Writes Sheidlower, the president's attire "was, by the standards of men's formal dress, simply incorrect." Wearing a white tie but not "white tie" is a no-no, and what's more, wearing the more formal neck ornament at a black tie event is to commit the sin of dressing more formally than the engagement demands. Sheidlower to the rescue! White tie, in case you need reminding,

is not simply a tuxedo worn with a white tie. It consists of a tailcoat, not a tuxedo jacket, and it is worn with a wing-collar shirt with a front of cotton piqué. The trousers traditionally have double piping on the side seam. Black tie consists of a tuxedo jacket (which traditionally has peak, not notch, lapels with satin or grosgrain facing) worn with a black bow tie and a pleated straight-collar shirt. The trousers have a single wide piping on the side seam.

This is all true. By the recondite system of conventions that govern men's formal wear, our new president was all kinds of wrong. (Sheidlower might have also pointed out that Obama wore a wristwatch — traditionally a no-no with evening wear for both sexes, because it implies you might be marking time instead of enjoying the sumptuous event.) But I can't help but wonder why sniffing that Obama wore the wrong suit is apparently Sheidlower's most urgent impression of the inauguration?

The point is, Obama, for all his formal wear code-switching, looked good. The notched lapels on his impeccably-fitted suit didn't distract from the elegance of the event. The white tie on his straight-collar shirt didn't even immediately jump out at me as wrong. And I certainly wasn't counting the stripes on his pants as I watched video clips on my laptop. Obama's overall look was strong, handsome, and well turned out. A certain creativity with the dress code is not, in my mind, a sin.

But what's what menswear always comes down to, isn't it? Despite the best efforts of designers like Hedi Slimane (who, although no longer at the helm of Dior Homme, will always be at the helm of my suit-loving heart), Thom Browne, and Stefano Pilati to make men's fashion about more than two-button or three-button suits, to inject it with some of the vitality and purposefulness that women take for granted in our ready-to-wear, dressing up as a dude is still about following rules more than it is about looking good. Can you imagine if we were still trapped in some timewarp where everyone was talking about Michelle Obama's inauguration day outfits in terms of the "right" colors for day and evening, the proper length of gloves, the right kind of hat and the ideal heel height? It's refreshing that so little of the commentary on her clothes has given even a cursory nod to such restrictive, convention-based notions. When it comes to one's choice of dress, maybe it's easier to be a woman than a man.

Obama's Fashion Faux Pas [Slate]

• Whoah. Prada Fall 2008 Menswear: Now featuring skirts! Oh yes, this is something guys would totally buy. [Chic Report]
  
• RIP Miu Miu menswear: The line will be discontinued as of the Spring 2008 collection. What, Miuccia just couldn't top skirts for men? [WWD, 1st item]
  
• WWD headline on Isaac Mizrahi's move from Target to Claiborne is: "Will He Hit Or Miz?" [WWD, sub req'd]
  
• And in other Claiborne news, the company is rumored to be in talks to license of its Dana Buchman label to Kohl's. [WSJ]

• Aeropostle, in an attempt to save the world and increase brand awareness, is launching a campaign called Teens for Jeans, encouraging its customers to donate their gently worn jeans at any Aeropostle store, to be given to homeless kids. [WWD, sub req'd]
• Anna Wintour must be a really good American Express customer: The credit card giant has just donated $500,000 to the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund, which provides cash prizes to those young designers whom La Wintour deems worthy.
• Try to contain your excitement: Rihanna is doing a second umbrella line for Totes. [WWD, 2nd item]
• The after-party alone for Kate Moss's birthday last night cost approx. $40,000. [Vogue UK]
• Designer Charles Nolan on his latest philanthropic endeavors: "In the spring I'm hosting a group that's all about microlending...do you know that if you lend money to people, the 98 percent that pay you back are women? The two percent that don't—men!" His heart is in the right place. [Fashion Week Daily]
• Julia Restoin Roitfeld, Lily Donaldson, and Theodora Richards have been "brought on" by fashion label Joie to host a party for the house during Fashion Week to make the line seem hipper, cooler, younger, etc. Incidentally, Joie hired Vladimir Roitfeld (Julia's bro, Lily's beau) to put the party together. Incesterfuckin marvelous. [Fashion Week Daily]
• Saks Fifth Avenue's spring advertising campaign features not models but illustrations. Didn't Nordstrom just do that? [Sassybella]

This has yielded the following question: Which is the greater men's fashion offense? The, ahem, slightly-poncy skinny suit/cropped ankle combo? Or the hyper-masculine (or something) K-Fed poor little trucker boy look? Which turns you off more? And is there anything that men wear that actually ups their powers of attraction? Take our poll, or put your thoughts in the comments.

Gawker Media polls require Javascript; if you're viewing this in an RSS reader, click through to view in your Javascript-enabled web browser.

