Smart casual is, above all else, confusing. We’ll come out and say that right away. It combines two words that are essentially opposites and expects you to make sense of the gulf between them. Should you dress on the ‘smarter’ side or place more emphasis on ‘casual’? Who knows, but when smart joggers and casual tailoring fall into the same bracket, one thing you can be certain of is a huge number of interpretations.
It doesn’t have to be complicated, though. In one sense, smart casual is a stylistic blank cheque and you can cash it in however you like. You can also take it quite literally and combine the best of both worlds: pair a smart piece of clothing with something more casual, then you are effectively dressing smart casual. Think (the right kind of) blazer with jeans, or a T-shirt tucked into tailored trousers.
You’ll often find the smart casual dress code being used for events that are relatively laid back yet require some level of smartness. Think relaxed wedding receptions, graduations or fancy restaurants where guests are expected to display some level of decorum. But to successfully wear smart casual it’s not as simple as throwing a blazer on top of your jeans – you have to wear the right pieces that complement each other and don’t look too jarring.
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