Men in shorts

Some of the young reporters in the newsroom have this thing they do called GQ Mondays.

For the first day of the week they dress properly and get close to looking like young professionals. They will hate me for that, but they are not exactly wearing Ben Sherman suits.

Wearing good pants, a dress shirt and a tie makes for a good start to the week and they are proud of the effort they make. I am not going to knock them for that.

Working in this newsroom means a reporter might be interviewing a civic leader, a national politician or a wine company executive one minute, but later in the day be chasing a farmer ploughing his paddock or walking through a burned-out building with fire safety people. A journalist on a regional newspaper needs to be dressed for all occasions. That Ben Sherman suit could quickly become a liability if the wearer has to get over a barbed wire fence.

So the team usually take a more practical approach – except on Mondays.

During the hot weather last week I began to wonder whether an editor could get away with wearing shorts to work. I hardly ever wear a tie these days, but hope I still manage to look presentable in most situations. So why not, in one of the hottest and sunniest places in the country, wear good shorts to work?

Then the GQ Monday boys raised the same question. So I decided to get some advice.

The legendary Murray Crane from Crane Brothers in Auckland warned I should tread carefully. Avoid stubbies, he said, or anything too casual or an "ironic" walk short. (Yes, he said ironic, not iconic, and I think he's right.)

His bottom line was to be comfortable but more lightweight cotton chino or trouser than shorts suitable for lawns, holiday or beach.

The other guru I emailed didn't get back to me so I headed to that fount of all fashion knowledge, Google. Advice there was divided and is best summed up by two blokes writing in The Guardian about "city shorts" that appeared to be nicely tailored suit trousers whacked off at the knee.

One writer said he liked wearing them and they went well with casual polo shorts and sneakers or short-sleeve shirts and boat shoes (definitely no socks showing).

Even Louis Vuitton had done city shorts collections, although GQ editor Robert Johnston shook his head at the "suit with short pants" look.

On the other side was the bloke who said not to go near shorts. Ever. It looked daft, like a man in a school uniform.

Suggestions elsewhere were never to wear open footwear, especially with socks, while rules on socks with sensible shoes seemed evenly divided – as long as they are not white or long enough to need holding up with garters. (There's that school look again.) Definitely no cargo shorts, either.

None of which was terribly useful in helping me make a decision on how I should dress for work in summer and what direction I should give the younger crew.

So it looks like I will need to go out and do some actual research. Finding and trying.

Or you could make some suggestions. What do other men wear to the office around here during summer?

Steve Mason

he Marlborough Express

THE BIG QUESTION: Can an editor of a provincial newspaper get away with wearing shorts to work

Louis Vuitton: Is this what we should be wearing to the office?