3 Military Uniform Rules That Will Make You Look Like A Professional

Anyone who has served was taught exactly how to look great in uniform. But once we get out, dressing for success can be a little bit difficult.

Related: Here’s how to dress for your job interview.

Here are three quick ways to clean up your look using the fundamentals the military teaches to look great in uniform.

1. Rock some shirt stays

There’s no better way to look sloppy than to try to tuck in your shirt, but have it bunched around your waist or partially untucked. The military uses elastic garters that clip to the end of your shirt and pull it down, and then on the other end either clipped to your socks or through stirrups around your feet. It can be uncomfortable, but sometimes you have to sacrifice comfort for style. This is one of those times.

2. Maintain your gig line

The gig line is the imaginary line that runs straight down the center of your body from your neck to the bottom of your crotch. Everything should line up to it — the buttons on your shirt, your tie, your belt buckle, and the zipper on your pants.

3. Use the military tuck

We used to call this blousing your shirt, but what it really does is prevent your shirt from looking like a blouse. The military tuck involves tucking excess fabric from your shirt in around your back, on either side. To execute it, pull the excess fabric out at the seams on either side and tuck it behind your back, then pull the fold tight and tighten your belt.

This video from Birchbox shows how it’s done, and some other cool tricks to make your dress shirt look great:

What old tricks do you use to stay sharp? Let us know in the comments.