Cufflinks: The Definitive Guide (Men's Jewelry)

All you need to know about cufflinks, and how to select the best pair: gentl.mn/cuffl...
#cufflinks #accessories #notsponsored
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→ Silver Monkey Fist Knot Cufflinks: gentl.mn/cuffl...
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→ Butcher Blue Jacquard Woven Tie with Printed Diamonds: gentl.mn/butch...
→ Yellow Linen Pocket Square with Blue X Stitch: gentl.mn/yello...
→ Royal Blue & Malachite Green Two Tone Socks: gentl.mn/blue-...
GUIDES YOU DON'T WANT TO MISS:
→ How to Build Cufflink Collection: gentl.mn/sven-...
→ Preston’s Accessories: gentl.mn/prest...
→ French Cuffs: How, When & Why: gentl.mn/frenc...
→ Mad Men Got It Wrong?: gentl.mn/react...
→ Boardwalk Empire Got It Wrong?: gentl.mn/revie...
→ Winchester Shirt Guide: gentl.mn/winch...
VIDEO CREDITS:
→ Script: E.J. Daniels & Sven Raphael Schneider
→ Camera: Chris Dummer
→ Editing: Jonathan Oster
→ Paramount Pictures
→ HBO
→ AMC
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00:00 Cufflinks Guide Introduction
For us and many of our readers, the details of an outfit - no matter how small - really matter! Among the minute items that serve both aesthetic functional purposes are cufflinks, which increasing in popularity and value today!
01:26 Early History of Cufflinks
Cufflinks have obviously been around for quite a while, but you may not quite know how old their origins are. During medieval times, the shirt, the neck, and the cuff were typically closed with a cloth string or a leather string.
03:42 History: 20th & 21st Centuries
Cufflink Terminology
Basically, a cufflink has three parts: the face, which is the thing that you typically see for the most part, then you have the shank, which is the middle part that’s typically in between the holes, then you have the foot, which is typically the inside side facing towards you that, often with T-bar cufflinks, is not decorative but purely functional.
07:09 T-bar Toggle
07:41 Whale Toggle
08:07 Double-sided
09:12 Chain Cufflinks
10:08 Snap Cufflinks
11:07 Fixed Cufflink Shank
Cufflink Materials
There’s really a lot of options out there. No matter if it’s an abalone, agate, or amethyst or maybe bakelite, bloodstone, or carnelian or ivory, lapis, malachite, or moonstone, onyx or diamonds, there is a cufflink material for anybody out there. Sometimes, you can also find cufflinks made with fabric or leather for example.
12:11 Base Metal
12:37 Vitriform
12:49 Precious Metals
13:35 Gold-Plating
14:27 Stones & Designs
16:09 Occasions to Wear Cufflinks
Choosing Your Cufflinks
Of course, it also depends when you wear your cufflinks. If you have a white tie ensemble, probably, you want a matching set with the waistcoat buttons. Or maybe you have matching studs for your dress shirt. Having the cufflinks, the studs, and your waistcoat’s buttons match just elevates your outfit and makes it that more special.
At the end of the day, it’s whatever you want it to be and there’s no right or wrong. Cufflinks are very similar to, let’s say, a suit or a pair of shoes.
At Fort Belvedere, we decided to try to get the look of a real bespoke-made model, which is actually made by a jeweler and then hand-carved and then a mold is created from that hand-carved object. We make it in solid sterling silver. We heavily plated our gold or platinum. So, you get that look and feel of a much more expensive cufflink at a price you can afford that is not cost prohibitive.
19:46 Outfit Rundown

[@widowrumstrypze9705]

Cufflinks are like earrings for men's dress shirts, lol! I'm a 50yr old woman, but am OBSESSED with cufflinks. I give them as gifts!

[@uncomfortablydumb2172]

Gentleman's Gazette: *uploads new video* Me, 16 years old girl: Yay new video!

[@Psykel]

Style knows no age nor gender.

[@cartanacia79]

lol literally me

[@DaCake2]

I wish more people your age were like you.

[@ki-adimundi8695]

Thank you for covering Guy-David Lambrechts detailed book about antique cufflinks 1860-1960. He is an incredibly intelligent and talented menswear designer and deserves more recognition for his contribution to cufflink history

[@mojoe7951]

As someone who makes cufflinks (as a hobby) I find this fascinating. Thank you for posting 🤓

[@Jessie_Helms]

I never realized y’all hit 1 million, congrats!

