Luckily, dad style has evolved from wacky to practical – here’s how to make it work.

___

Is dad style here to stick around or just another fad?

@justknasel via Instagram

___

A direct question with, I’m afraid, a somewhat indirect answer: yes and no. Like all the greats, our paterfamilias, in his squeaky-clean trainers, knows how to create the rules and then break them. An Olive Garden Mr Muhammad Ali, if you will. The concept of “dad style” evolved around the time of “normcore”, and the two share similarities: the reliance upon hitherto unremarkable wardrobe staples, the adherence to an “anti-fashion” approach to dressing that, through catwalk osmosis, suddenly becomes cool. Perhaps, in trying to define what dad style is, it’s easiest to look at the men that best exemplify it.

There’s Mr Barack Obama (pictured above) in a functional jacket and his best chinos. Then there’s Mr Jerry Seinfeld in his 1990s heyday, wearing a sensible button-down shirt, cowboy belt and Nike sneakers. There’s the late Mr Steve Jobs in stonewashed denim jeans, ubiquitous black rollneck and scuffed Nike sneakers (we’re spotting a theme here), or even Mr George Clooney in straight-but-somehow-baggy jeans and hotel merchandise polo shirt.

It’s unassuming and everyday; the tropes are defined by a kind of shapelessness and neat conformity that’s as seamless at the hardware store as it is manning a BBQ. The jeans, an item associated with youthful rebellion, are anything but – think light washes and loose (but not baggy) cuts. The shirts are button down and neither oversized nor fitting. The T-shirt is tucked in (he’s not a sloppy joe, this guy) and the sneakers are the kind you’d usually use solely for pounding the asphalt, except they’re worn in everyday circumstances.

So, is it sticking around? It is, but in new iterations. Dad style has evolved. Take those trainers for example; the fervour for the ultimate fashion dad kicks, the Balenciaga Triple S, shows no sign of abating, but different interpretations are a little less obvious – Prada has created some sporty numbers with retro touches that are sleek yet subtly suburban.

Then there’s his prized possession: jeans. Yes, stonewashed, pale and distressed styles are in abundance at SAINT LAURENT and Acne Studios, but other variations take the neatness and form of dad jeans – the in-between shape that’s neither slim-leg nor wide – and apply it to darker washes, such as those from Brunello Cucinelli.

The tech-fabric sports jacket is a dad-style staple, but as we steer into autumn, it’s worth adopting one in a more luxuriant fabric – keep the shape but look for options in wool or with plush padding. Also – and I’m about to sound like my father here – they are unerringly practical for transient autumn weather (I’ll start the Volvo).

Finally, the dress-up dad shirt (patterned, garish, often tucked into his waistband) has evolved into something glorious – see ultimate cool dad Mr Jeff Goldblum in high-octane, wildly printed Prada. Novelty and wacky, yes, but this is dad woke, not dad joke.