style watchers 14 years on). It’s not even the sight of normally mild-mannered middle managers leading conga lines through the office while wearing novelty Santa hats.
當然，聖誕假期並非只是炫耀漂亮的聖誕毛衣（儘管聖誕毛衣也是關注重點——《BJ單身日記》(Bridget Jones)中可憐蟲科林弗思(Colin Firth)被迫穿上馴鹿圖案毛衣的鏡頭14年來一直縈繞在男裝關注者的腦海中），甚至也不是親眼目睹原先溫文爾雅的公司中層管理者戴上新奇的聖誕老人帽子後在辦公室領跳康加舞。
Because, while regrettable, these are by no means the most dispiriting seasonal sartorial mishaps. That prize goes to the Christmas partygoer who believes that in order to signal to colleagues and clients and even close friends that he has got his Xmas funk on, all he must do is remove his tie and undo the top button of his shirt and, well, that’s it. He removes his tie. Like David Cameron and chums at a G7 photo-call. The shame of it is that it is perfectly possible to get into the swing of the season while remaining dapper and debonair.
箇中原因是：儘管這麼做讓人遺憾，但上述行頭都不是聖誕季最讓人掃興的服裝“錯配”。“拔得頭籌者”當屬那些聖誕聚會的常客，他們認爲爲了向同事及客戶、甚至密友顯擺自己已成功克服聖誕恐懼症，自己必須做的事是去掉領帶以及解開襯衣最上面一顆釦子，對，就是這些。他們不繫領帶，就與七國峯會接受媒體拍照的卡梅倫首相(David Cameron)以及其它六國領導人一樣。讓人無地自容的是：個人很可能早已完全融入聖誕季，但穿着仍是那麼衣冠楚楚、風流倜儻。
First, the office party. I’m not going to use the most fearful phrase in the style lexicon: smart-casual. However, dressing as you would for a board meeting — grey flannel suit, crisp white poplin shirt, navy silk tie and polished brogues — seems somewhat de trop. As does turning up for work dressed as Will Ferrell in Elf. It’s meant to be fun, not career-endangering. So a happy medium must be negotiated between sartorial teetotalism and the style equivalent of binge-drinking.
首先是參加辦公室聚會的裝束。我不想用時尚詞彙中最嚇人的一個詞——商務休閒裝(Smart Casual)。但是，用參加董事會的行頭（灰色法蘭絨西服、潔白的府綢襯衣、深藍色絲質領帶以及鋥亮的布洛克皮鞋）去參加聚會似乎無此必要；而穿得象《聖誕精靈》(Elf)中的威爾法瑞爾(Will Ferrell)那樣去上班也顯得不合適。所以裝束必須開心有趣，但不可危及職業形象。因此，兩全其美的折中辦法就是介於過分放縱與不敢越雷池半步之間。
The good news is that contemporary men’s fashion has made things easier for partygoers aiming for relaxed elegance. After a number of years in which a buttoned-up aesthetic held sway — the Mad Men look — men’s tailoring has taken a more relaxed turn. Cuts are looser, fabrics softer. And the idea of the “broken suit” — what women, less melodramatically, call “separates” — has come to the fore: grey trousers with a blue jacket, or perhaps a subtle difference in shade or texture between top and bottom. Italian labels, in particular, have perfected this. Giorgio Armani, Ermenegildo Zegna and Brunello Cucinelli all find the sweet spot between business and pleasure, catering to men who wish to look smart but not stuffy.
好消息是如今的男裝已讓希望穿着越休閒又不失優雅的聚會常客們應對自如。在係扣式服裝（即《廣告狂人》(Mad Men)中的裝束）多年佔據主導地位後，男裝開始轉向休閒風格。裁剪風格越發自由，面料也越發柔軟。將成套西服拆開來穿搭(“broken suit”)的想法逐漸盛行：灰色褲子配藍色夾克、或者是上衣與褲子的顏色深淺與紋路稍有差別。女性則乾脆把“broken suit”直呼爲單件裝。尤以意大利各時裝品牌爲甚，它們把“broken suit”演繹到了極致。阿瑪尼(Giorgio Armani)、傑尼亞(Ermenegildo Zegna)以及布魯內諾錠奇內利(Brunello Cucinelli)都完美兼顧了公司的業務與消費者的愉悅感，滿足了男士穿着既時髦又不顯古板的心願。
Start with the blazer. Armani is king of the unstructured jacket. His are made in the softest textures with innovative, tactile fabrics; flattering, unshowy and a pleasure to wear. And you don’t look like you’re about to deliver a PowerPoint presentation when you make a move towards the dance floor. (Easy there, tiger.)
首當其衝的是運動夾克。阿瑪尼是休閒夾克的引領者。它推出的夾克用觸摸感很強的新型面料、配以最柔和的紋路打造而成，顯得既帥氣又含蓄，上身後美不勝收。穿上它後，步入舞池翩翩起舞時，給人的感覺不像是去做PPT演示時的模樣。（火爆脾氣者淡定。）
Another tip: try to find something you wouldn’t wear to work on a wet Wednesday in March. If you typically wear a single-breasted jacket, go double. Are all your trousers flat-fronted? Then try a single pleat. Zegna’s are cut looser and flappier than you might be used to, and this is a good thing.
