What to Wear to Work When It’s Hot as Hell

Every product was carefully curated by an Esquire editor. We may earn a commission from these links. Here’s how we test products and why you should trust us.todd snyder / j crew / abercrombie1 min readHeading into the office in the depths of summer should, first of all, be illegal. Second, it can necessitate a wardrobe change. If you commute via foot, bike, or poorly ventilated underground transportation, you know showing up to your desk in whatever you just spent an hour sweating through isn’t the ideal start to the day. Neither is how cold you feel from the AC once said sweat starts to evaporate.Luckily for you, we run hot. Thus, we have sweated through our fair share of clothing types—styles, fabrics, and fits—to know what actually makes one office outfit work better than another.Here, we’re opting for linens and cottons, breathable silhouettes, and open weaves. The key, of course, is how you wear them—in a flexibly dressed workspace, a linen trouser or resort shirt just needs some added structure from the other item to make it feel more fully equipped for the job.Summer outfits always feel less dressy because there tend to be fewer layers. And if a linen jacket is still too much, a long sleeve linen shirt is an excellent, breathable item to layer. Also very good to have on hand for cold offices.If you want a more formal linen shirt, Polo Ralph Lauren is the play.If you want suit separate trousers, Suitsupply is a very, very good place for some tailored linen pants.In that vein, Esquire’s commerce editor, Luke Guillory, is very fond of Casatlantic’s linen trousers. According to him, the El Jadida is the best cut of the bunch.My favorite hot-weather office hack is to get dressed for work and then take the sweat-prone items off and put on a plain T-shirt instead. Or, wear a super-light layer like Madewell’s Weekend Slub T-shirt—with an airy, boxy makeup—and hope for the best.If you haven’t gotten your favorite suit pants in a linen variation yet, it’s high time to reconsider. This slate blue is inconspicuous enough that it doesn’t scream BREATHABLE but it is. Wear it with an ironed shirt and nice shoes and it won’t look any less professional.Maybe our generous interpretation of office-appropriate scares you. But unless you are in a suit-only space, we tend to think a minimal short sleeve summer shirt can work at work. This white one buttoned up and worn with, say, some linen trousers and a belt make it feel put together.Buck Mason’s aptly named Big Chino are a great summer office choice because they are still a proper chino for a more casual office space and therefore won’t make you feel like you’re trying make beachwear work at the office. The secret is in the Big part of the name, where the legs fit wide enough such that air flows through easily.Abercrombie makes over a bunch of its classic silhouettes with summer fabrics, like this linen-blend trouser. It’s airy for your time outside but maintains a little more shape than a pure linen pant.Banana Republic makes a linen long sleeve that wears like a jacket would. We like the darker color options for something that doesn’t necessarily feel like you must wear it on the beach. Though, you can do that too.