Last time Emma talked us through her thoughts on first date outfits for the ladies, now she’s back with some advice for the guys…

In any situation, dressing correctly puts a man in the right state of mind. Wearing a uniform, whether it’s for work or for sport, helps you focus of the task at hand and the same thing applies when dressing for a date. Especially on a first date, when you want to make the right first impressions as well as feeling comfortable enough to let your confidence and personality do the work.

It’s all about dressing in the appropriate uniform for the occasion. Although the nicest clothes you probably own are suits, suits are for work and should be kept for just that. Wearing a suit on the first date will make you seem uptight and uncomfortable when you should be aiming to appear at leisure. Going in the opposite direction, any kind of sports clothing, be it running shoes or tracksuit bottoms, should be kept strictly for participating in sports activity. Simply put, wearing anything which airs on the side of too casual will make it seem like you haven’t made any effort and says something about your level of respect for her.

Find that middle ground, somewhere in between your suit and your sports kit and you’re half way there. If you are a suit wearing kind of man why not swap it for a more casual blazer jacket teamed with a shirt and smart jeans for the first date. This is not only a smart and stylish solution but one that suits any man. And if you are more of a casual dresser and you feel the jacket and shirt is not your thing, try a casual button down shirt with a jumper and jeans or a stylish pair of chinos.

If worn correctly, clothing can make you look better by strengthening your positive features and minimising your less attractive ones. So wear clothes that fit properly. If they fit well, they will look good and this in turn will make you feel good. If you feel good, you will feel confident and this will allow your personality to shine through and form that over-all positive first date impression.

When speaking among my girlfriends about what puts them off a first date in terms of the way he’s dressed, the answers were fairly obvious, with dressing too casually for the occasion being a main issue. More worryingly, there was the odd mention of string vests which left me wondering, who exactly are my friends dating!?

String vests aside, the biggest and most common first date issue are shoes. This isn’t just among my friends because let’s face it; we all know women are obsessed with shoes. This isn’t just their shoes, or shoes on other women, it’s your shoes and if you hoped you could get away with those scuffed old trainers going unnoticed, you would be sadly mistaken. A woman judging you on your shoes on the first date is unavoidable.

Research at the University of Kansas has proven that people can accurately judge 90% of a stranger’s personality simply by looking at their footwear. So it turns out us shoe obsessed women aren’t mad after all! A man’s shoes reveal whether he takes pride in the little things. An expensive shoe will indicate a higher income while flashier footwear suggests an outgoing personality.  If his shoes need a clean or they look like they’re ready for the bin, the clues about his personality are obvious.

The type of shoe is also key. As mentioned, any shoe designed specifically for sport will not impress. And neither will flip flops or sandals, as most women would agree, there is nothing sexy about seeing a man’s feet. However, you can’t really go wrong with clean, stylish leather lace ups, loafers or driving shoes. A glimpse of these and your date will be thinking that you are the kind of sophisticated, stylish man who cares about his appearance, has an eye for detail and has an all round respect for her and this first date.

So pick an appropriate pair and just ask yourself, what do these shoes say about me?