JG: So today's NYT Styles section has this article on "innovative' menswear. Like, would you wear a skinny suit with a cropped ankle?
Don: "Innovative" is pretty much the word that gives your assertion credence.
JG: Indeed. So was my suspicion.
Don: This is great stuff.
JG: Like, would you rock that?
Don: Hahahahahha.
JG: It's not even esoteric. You know how you can rationalize absurd women's fashion with some overly-academic art historical-sociological explanation? You can't with this. This is a skinny checked suit. And no dude goes out looking to get laid — by a girl — wearing that.
Don: Okay, well, I like to not be harassed by people. That suit would definitely get a lot of "faggots" from strangers wearing that.
JG: Really, the sweater vest underneath the suit takes it to a whole other level. Like, you still might be safe without that.
Don: No, no you wouldn't. I don't know where you hang-out, but my favorite bar downtown has a lot of Cubs t-shirts. I feel weird walking in with a polo.
JG: Okay so even a gay man wouldn't wear that suit with a sweater vest?
Don: This one is probably worse...
JG: That's my thing with menswear! What purpose is it serving? No guy with an X-Box (or better, a Wii) will ever wear that. And it's never going to trickle down in some watered-down, derivative version, even.
Don: No, not at all.
JG: Guys who like beer, boobs, and video games are not going to adapt to that.
Don: I dream of a day when business attire is a jumpsuit. That way, I know exactly what I have to wear and only focus on the cleanliness of my underwear. Function is key. I would wear this. If I was going to a Halloween party. As Jarvis Cocker. But this could be a return to Rat Pack, no?
JG: Do you want to return to the Rat Pack?
Don: No. But I can see how it can appeal to certain men.
JG: What did you wear to work today?
Don: Taking the day off - KnivesOut t-shirt, jeans, and ghetto slippers.
JG: I think that is what every straight dude I know is prob wearing. Okay, my last menswear question is this — did you read the article I sent you? All that talk of pink silk pajamas? What would it take to get you into pink silk pajamas?
Don: Ohhhh no. I didn't read it, went straight for the pictures, like porn. I mean, looking at clothes and scoffing is far less painful than reading about clothes you really don't care about. But... I did want to make one point. The jeans/t-shirt/fuck it attitude does carry over to women as well.
JG: In what way?
Don: I was talking to some folks the other night about all that Victoria's Secret shit...
JG: Victoria's Secret is gross.
Don: But every now and then it's nice, kinda like role-playing with clothing. Okay , so I was talking to these 2 guys and 2 girls, like I was saying...
JG: Okay and what did they conclude?
Don: Well, it was more...heyyyy, favorite shit to see a girl in. And really, both dudes agreed it was when they use our button-downs in the morning. Of course, I'm partial to union-jack suits or underwear and an NHL jersey (and I don't even like hockey).
JG: But you don't like that because it's some profound sartorial statement — it's because it's nice to see a girl wearing your clothes the next morning.
Don: Ummmmm, maybe. It's also... holy shit, girls really are smaller than dudes.
My shirt can be a dress on my most women. (Unlike menswear!) But yeah, suits... I'm going to the Men's Wearhouse. And I'm not spending more than $500... maybe $600 if the shit's banging. I've had my one 5 hunny suit for a good 8 years. I have a thrift suit (30 bucks), but that shit needs some serious help. And I bought a suit for $150 because I was young and thought "Dude, Elvis Costello would totally wear this" — It's not that cool now. Yeah, suits are things you have to buy (funerals, weddings). I really think about a new bicycle, HDTV and the lust for tools (but since I don't own, it would be stupid, but damnnnnn I WANT IT). So right, that checkered suit, fuck that. Also, if we're going to boil it down... who's going to fuck you in that suit? You don't want to fuck that person!

Looking Like a Billion Bucks [NYT]

• After being bounced by Elle in favor of Joe Zee, the magazine's founding creative director Gilles Bensimon finally speaks. "I was never good with giving direction, day by day. I never asked to be director of a magazine," he says. "I was only photography director. The first day I got the position... I go, 'oh my gosh that's a mistake." [WWD, 1st item]
• Sympathizing with the plight of jet-setting beauty junkies everywhere, drugstores are set to introduce pre-packaged toiletry and make-up kits for use on airplanes. [WWD, 4th item]
• Glamour has secured a print exclusive to showcase Sarah Jessica Parker and her new clothing line Bitten on the cover of its June issue. [WWD, 2nd item]
• Designers Dries Van Noten and Marc Jacobs will be showing their menswear lines in Milan, not Paris, for the upcoming June shows. [WWD, 1st item]

Far be it from us to deprive the rich of their luxury, but we bet that if Tom Ford donated the 95% markup he'll be making on those sausage casings to a special fund, we could help him find something even more useful to do with the money than simply line his own coffers. Like buy every citizen of Bangladesh a set of those awesome MUJI cardboard speakers we've been reading so much about!

Tom Ford, Post-Gucci, Takes A Vested Interest In Menswear [WashingtonPost]
Can The Tom Ford Magic Translate To Menswear? [Wall Street Journal]

Related: Tom Ford Also Licensing His Name To Estee Lauder For Beauty Product Line [International Herald Tribune]