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In honor of Jimmy Carter’s 100th birthday, let’s take a look at why he’s one of our under-appreciated style icons.
Carter’s tailored outfits during his time as President were heavily shaped by the trends of the era. He often wore wide lapels, long collar points, and fashionable ties (wide cut with wild prints).
But photos of him from that era largely aged well because he never ventured into the extremes. His outfits also kept good proportions, such as having the width of the tie echo the width of the lapel, and the shirt collar points being long enough to tuck under the jacket (mostly).
The tailoring is well done. Carter’s clothes hung well with rarely any puckering or pulling. Today, you often see trousers ripple down the back of the wearer’s leg because they have an overly long back rise. Very little of that here.
Importantly, they allowed for free and comfortable movement. Carter’s jacket hugged his neck even when he raised his arms. And his trousers were cut full enough so that he could hop a fence. Hard to do this today in overly slim pants.
One might assume Carter wore bespoke, but it’s likely his clothes were off the rack (albeit adjusted through alterations). We can assume this because his lapels are often finished with what looks to be a machine stitch, which is common in American ready-to-wear.
Despite these clothes likely being ready-to-wear, they have a nice shape. We see here that his jacket has a round chest, which gives it some three-dimensionality and volume. This is the result of quality tailoring and pressing, as well as the fact he wore heavy fabrics.
You can see the difference here. Politicians today don’t have access to the same ironwork because the tailoring industry has withered. Trump specifically prefers more luxurious, lightweight wools. As a result, his suits are often more wrinkled. (Compare the chests here)
Carter also knew how to put together a black tie rig. He wore bow ties made from the same material as his jacket’s facings, as well as correctly tailored formal shirts (often teamed with dress studs). His shirt never peeked out from beneath the coat’s buttoning point.
You don’t see this as much today among public figures. Instead, people wear long black ties, exposed waistbands, and somber black suits indistinguishable from what you’d see at a funeral. Much of tailoring has become flattened in this regard,one style for every “formal” event.
Compare those outfits to Carter’s, where everything is elegant. Since black tie is typically worn for evening affairs such as parties, ceremonies, and shows, the outfit should look elegant and convivial. It should be distinct from business suits and funeral attire.
The people who attended Carter’s inauguration also looked pretty great in black tie. This was during a time when people had greater appreciation for the nuance that went into a tailored outfit, so they knew how to express different emotions through clothes.
Carter also knew how to dress down tailoring, such as when he wore navy blazers. The details here,textured fabric, metal buttons, edge stitching, and patched pockets (one being flapped patch),make the jacket more causal than a navy suit jacket (so it’s easier to wear on its own).
He also knew that a soft cardigan can be worn in lieu of a tailored jacket. This can be a good outfit for the holidays if you’re hosting a party at home: cardigan, five pocket cords, and button-up shirt. Looks casual but put together at the same time.
Works even better if you can find something chunky and textured. Brooks Brothers used to recommend chunky shawl collar cardigans with tailored trouser and dress shirts in their 1970s catalogs (maybe this is where Jimmy got the idea).
He also sometimes wore cardigans with patterned trousers. That can be something of a daring look (hard to imagine a modern president doing this today, as it’d be considered too dandy). If you’re uncertain, bring the pattern up top. The eye is more comfortable resting up top.
I personally like him best when he’s in his sportswear, such as the rugged chinos, jeans, flannel shirts, vests, and trucker caps he’d wear to go fishing. IMO, these outfits would look great even far from stream.
Or the short shorts he wore while exercising. If Jimmy Carter can show some thigh, so can you. The sporty white socks with classic sneakers is also a great look. The jackets make these outfits more stylish than if he were just wearing a t-shirt with shorts.
Jimmy was best in workwear: chambray shirt with mid-rise, slim-straight jeans and a Western belt. Again, try to layer when you can. The denim-on-denim trucker here is a great look.
An photo of the boots he’d wear with a trucker jacket and jeans. You can get similar boots today from Russell Moccasin.
If denim on denim is intimidating, try a brown shearling jacket. Who do you feel wore it better? Carter or Zuckerberg?
I also love the outfits he wore while building housing for the working poor. His interest in affordable housing was prob motivated by his experience living in public housing as a child in Georgia.
The thing that made Carter’s style great is his well-roundedness: he looked just a good in black tie as he did in sportswear, workwear, and gym gear. The man even wore bolo ties. IMO, this is proof you don’t have to stylistically pigeonhole yourself.
Thanks to Jimmy Carter for his decades of service. And congrats on being the first former president to reach 100 years of age.
