We know that material, pattern and the cut of neckwear goes a long way; indeed, perhaps more important is the knot (hint: it’s all about the dimple). But what good is the perfectly done tie without a properly crisp collar to cinch it around? Dedicated to maintaining a gentleman’s good form in over 20 common collar styles, Swiss Stays ($8-$125) has given the sometimes frustrating behind-the-scenes champion of men’s formal fashion, collar stays, a shot of much needed one-size-fits-most juice.
The problem is this. A well-curated closet will require more than one size stay, and the saran-wrap-grade types that come with shirts aren’t much better than the paperclip substitute you scrounged at the office yesterday. The Swiss Stays design isn’t complex (though to be fair, in context a collar stay with moving parts is anything but simple): two folding pieces, hinged at either end, flip out from the main stay to extend the overall length, enabling it to lay flat collars of varying lengths. Available in strong and tough materials like PVC, stainless steel, brass and sterling silver, you’ll want to pop these out of their handsome carrying case and pop them into every collar you own. Just please don’t pop the collar itself.