另一條小建議：找一身三月份星期三雨天上班時不可能穿的行頭。平時穿單排扣短上衣上班者，不妨換身雙排扣短上衣。所有褲子都是無褶皺的平額褲(flat-fronted trousers)的該怎麼辦？不妨穿件帶褶褲。傑尼亞的款式比一般行頭更顯休閒與飄逸，是不錯的裝束。
Wear a blue shirt instead of white, and not in a loud executive check. Think about your comfort: it gets hot at parties, so maybe a super lightweight cotton from Emma Willis or Turnbull & Asser. Buy a knitted silk tie; Drake’s are my favourite. And ditch the lace-ups in favour of a softer loafer, from Tod’s or Berluti.
襯衣要選藍色、而非白色款，而且不能是顏色過分豔麗的高檔格子料。要考慮舒適度：聚會場合容易熱，因此諸位可以考慮穿一件艾瑪威利斯(Emma Willis)或是滕博阿瑟(Turnbull & Asser)的超輕款棉襯衫。再添置一條針織真絲領帶，Drake’s是本人最喜歡的領帶。切勿穿繫帶皮鞋，應該選Tod’s或伯魯提(Berluti)輕便款樂福鞋。
For formal client lunches, you will still want to wear a suit. Prada will make you look slick but not ceremonial. Savile Row tailor Kilgour does sharp, off-the-peg suits with modern details — thin lapels, flapless pockets. Something more conservative? A suit from Thom Sweeney’s ready-to-wear collection at Mr Porter. Alternatively, corduroy has been reanimated. My own is a dark navy needlecord from Hackett, and there’s a bottle-green Burberry number that I covet.
對於與正式客戶共進午餐，諸位仍得穿西服赴會。普拉達(Prada)的西服會讓你顯得帥氣而又不那麼循規蹈矩。薩維爾(Savile Row)裁縫行切爾高(Kilgour)有現成的時髦西服（窄翻領與無蓋口袋等細微處體現了現代時尚風格）。諸位若想穿得傳統些又該怎麼辦？在線零售店Mr Porter上湯姆斯威尼(Thom Sweeney)的現成西服是個不錯的選擇。要不然，選擇再度流行的燈心絨面料西裝。本人穿的就是Hackett的深藍色細條燈心絨面料西裝，此外我還一直覬覦博柏利(Burberry)的一款深綠色西服。
Don’t mess with black tie. Tom Ford is the reigning ruler of luxurious men’s eveningwear, and you might also consider Gieves & Hawkes and Richard James (below right), both of whom cut a mean dinner jacket. And get it tailored, so you don’t look like a waiter.
千萬不能與黑色領帶混搭。湯姆輠祹(Tom Ford)是高檔男式晚裝當仁不讓的“王者”，諸位還可選擇吉凡克斯(Gieves & Hawkes)與理查德礠姆斯(Richard James)品牌的晚裝，兩者都推出了高檔無尾禮服。禮服必須得合身，否則活脫一副服務員的模樣。
Then there’s the day itself, the culmination of all that carousing. It’s not the 1950s, you’re not Bing Crosby, and no one expects you to wear a dickie bow. True, it’s pleasant to open your presents in your jimjams (Derek Rose, please) but later on you’ll want to put on something knitted. The winner of the Tasteful Christmas Jumper award this year is Gucci’s sumptuous Fair Isle sweater. My own December 25 standby is a Ralph Lauren Polo cashmere cable-knit. If yours is a traditional family Christmas, you can’t go wrong with Ralph.
最後當然是聖誕當天，這是所有狂歡作樂活動的高潮時刻。如今早已今非昔比，諸位也不再是上世紀50年代的平克勞斯貝(Bing Crosby)，沒人指望你會繫條低劣的蝴蝶結領結過聖誕。沒錯，在酒酣耳熱時打開禮物感覺最爲愜意（請送德里克圠斯(Derek Rose)的睡衣爲佳），但沒過多久，諸位可能想穿毛衣了。今年的最有品味聖誕毛衣獎(Tasteful Christmas Jumper)得主是古馳(Gucci)的費爾島雜色圖紋高檔毛衣(Fair Isle sweater)。我今年準備的聖誕毛衣是拉爾夫勞倫(Ralph Lauren)的Polo款鉸花針織羊絨衫。諸位過的是傳統家庭的聖誕節，那麼穿拉爾夫勞倫的毛衣再合適不過了。
Naturally, exceptions to all these rules are made for a certain apple-cheeked old fellow with a snow-white beard and a sleigh. And no man, no matter how particular in his dress, should attempt to make it through to Boxing Day without at least once settling a flimsy paper party hat on his head. It is Christmas, after all.
當然，坐着雪橇、滿臉雪白鬍須的紅臉蛋聖誕老人完全不必遵守上述規矩。所有人，不管穿得多麼特別，在聖誕節後上班首天(Boxing Day)，至少都該戴一頂薄紙聖誕帽子。畢竟這是最爲隆重的聖誕節。