[@lilomarie7313]

I collect vintage cufflinks just to view them as art. I enjoy the educational information very much. The craftsmanship of the 20's to the 50's amazing, they are meticulously detailed.

[@OrrosGG]

Sven’s timings are cursed, my parents just gave me a pair of cufflinks! They must be the 20th of my collection, awesome timing again!! 🎩

[@davidhensley76]

I was in a jeweler's shop a few years ago & saw silver dogwood earrings for sale. I asked the jeweler if he could make a pair of cufflinks using the dogwood blossoms. He was glad to do it & now I have a unique accessory.

[@morganwin350]

Love this video I have a massive collection since I wear cufflinks almost everyday because I think French cuff shirts look better than button cuff. I also like that every pair of cufflinks tells its own story, and they are great conversation starter.

[@lsshvs8415]

Family crest cufflinks are nice to have!

[@Harry-tb8yo]

Nice video. I bought my first pair of cufflinks 14 years ago at a S.T. Dupont shop in Shanghai and for quite a while they were my only pair. To this day they are still my favorite pair. They are sleek, elegant and shiny but also versatile, so they pair well with a suit and a dinner jacket / tuxedo. A few years ago I started to buy cufflinks more or less regularly. I mostly stayed with S.T. Dupont but recently also have been drawn to Cartier. They have really nice and crazy ideas for the closing mechanism, e.g. the Juste Un Clou pieces. As my former girlfriend used to say: "Cufflinks are a man's high heels."

[@ravipeiris4388]

I remember in 2019 getting into wearing cufflinks for the first time and watching one of your videos back from 2016 or so. I'm so glad that you've done an update ☺️🙏

[@MichaelOssen]

More books on cuff links than I’ve ever seen.

[@jakekaywell5972]

I've found that silver or silver-toned cufflinks work better with my paler skin vs. gold examples. As such, my personal favorite cufflinks are the specially-engraved with Art Deco initials solid silver Tiffany set that my mom gave me when I was younger and more foolish. I'm quite glad and fortunate to have it. Of course, worthy examples exist on eBay for well under $20 a set and I have a few such pieces as well. Lovely video to boot!

[@KC9RXP]

I never even thought about making cufflinks. Another great use for matched stone pairs

[@wolfsbaneandnightshade2166]

Im writing a story were a gold celtic knot cufflink with an emerald is the key to the murderer. I actually clicked on this video to decided on the mechanism 😄

[@krunoslavkovacec1842]

Where can we read it once it's done ?

[@SweetieSunflower3]

Every piece you create is a masterpiece! So much talent! 👏

[@AKTIONAVANTGARDE]

Great video and some beautiful cufflinks! It's a great way to start the day by enjoying your content 🙂

[@Wherstead]

Always informative, great quality videos for those of us who wish to rise above average. I picked up a beautiful box of 60 pieces of Canali, Ermenegildo Zegna, Chanel, Versace, etc. at a Goodwill store. You don't have to spend a fortune to have great quality if you don't mind looking around.

[@MauricXe]

How timely...I just purchased a few for a photo shoot. Great video...thanks!

[@joshuaposton1070]

Wow what a fantastic video I currently don't even own a French dress shirt but found this video very interesting keep up this great work gents

[@hannamakela6989]

My cufflink "crush:" the ball-shaped ones with the semi-precious stones (lapis lazuli in particular!). :)

[@edwardb7811]

The definitive guide to cufflinks. I still have cufflinks, some inherited, but no longer have shirts with French cuffs. I probably wear a shirt twice a year, most lijely to funerals.

[@JanSzafranski]

I loved my cufflink collection, including gold ones passed down from father to son... devastatingly they were all stolen during a burglary

[@canadafree2087]

All my cufflinks are low end toggle but I do try to find ones where the toggle is a bit more fancy than the standard tube. My only chain cufflinks are sterling but a pain because both ends of the 2 faces are very pointy, but I do love that they are from Siam (now Thailand) so they may be from the 50's.

