It’s also there to hold a flower’s stem, but we’ll discuss that in more depth on our page on boutonnières. This loop’s purpose is to hold the stem of a long-stem lapel pin in place so that you don’t have to poke it through the lapel itself. Some lapels will have a small loop of fabric on their underside just beneath the buttonhole.As an exception to rule number two, place your pin just inside the buttonhole if you’re already wearing a lapel flower in your buttonhole (see picture above for example).However, you can easily pierce the hole if the pin is sharp. This is much easier if that hole is functional, and any tailor can make this happen for you in a matter of seconds. The pin is the reason for the lapel’s buttonhole.Therefore, here are some guidelines on where to place a lapel pin: You’d be amazed at how often lapel pins get put in the wrong place! However, it’s usually because nobody explicitly told the wearer where and how to wear the lapel pin. Instead, it’s best considered as a gentlemanly gesture of common courtesy. However, taking care of the statements that you openly wear on your chest isn’t being overly politically correct or infringing on your rights of free speech. Therefore, they may be best avoided with a suit, especially if you want to appear as professional as possible. Similarly, some lapel pins sporting icons of popular culture are quite large and brash. Such a gesture shouldn’t be just extended towards your clients and superiors but also your colleagues and anyone nearby. In some environments, publicly expressing political or religious beliefs may be regarded as a faux pas. If you decide to wear a lapel pin in a professional or formal setting, it’s important to remain respectful and tasteful. Fortunately, the wearer was a historian at the time so it was more of a talking piece than a cause of controversy. However, it may have easily been interpreted as a political statement and even have caused offence. Indeed, the pin was chosen not due to political beliefs but because it matched the bow tie and the coat’s hardware, which incidentally consists of French First World War military brass buttons. The photo above features a Soviet Russian badge depicting Vladimir Lenin. For instance, if your lapel pin is to indicate an award or qualification that you may want to highlight during your interview, you may be forgiven for such brashness. That being said, you can wear a lapel pin to a job interview if it’s relevant.

In both of these cases, your goal is to minimize any way you could be perceived as ostentatious. The only times we suggest not wearing a lapel pin is when you’re at either a funeral or a job interview.

You can wear a lapel pin most times you’d wear a suit or something less formal, such as a sport coat. However, if you need some help coordinating colours, our guide to colour is a great resource to dig through. Similarly, try to coordinate a somewhat colourful pin with other accessories like a pocket square, tie, shirt, socks, or jacket. Lapel pins are easy to wear and you just have to keep in mind a few aesthetic guidelines.įirstly, if it’s made of a precious metal such as silver or gold, make sure it matches the other hardware you wear like cufflinks and belts. In short, a lapel pin is an opportunity to express your personality in a stylish yet understated and tasteful way. Therefore, lapel pins may be used to declare our fandom for a particular popular culture. Meanwhile, we’ve become much more open and quite proud of our geeky tendencies. They may also indicate an area of interest for the wearer for example, a tennis aficionado may wear a lapel pin showing tennis rackets, or a musician may wear one depicting musical notation. Lapel pins serve a few different purposes, mostly to show membership in elite social organizations, professional achievement, or patriotism, particularly in the case of American politicians. For instance, the Légion d’honneur in France is often presented as a discrete red rosette that’s worn on the lapel. They are a way to show membership in social clubs, professional organizations, or to simply add visual interest to a tailored ensemble.įurthermore, many accolades offer lapel pin versions that you can wear when a medal is a little too much. Lapel pins have seen a resurgence in popularity in the last 15 years or so. Historically, men have worn boutonnieres in their lapels, and lapel pins are a more modern substitute for them. A lapel pin is a decorative trinket of some kind that men wear on the lapel of a suit jacket, sport coat, or blazer.

Mens lapel pins