Life would be better if every man knew how to dress like James Bond. No other franchise has done so much for men's style across 60 years and 25 films. From Sean Connery's white dinner jacket to Brosnan's Brioni Italian numbers—by way of Roger Moore's safari suits (okay maybe not) and Timothy Dalton's Top Gear-style outfits (okay, definitely not)—cinema and literature's most famous spy is never anything less than impeccably dressed.
With No Time To Die out this year, Daniel Craig's fifth and allegedly final Bond film, we at T3 examine how Bond does it and the tips you need to make his style work for you. For both formal and casual settings, higher and lower budgets, Bond has a few fashion tips to impart, and certainly plenty of advice on James Bond watch-wearing.
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Apologies to fans of Roger Moore's 70s chest-revealing, wide-collared shirts: we're mainly recounting the Craig era, as this is a guide for the modern man. High fashion? More like spy fashion.
James Bond style: formal wear
Bond has always been decked out in designer gear. Because of the iconic nature of the films, brands frankly fall over themselves, fighting tooth and nail to wrap Daniel Craig in Swiss tailored suits and Italian leather.
Consequently, whether walking into a casino for a high-stakes game of poker or attending an intimate dinner with a megalomaniac, Craig never looks less than stellar.
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Craig's suits excel in two key areas: the fabric and the fit. They need to be lightweight enough to at least look like he's able to dive around when a gunfight breaks out and well-fitted to ensure he's mobile enough while doing so. Have you ever worn an ill-fitting suit and raised your arms up to shoulder height, only to have half the suit rise up as well? Can't be having that in a gunfight.
For your own suit jackets, you need to ensure the shoulder has a straight slope, as seen on Craig in the scene above, and the seam between shoulder and sleeve hits the corner of your shoulder exactly. In Spectre Craig opts for Tom Ford's O'Connor two-button suit jacket in a slim fit, retailing at £1,368. Which, believe it or not, is almost half price. Check it out below:
Craig wore it so well that he also opts for the same jacket in No Time To Die, except in a grey Prince of Wales check. He (or his stylist) cleverly picked this suit when meeting Prince Charles on the Pinewood Studios set of the film, as a subtle nod to HRH's title.
Craig pairs both suits with matching trousers, costing an additional £620 per pair. The trousers are also impeccably hemmed: you're looking for legs that just cover your socks over a smart shoe, with a single slight "break" in the front of the trouser where the hem rests on the top of the shoe. Too long and the trousers look baggy, too small and you'll be showing calf whenever you sit down.
When it comes to formal shoes, Craig is only outfitted with the best. The 140-year-old Northampton shoemaker Crockett & Jones has shoed Bond in his last three movies. With a penchant for fine leatherwork and classic styles, Craig sports Crockett & Jones' Norwich derby shoe with his pricy suits. Check it out below:
Of course, the everyday man doesn't often have two grand to splash on a designer suit. If you're looking for sartorial elegance on a budget, off-the-peg suits such as the ones found at Burtons and ASOS imitate these styles very well, as seen in the ASOS Design jacket below:
Take inspiration from the fit of Craig's suits and tailor it (sorry) to your own budget: a two-button jacket in the style of the O'Conner suit can be taken in at the waist to your specifications if needed, while the trousers can be hemmed to create the perfect Craig fit. The important thing when buying is to get the shoulders and sleeves right.
Even after tailoring, the end result is a Bond-esque suit at a fraction of the price, leaving you enough money for a martini or two at the bar.
James Bond style: casual wear
It's not all about the suits. When Bond isn't in London being dressed-down by M, he's dressed down on a beach in Jamaica, a snake-fighting pit in Madagascar or a hotel bar in Montenegro. They may not be as iconic as Bond's formalwear, but there's as much to learn in Craig's casual ensembles, which will arguably see more day-to-day use for most men. It also presents a series of looks, like the above, that can easily replicated without designer pieces.
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Not content to conceal a Walther PPK in his sock or a laser in his watch, Bond hides sartorial know-how in plain sight with simple looks that still seem purposeful and stylish. He uses layers to great effect in casual ensembles, something you can deploy in the field without the need for Q Branch.
The above look from Quantum of Solace shows a black shawl ribbed cardigan from Tom Ford, priced at £2,217. The 007 cashmere collection from Npeal, created to celebrate the upcoming release of No Time To Die, is also full of great knitwear inspired by Bond's historic looks, such as Timothy Dalton's ribbed fisherman's sweater.
Most men would throw a bit of knitwear over a t-shirt and call it a day, but Bond pairs his cardi with a crisp white Oxford-style shirt, showing smart layering can elevate a casually thrown-together weekend look into a proper outfit, that looks like it was chosen with care. Wrap it all up with some smart, sandy-coloured chinos and chukka boots or boating shoes and you'll really look the part.
The Tom Ford piece is a beautiful cardigan, but for men looking for a no-fuss casual look that doesn't cost the earth, let's replicate it with items all under £100:
Whether it's a navy polo with a light zip-through sport jacket or a crisp white shirt with a heavy black shawl thrown over the top, Bond knows the value of layering. Pair darks with lights, along with neutral trousers and classic shoe styles, to look every bit the off-duty superspy.
James Bond style: watches
Ian Fleming's watch of choice was a Rolex. In honour of this, Bond may have sported a Rolex Submariner on Sean Connery's wrist throughout his seven-film stint, but since 1995, Omega has been the James Bond franchise's watch of choice.
Acquiring an exclusive license to time the fictional spy, Omega gained new prominence with Casino Royale's egregious product placement in the scene above.
Brosnan and Craig have been kitted out with successive editions of Omega's Seamaster family to celebrate the character's past with the Royal Navy. The watchmaker even released a pair of limited editions in 2015 to promote Spectre, Craig's fourth Bond film.
The latest James Bond style watch created to tie-in to the franchise is the Omega Seamaster Diver 300M 007 Edition. It's a thing of beauty, with a stylish 42mm Seamaster case made from Grade 2 Titanium. Check it out below, if you fancy getting on the waiting list to own one:
James Bond style: accessories
Short of the Aston Martin DB5, we've covered all the major bases to get you looking suave enough to work for MI6. However, there's a few key details missing.
Despite his native Scotland, Bond prefers to frequently go on missions taking him to tropical locales, such as Morocco in Spectre (above) and especially Ian Fleming's favourite Jamaica, home of his Goldeneye estate on Oracabessa Bay. You can't get by in the blazing sun without seriously stylish eye protection, and Bond's sported some excellent specs over the years.
Eyewear, like a good watch, is worth spending money on. The best sunglasses will last for years and look much better than tacky, all-plastic frames. These are a couple of Bond's favourite pairs:
To complete the James Bond style illusion, there's only one more thing you'll need: a martini in hand. You can't walk into a high-class establishment, dressed to the nines in your new clobber, and not order one. But to really appreciate the martini, you should learn to make it at home.
Officially the coolest drink in the world, this is a classic cocktail that's deceptively easy to make. Fill a shaker full of ice, add four parts gin or four parts vodka to one part dry vermouth, shake and strain into a cold martini glass. Add an olive, or twist of lemon, and you're done. All you need to get started is a basic cocktail starter set. Allow us to help:
And there you have it: the only James Bond style guide you'll ever need. With No Time To Die on the horizon, there's never been a better time to take some outfit-of-the-day inspo from the biggest fashion icon of the silver screen. Dust off that box set and put your feet up, while you wait for your new clothes to land on your doorstep. More like No Time To Buy.
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