[@Pilzmaxe]

I own a pair of silver cufflinks with ember stones and they go really well with both brown and blue outfits. Also i have a pair of plain stainless steal cufflinks that i will have engraved with my initials.

[@JoJoJoker]

Snap links are my favorite. Easy to open when I need to and double sided.

[@roberthoffhines5419]

Aw geez. First I found out most of my ties were "loud" and now my t-bar cuff links (which is all of 'em) aren't all-that special lol!

[@mungulor]

Hey, to each his own! If you like them, wear them

[@azraelf.6287]

I was in a similar boat with my tie and pocket square. They're obviously supposed to match, that's why they are sold in sets, right? 🤷‍♂️🤦‍♂️

[@theconceptalchemycompany4508]

I haven't been here since the fedora hat episode...and so glad your subscriber count has DESERVEDLY increased.

[@evamarek5205]

Fascinating! Thank you for this video, Raphael! P.S. The way you say "millions" reminds me of Carl Sagan. Silly to say but true!

[@truthreigns7]

Awesome. Just what I needed

[@914Rocky]

I have at least 100 pairs and, of them, I’d say that 90 are whimsical. Animals and objects mainly. I may have to pick up some eagle claws from Port Belvedere. Those are beautiful.

[@caraboska]

There is a way to deal with the aesthetics of the T-bar, namely something that could be called a faux barrel cuff. In other words, instead of pinching the two halves of the French cuff together, you lap them as in a barrel cuff, run the T-bar through all four layers of the cuff, flip the toggle and you're all set :) PS Sven, you have mentioned elsewhere that you feel your thighs are relatively thick. If you wish to minimize their apparent size and you are wearing a jacket and trousers of contrasting colors, you might consider putting the lighter color on top and the darker color on the bottom :)

[@StevenWx]

Greetings from Malaysia Great vid

[@Jessie_Helms]

Ha, I remember a few weeks ago I saw a shirt at work on clearance for like $10 that was a good looking blue French cuff and immediately bought it. It was a nice light blue, a nice cotton. I know my size and fit, so I didn’t bother trying it on. The first time I went to put it on I realized it was a tailored fit- more for an average shaped guy, but I’m a large guy. Someone put it in the wrong area (probably just a customer deciding against it).

[@-RONNIE]

Good video 👍🏻

[@TheNunakun]

Can you do a video on french-cuff shirts? I wonder what to look for for quality shirts (might be similar to reg dress shirts). Thank you.

[@gentlemansgazette]

We have a whole host of videos on shirts, so here's the one on French cuffs to get you started! gentl.mn/french-cuff-guide

[@michaelbell3952]

4:20 LOL. Those snap button ones are definitely early twentieth century

[@MrSpruce]

I missed that the first time :D

[@chantaylor5575]

Love watching your video, very comforting

[@c.w.9615]

I'm three years into the hobby, thanks to the Gentleman's Gazette, and I have not tried cufflinks. Perhaps one day.

[@KomradeKrusher]

Interesting video, as usual, though I am not one to partake in Sven Raphael's cufflink craze ;) Personally, I own only two shirts with french cuffs and also only two pairs of cufflinks: One has been handed down to me from my father and it's a pair of oval 935 silver cuffchains with a lapislazuli on the face and the foot respectively, which his grandfather already owned (my father had one chain link taken out specifically for the reasons mentioned here), so they hold great sentimental value. The other pair is a simple, silver plated sixpence-design for when blue just won't fit.

[@caifitzpatrick6382]

Sir, I ask this as a fellow gentleman. May you please make a guide to Cologne

[@gentlemansgazette]

We're happy to oblige...with several videos! ;) check out our playlist here: gentl.mn/fragrances

[@caifitzpatrick6382]

@@gentlemansgazette Thank you that was exactly what I’m looking for

[@caifitzpatrick6382]

I am currently wearing Abercrombie and Fitch Fierce cologne original

[@dakotarayprice]

I have a mother of molar cufflinks set with stud

[@Reziac]

Used to be a guy here who made them from slices of elk teeth -- interesting layered-ivory look.

[@a.dschwarz691]

First....😁 greetings from Luxembourg🙋‍♂️

[@LochNessyMonster]

Y'all need to start making hats in your shop. Being a supplier of black tie top hats and formal hats i feel would improve your market.

[@PlyzmP]

What a great outfit!

