Style guide

Men's Fall Style Guide

Four fall outfits, each built on one frame and one piece of metal. Pick the day you're dressing for.

Each outfit starts with a layer you probably own already. The frame has to hold its own against that layer, and the metal has to sit with both. After the outfits you'll find how to wear sunglasses in low fall sun and how to pick gold or silver.

  • 1-year warranty
  • 14-day returns
  • Free shipping over $200
Man in a tan overshirt jacket and white tee wearing Rose Quartz Titan sunglasses, low warm light

Four fall outfits for men

Man with braids in a pale blue work jacket wearing the Brinx shield sunglasses in Gunship Grey

Wear it with A pale blue work jacket with the snaps done up, over dark trousers.

The four outfits, start to finish

Outfit 01

Commute: Gunship Grey Brinx + silver

You wear the commute outfit more than any other, so it's worth getting right. Here it's a pale blue work jacket with the snaps done up, over dark trousers. The palette's cool, so the frame and the metal stay cool with it. Gunship Grey Brinx is a shield frame with a single lens running straight across the face, and it looks sharp against washed blue.

The Silver Helix Chain at 4mm sits at the collar and shows when you turn your head. The sun on the way in is low and right in your eyes, which is reason enough to wear a tint in October. On the way home, hook the frames on the jacket placket.

Outfit 02

Weekend: Clear Authentic II + gold

Weekends run on black denim: a trucker jacket left open over a white ribbed tank, and black jeans with some wear in them. That's a lot of black, so the frame should lighten it. Clear Authentic II is a rimless rectangle with clear lenses and gold-plated metalwork, so it brightens your face instead of adding another dark shape.

The frame's metalwork is gold, so the metal goes gold too. The Gold Glacier Bracelet is gold links set with green stones, and it shows at the jacket cuff every time you reach for something. Keep the jacket open and let the tank do the rest.

Outfit 03

Dinner: Rose Quartz Titan + gold

Dinner is the one outfit here where the metal leads. Wear a white tee under a tan overshirt jacket and keep the rest in browns and creams. Rose Quartz Titan has the same rectangular shape as Black Titan, our best seller, in rose quartz acetate with pink-beige lenses and rose gold accents. The pattern's different on every pair. Wear it until the light's gone, then fold it into the overshirt pocket.

The Gold Melange Necklace is a row of gold-set stones in reds, ambers and creams, and it picks up the rose in the frame and whatever light the room has. Wear it over the tee. Keep the watch simple or leave it at home, because one gold piece at the neck does the job.

Outfit 04

Cold snap: Black Tint Silver Authentic II + silver

Most men put their sunglasses away on the first cold morning of the year, which is a mistake. The sky's often at its clearest then, and the sun sits low and bright. Start with a suede jacket over a cream knit, dark denim and boots. Black Tint Silver Authentic II is a rimless rectangle with black lenses and silver metalwork.

The frame's details are silver, so the chain matches them. The Silver Cuban Link Chain at 4mm goes over the knit and under the collar, where it shows whenever the jacket's open. Against cream and suede, silver looks clean and a little cool, which suits a cold morning.

How to style sunglasses in fall

  • Tint goes warm when the coat goes dark

    Navy, charcoal and black coats swallow a black lens. A brown or amber tint brings some warmth back to your face against a dark collar. Save the black tint for lighter layers, or for wearing all black on purpose.

  • Let the coat decide how much frame

    The heavier the coat, the more frame it can carry. Thick acetate like Rose Quartz Titan holds up against a wool overcoat. Over a knit or an open chore coat, a rimless frame like Authentic II is plenty.

  • Low sun means glare at eye level

    In fall the sun stays low for more of the day, which puts it right at eye level on the way to work. That makes a tinted lens as useful in October as it was in July. Move a pair from the summer drawer to your coat pocket.

    Shop sunglasses

  • When the light goes, the frame goes on the collar

    Hook them on a crew neck, a coat placket or a jacket's top button so the outfit still looks finished after dark. Don't push them up into your hair, because that stretches the frame.

Gold or silver with your frames

Gold Silver
Lens Brown, amber or green Black, grey or gradient
Coat Camel, olive, suede, brown leather Charcoal, navy, black
Frame finish Warm, like Rose Quartz Titan Grey or black, like Gunship Grey Brinx
Frame hardwareMatch your jewelry to the frame's hardware first, then the acetate. Gold hardware Silver hardware
Start withBoth are 4mm and $80, so let your coats decide. Gold Cuban Link Chain, 4mm, $80 Silver Helix Chain, 4mm, $80
Step up toThe heavier piece for nights out, once the chain is in rotation. Gold Melange Necklace, $245 Silver Melange White Stone Necklace, $245

Fall style questions

Can you wear sunglasses in fall?

Yes. The sun sits lower in fall, so glare comes in at eye level for more of the day, especially on the morning and evening commute. A tinted lens deals with that, and the frame finishes a layered outfit the same way a scarf or a watch does. Once the light's gone, hook them on your collar.

What color sunglasses go with fall outfits?

Brown and amber tints go with the warm side of a fall wardrobe, so think camel, olive, suede and brown leather. Black and granite tints go with charcoal, navy and black. Clear frames work on overcast days and with almost anything. If you're buying one pair for the season, brown is the safest call.

Should a chain match my frames?

Match the metal to the frame's hardware if it has any, and to the lens tint if it doesn't. Gold goes with brown and amber, silver with black and grey. Close is fine. The two should look like the same person picked them.

Gold or silver for fall?

Gold, for most fall wardrobes. Fall colors run warm, and gold sits better against camel, brown and olive. If you live in grey, navy and black, go silver. Still undecided? A 4mm chain in each metal is $80, so you can own both.

Shop men's jewelry

Men's fall accessories that show over a coat

A coat covers most of what you wear in fall. The collar and the cuffs still show, so that's where to spend. Four pieces cover the season.

  • Frame. One tinted pair, brown or black depending on your coats, plus one clear frame for overcast days. If you work at a screen, add a clear-lens pair from the blue light collection.
  • Chain. A 4mm chain that sits at the collar of a tee or a crew neck. Gold Cuban Link or Silver Helix, $80 each. Buy this first, because you'll wear it every day.
  • Bracelet. One piece for the shirt cuff, like the Gold Lane Bracelet. It shows every time you reach for something.
  • Necklace. One heavier piece for nights out, like the Gold Melange Necklace or the Gold Shard Necklace. There's more in men's jewelry.

Warm metals sit best next to warm lenses and warm fabrics, and cool metals next to cool ones. Follow that and you won't get it wrong. The outfits people remember tend to break it in one place, like a gold chain against an all-black coat or a brown tint over a grey knit. One break looks deliberate. Two looks like a mistake.

Keep the neck and both wrists in one metal. If you're stuck, match the metal to your frame's hardware first and your coats second. That's how the four outfits on this page split, two gold and two silver.