A few Sundays ago, one of my best friends and I had a chance to catch up over breakfast at Venkmans Restaurant in Old Fourth Ward, Atlanta. We covered the usual stuff – relationships, business, travel, our dogs, and life. As he talked I noticed the additional adornment he was swaggin'… a few rings. He was giving off low-key Lenny Kravtiz vibes. After telling me the story behind each one he asked how he should be wearing them– wondering if a few of the rings were too feminine or not. I gave him a few tips, and he gifted me a ring with Turkish origins (thanks Julian).
More than anything I appreciated his thoughtfulness in personalizing his style. It's been evolving over these past few years and I could see that jewelry was going to be apart of it. So I decided to create him a personalized Ring Style Guide. Because, hey– what are friends for!
I'm going to keep the generosity flowing and share his custom guide with all you Urban Gents out there.
In general, "less is more" is the rule of thumb for most things in life, especially if those "less" items are of high quality. Great fit, good materials, and good colors that match one's skin tone and look will always be the main ingredients to good style. For jewelry it's the same different.
- Stacking – if you're going to wear rings with thin bands– stack them. Meaning wear 2-3 rings on one finger. This gives the rings a more masculine look. Wider band rings look more masculine on men, so stacking gives a thin band ring the allusion of looking wider/thicker.
- Pinky – another solution for thin-band rings is to wear it on your pinky. Pinky rings are unfortunately synonymous with secret societies and pimping. Though unfortunate (regarding pimping), it also makes a ring on a man's pinky finger the norm. So you can always give this a try.
- Thumb – this is probably a more masculine finger to wear a single ring on than the pinky. The pinky has lost some of its luster due to secret society conspiracy theories and rejection of patriarchy. So the thumb is a great solution for a thin-band ring.
- One – less is more. Wearing just one ring, that matches with your clothing that day, is another great alternative.
Zayn Malik wearing three rings
At the end of the day, you have to do what the mood calls you to do. If you're hitting up a music festival, going to a fashion event, or just feel like switching it up– multiple rings will do just fine and could be fun to experiment with. The general rule for style (and life in general) is to keep it simple– so when in doubt, just wear one ring.
For most of you, your only and most important ring will probably the ring you'll receive from your woman once married/partnered. Making it the classic and stylish of all.
Urban Gentleman Taariq Tut
Armani Exchange aka A|X— the brand first came onto my radar as a young teenager in the early 2000s when I walked the marbled hallways of Phipps Plaza (a luxury mall in Atlanta) one day. With it's chandeliers, dogs in strollers, mahogany walls, and indoor exotic cars (Bentleys, Astons, and Lotus's) I figured any store in this mall had to be great in its own way. But overtime I came to view A|X as just a line of logo t-shirts…. so I didn't really care for it and stopped noticing their clothes.
When Mainline Menswear presented their new Armani Exchange collection to us last month, I was pleasantly surprised. While A|X certainly still has its fair share of logoed tees, they also have some great polos, shorts, and sweaters (aka jumpers). The shorts are especially nice— the length is perfect and I sorta view them as luxury loungewear. Instead of the usual Nike or Champion branded shorts you might find yourself sporting for that Saturday pick up game of basketball, you could easily wear these. They're comfortable and have a luxurious enough sheen to be dressed up if needed. Just add a polo, some nice sneakers, and you'd be ready to go to brunch. Don't forget to refresh the shorts though… gotta stay fresh (the Febreeze unstoppable collection is the truth btw).
Shop the Armani Exchange collection here.
Easily go from a light workout at the gym to lunch with your girlfriend in these.
All Navy: Knitted Crew Neck Jumper; Short Sleeved Pique Polo T Shirt; Track Shorts
Are you finally considering getting a dog? A forever ride or die, non judgmental, canine bestie. Check out our article that outlines how to pick the perfect dog. We also include the TOP 5 small dogs for guys.
