Gift ideas to smarten up your man on Valentine’s Day

You will never believe it, but 40% of my customers are females trying to spruce up the man in their life. I thought I would create a short list of gift ideas you could try for your man to jazz him up a little.

Tatty Shirts - the most common query I get asked is “My partner’s shirts are looking really tatty and I want to get him some new ones”. A man will wear a shirt his partner buys him 9 times out of 10 so you are onto a winner here.

Before you go shopping, go into his wardrobe, look at his current shirts and try to find out his collar size (inches or cm). Also try to find out which type of fit he prefers: Slim, Fitted etc. If you have the brand of a favourite shirt, that will also help. If you can, pinch it for the day and take it with you when you go shopping.

Now look for the shirts which are currently wearing on the collar or the cuffs. These are the ones needing to be replaced. Go wild… you have all the ammunition you need! Go to a few stores and take this info with you and any shop assistant will help you out.

To make the shirt gift a little romantic, add a little decoration to it. Maybe wrap it up nicely with a box of delicious chocolates or even some sexy underwear? You then have a personalized present that is practical in that he can use for work or going out, but which also has a personal touch.

Ties / Cufflinks – either of these is a great gift as they are a very personal choice and a nice touch. If you see some shirts in his wardrobe for which he doesn’t have ties or cufflinks, take them to a store and find a matching set. If you want to, you could even buy a Shirt/Tie/Cufflink set, so then you have the whole outfit all set out for him. To add a little more personal touch to the gift, you could add a picture of the two of you and wrap it altogether in a fancy gift box.

Those bits and bobs – when he comes home what does he do? Watch off, cufflinks off, tie off. Does it all get chucked in a corner somewhere or in a cupboard? Then when he needs them next he can never find them and who does he ask? You! A cufflink box or accessory box is a great storage idea. A tie rack is useful for when he comes home he can hang his tie up neatly and the creases will fall right out.

What to give someone you’ve been with for years – now there’s no reason to be slack just because you have been together for a while. On the contrary, you’ve a huge advantage as you know the person so well. Book something you can both do together – dinner, an outing, a show. Blokes may pretend they aren’t that bothered, but they like to be surprised as much as ladies do. Have a think and use the internet to do your research – there are loads of ideas out there.

What do give someone you’ve only been dating a very short while – even if you have only been with that person for a short while, you can still get them something. Just something small and not too expensive in case it makes them awkward…and you don’t want to scare them off. A book about something they are interested in, or a tie or cufflinks to match to something they already have would work…anything that looks like you have made an effort for them.

Q for you:

1. Do you want to match a shirt or tie but are not sure if the match works. Send me a picture on facebook.com/zantinimenswear and I will help you out



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How to get lucky this Valentine’s Day

I wish I had the ideal answer to that question.  But what I do know is how you can increase your chances by looking good and getting organised.
Whether it’s a new love or an old love, or you just want to spoil the woman you love, I have 3 great tips to look good for that Valentine’s Day date.
Tip 1 – Decide on your venue well in advance.  Get on a few websites or even put a question out on Face Book and see if anyone recommends somewhere.  You want to impress her so do some research first.  Once you have your venue this will tell you what you should wear and more importantly, it will give your partner an idea of what to wear.  This is the first question she will ask, so make sure you are prepared.  If you make some effort to find out in advance what the dress code is, she will be very impressed. The extra effort taken will be noticed.
Tip 2 – Now to your outfit.  Smart casual is normally the attire for an evening out on Valentine’s Day.  If you do wear suits everyday for work, and want to wear a suit for your date, then try to pick a suit colour which is different from your work clothes.  Lighter shades of grey or blue look nice with a soft-coloured shirt.  If you do wear a suit, make sure your shirt isn’t too busy.  Let the suit do the talking.  If you are going to place where you want to wear jeans, you can smarten them up with a nice loud shirt and a suit jacket – a casual look which still looks very sharp.  It is better to be a little over dressed than be under dressed.
Tip 3 – Dot those I’s and cross those T’s!  On your date you want your lady to see that you have gone that extra mile.  Make sure you shave just before you go out or meet up.  The un-shaven look only looks good if you are in Hollywood.  Minimal cologne is the go…nothing too strong as you don’t want her drowned by the smell.  No light or white socks.  This may sound a bit obvious but you would be amazed at how many guys still wear these.  Make sure you wear black socks (without holes).  And shine those shoes!  If you have gone to all that effort with your clothes, please make sure your shoes are buffed and polished too.  Last but not least, skip the white jocks…absolutely no woman like them!
Q for you
1. Let me know where you are going for Valentine’s Day and I will help you out with an outfit
2. Got a few outfits but not sure how to co-ordinate them to impress her?  Send me some pictures on facebook.com/zantinimenswear.  I’d be happy to help you out


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