Hanky or no?

[hizarlow]

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So I have my new suit for my interviews, and it came with a tie, cufflinks and matching hanky. This is not gaudy, the suit is grey the shirt is blue and the tie, links, and hanky are thin grey, blue, and green stripes.

Here is my quesiton. Should I wear the cuff links and hanky? My wife says no, that it would be too much, and my coworkers/doctors are split relatively down the middle. What do you think?

 

[Barnaby]

I would advise that you do whatever makes you feel best.

Cuff links and a pocket handkerchief may be a bit much... but if that is your personal style then go for it. Being overdressed is rarely as big a problem as being uncomfortable.

If you're uncomfortable being dressed up in the first place then you're going to worry that you're overdressed... don't wear them. If you love being dressed to the nines then maybe it'll give you a confidence boost to outshine other interviewees with your style... by all means wear them. If you don't actually care either way then flip a coin because I honestly don't think it'll make a difference to your interviewers either way... as long as you don't go for spats, a cane and a fedora!

 

[No Imagination]

I've only wore cuff links with French cuff shirts. It its a French cuff shirt, you have to wear the cuff links. If its not a French cuff, then i'm not sure what the cuff links are for.

Am a missing something?

 

[twelvetigers]

Yeah, french cuff shirts don't have any sort of button - you have to use the cufflinks or else it (the sleeve) will flop around. If that's the case and you have to wear them, you can still skip out on the hanky.

 

[Bcrunner1313]

I would go with a no for the "hanky." I think it's a little much, especially when most others are wearing conservative/professional attire. When I read what you wrote and saw where you are from, I immediately thought of the King of the Hill character:

Gilbert Dauterive (David Herman) is Bill's cousin (likely based on Truman Capote) showing some signs of literary insight and a knowledge of philosophy. He is Bill's only living blood-relative after his cousin and aunt pass very suddenly in the night, though he seems to care very little for Bill and has a rather sadistic sense of humor. He runs a poetry magazine to continue the Dauterive family name, selling his family's estate to pay for the costs of running it.

If you've ever seen the show, he's from Louisiana and wears pretty crazy outfits.

 

[ckd816]

I would vote yes on the pocket square and no on cuff links. I used to work in a formalwear store for over 2 years and we always gave cuff links with tuxedos opposed to suits... Also if there is a place for a pocket square on your suit it might be weird to leave it out. On the topic of watches, I was always told to tell people to skip a watch with a suit or tuxedo... I guess just because of the way the formal shirt is supposed to lay on your wrist. In any case, I agree that you should wear what you are most comfortable and confident in, but I just thought I'd offer up some of my lame formalwear knowledge!

 

[BodhiBird]

I'm a big fan of dressing up. If my suit had come with a hanky I would have worn it. I would have bought a hanky to match my tie, but I was/am tight for money. But, I'm the type that likes to be the best dressed in the room. Like others have posted, do what you are comfortable with. If you are best dressed there and will feel uncomfortable because of it, then don't wear the hanky. Same goes for the cuff lnks. Good luck - vet medicine needs more of us males 👍

 

[Bcrunner1313]

I would vote yes on the pocket square and no on cuff links. I used to work in a formalwear store for over 2 years and we always gave cuff links with tuxedos opposed to suits... Also if there is a place for a pocket square on your suit it might be weird to leave it out. On the topic of watches, I was always told to tell people to skip a watch with a suit or tuxedo... I guess just because of the way the formal shirt is supposed to lay on your wrist. In any case, I agree that you should wear what you are most comfortable and confident in, but I just thought I'd offer up some of my lame formalwear knowledge!

No watches? That sucks...

 

[Fairyblastt]

I think I'm forever doomed to be the least fashionable present from looking over these 'what should I wear threads'.

My vote is to wear it if you like it, and skip it if it'll just give you one more thing to worry about. As I've been told a million times over the last few weeks/months, the only person the details matter to is you, and that's only if you make them important.

When in doubt, I always go for, 'what would Murphy do?' Because I don't need to create anymore situations where something can go wrong... And give myself one more thing to obsess about after the fact.

Let's face it, it's an interview for vet school. The one thing that everybody is definitely going to be wearing is ketchup on the middle of their shirt. 🙄

 

[Ben and Me]

It's probably not a good idea to wear a watch that day anyway--you might be tempted to check during the interview (it may be a nervous habit) which would (obviously!) not be good! I've always heard you're not supposed to wear a watch to a cocktail party, etc, as your attention is supposed to be totally focused on the person to whom you are talking.

 

[Bcrunner1313]

This thread made me curious about the watch deal, so I googled "can you wear a watch with a suit?" One of the first links was this:

http://men.style.com/gq/fashion/styleguy/accessories/709

It says what type of watch, so I'm guessing wearing one is not a no,no. I wore a Movado Moderno, which is pretty small and discrete like the answer in the link states. I thought about what you said, Ben and Me, about looking at the watch/playing with it during the interview. I know I glanced at it once at the end, but other than that, it posed no problems.