Our style expert answers your most pressing sartorial questions.

It is easy to let sartorial standards slip in warmer weather when practicalities can take precedence over formalities. Is it reasonable to expect people to wear suits and ties in the heat? Are ties even necessary anymore? This is a question apparently so important, it is being debated at length at government level in the UK right now. Some MPs are getting quite hot under the collar about it. As, it would seem, are you – our dear readers. So we’ve weighed in with our opinion, below.

See you and three more of your style-based queries next Friday. Feel free to email them to me directly at dan.rookwood@mrporter.com

I've got a new navy blue suit for a summer wedding. How do I elevate it/add a bit of summer flair to stand out an appropriate amount?

jopa724, via Instagram

A wedding is hopefully a joyous occasion (unless you’re the jilted/jealous ex) and so it’s a good look to reflect this in your choice of attire. If you’ve chosen to wear a standard navy suit, then use accessories to liven it up and bring in some colour and/or pattern.

It is possible to wear a patterned shirt with a patterned tie but it’s safer to keep to one or the other plain. So if you decide on this paisley-motif shirt, opt for a solid dark blue tie. If you want to wear a cheerful tie – this tattoo-print tie from Valentino teeters on the right side of novelty – then go for a plain white or perhaps a sky blue dress shirt.

Your accessories can colour co-ordinate (eg, a burgundy polka dot tie worn with burgundy socks) but they must never be too matchy-matchy. So you wouldn’t wear this same tie with a near-matching lapel pin, for example. As a first port of call, Lanvin and Paul Smith are particularly good for fun accessories such as pocket squares or quirky cufflinks while this assortment from London Sock Co. offers plenty of options for an extra pop of colour at the ankle.

But resist the temptation to wear too many accessories all at once. Two or three are OK; any more than that and the effect is too fussy, too much. As Ms Coco Chanel famously advised: “Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take one thing off.” So keep in mind this wedding vow. “Do you solemnly swear not to overbomb your outfit?” The correct response is: “I do.”

Shirts tucked in or out of chinos?

Cachepagne, via Instagram

It pays to get this right or else you run the risk of either looking like an uptight nerd or a bit of a slob. There are four very quick things to consider.

Firstly, the hem: If the shirt’s hem is a flat, even length all the way around, it lends itself to being left untucked. But if it has “tails” – ie, it’s longer in the front and the back – then it is designed to be tucked in.

Secondly, the style: Hawaiian or camp-collar shirts would normally be worn untucked. (Some people, eg, Mr Leon Bridges, might tuck them in a 1950s-throwback way, which can work.) Ditto polo shirts and most T-shirts. Button-down shirts can go either way. Dress shirts should usually be tucked, certainly if you are wearing a suit and/or tie.

Thirdly, the material: Coarser or thicker materials such as denim and flannel often look better untucked.

Lastly, the formality of the occasion: If you’re going out to dinner, say, or to a business meeting – it’s much safer to tuck.

Whenever tucking, make sure you do so in such a way as to leave yourself with a smooth, flat front, the placket of the shirt lined up with the fly of your trousers. If your shirt is nicely fitted you shouldn’t have too much billowing fabric to deal with, but you could adopt a “military tuck”, which involves gathering any excess material into a neat pleat at each hip.

Erm, what exactly constitutes “business-like attire”?

**KP, via email **

Ah yes, I assume this question refers to the particularly knotty issue that is currently being debated at Westminster. Not Brexit, but whether or not male members of parliament should have to wear a tie in the House of Commons.

One’s interpretation of “business-like attire” will of course vary depending on what business is being conducted. Silicon Valley is not the same as Wall Street, for example. In the case of the House of Commons, it simply means you can now wear an open-neck shirt with your suit. But even some major financial corporations like Deloitte, PwC and JPMorgan Chase have recently relaxed their dress codes to say that suits and ties are no longer required.

One could argue this general movement towards casual clothing should be applauded as it is less prescriptive. On the other hand, look what a sartorial abomination Casual Friday turned out to be – a sea of corporate drones dressed unimaginatively in identikit chinos and button-downs.

People say that a tie serves no purpose and will be outmoded in a few years just as hats – once atop every man’s head – are worn by very few these days. You might expect someone who works at MR PORTER to disagree with that, and I do. At university, I used to wear a collar and tie for exams because I felt it put me in a more serious frame of mind and even today when I have a deadline to hit, I find wearing a tie helps sharpen my focus as well as my look.

Although I don’t wear suits and ties nearly as often today as I did a few years ago, I still believe they have a place and will continue to do so. Wearing a nice tie is a sign of respect for yourself and for those around you. And if wearing a tie is increasingly the exception rather than the norm, then those that continue to wear them will be all the more exceptional. As with slipping standards across the board, when others go low, why not go high?

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