[@edwardtobiemejia7895]

You're baaack. Oh wait...you were never gone.

[@scottyb.8710]

I have two pair of Tiffany cuff links but never wear them because French cuff shirts are too formal for my office.

[@JonathanWrightSA]

French cuff shirts are quite rare and difficult to find in retail stores in South Africa, however, barrel cuff shirts are expensive and always in wrong arm length and collar width for me. Bespoke shirts at tailors actually cost only slightly more than the ill fitting retail options, and I get French cuffs to boot! Cufflinks are dime a dozen here, but second hand they start to not exist.

[@drip369]

I definitely own a lot of cufflinks, and I am interested in this pair I found on eBay, which have silver Canadian dimes separated by sterling chains and held inside sterling bezels. They have been displayed for many months and I'm not sure if I should buy them at the price they are, or wait until I get an offer

[@PierreDulot]

Go for it. I have always regretted an opportunity I missed to have a pair made of gold sovereigns.

[@quinnsaunders5909]

How does the Gentlemens Gazette feel about initials monogrammed onto shirts? Elegant and stylish. or pretentious and tasteless?

[@Psykel]

Imo, it’s a bit pretentious. I’d go with a pair of monogrammed cufflinks instead.

[@baze3SC]

Are you worried that the hotel staff might misplace your laundry?

[@JoJoJoker]

Magnets can fix the issue with snap links

[@griffin5226]

Could you share the source of that mechanism typology diagram?

[@alecnolastname4362]

how should I measure the palm of my hand for a custom cane? ball/scent stopper

[@drip369]

Gold layering is much better than gold plating, as well as better than gold filling

[@DovidM]

You can get a link in the chain removed so that they don’t result in a floppy cuff.

[@Persuna1]

Raphael, In 2:01 are those your floors? That is the Maltese cross, beautiful historic symbol! I would love floors like that! Sincerely

[@rarescengher5793]

Fall îs coming, will you make a fall shoe guide ?

[@johnancona678]

Hey Raphael, I've been wondering, is Preston your son? You both have the same dapper charm that transcends the levels of us common folk. Tread on.

[@MartinIrwin]

Yes, Ralph became a father at 8 years old.

[@3psil0n78]

Could you please do a review of Spier Mackay. I always hear so much good but how is it posible to make such good suits at such alow price??

[@MatthewHilbertsBaritone]

Personally, I love micro mosaic.

[@semjonhorvath]

Hello, I have a little question. I watched your video "How to button your suits" and one question of mine was not answered, well not directly. So my question is if you can wear a vest with a double-breasted suit?

[@TheTyphoon365]

12:21 what is going on in that left cufflink design hahaha

[@Veronensis]

Could you please tell me where you found the picture with the different types and dates you use at 3:04?

[@josephupholstery1416]

@gentlemens gazette what cleaning kits do you recommend for oxford shoes?

[@aabhavmishra8728]

Can you recommend some places to shop in around Munich

[@SueEmmDee]

An excellent and informative video. Please avoid any silver piece that needs to be polished and I am not a fan of the fast-fashion brands like H&M or Zara, etc.

[@funwithmadness]

I'm sure this comment will be met with much disdain and possibly be considered blasphemous, but is there any way to make button covers look stylish? :) I have two reasons for asking. the first is price. I just cannot justify the cost not only of cuff links for shirts with French cuffs. The other reason is that I dabble a bit in lapidary and want a way to show off some of my work.

[@baze3SC]

Sorry but no, there isn't :) Either wear a proper French cuff shirt or drop the idea altogether. Cufflinks are not a mandatory accessory and there's no shame in wearing a regular shirt even to festive occasions like weddings. Hybrid solutions are rarely considered stylish (think sandals with socks). It would look odd if there was a cufflink-like button without the French cuff though I'm sure not many people would actually judge you :)

[@Harry-tb8yo]

In the past there were indeed covers for normal buttons available but they have been rare. But looking for them might take a while and then you still would have to find the right style. The variety in normal cufflinks on the other hand is literally endless and it is not necessary to start with expensive ones. You also could start with silk knots which are much more affordable. As soon as you have one pair you could go for a french cuff shirt for a reasonable price. Usually they are not more expensive than barrel cuff shirts. As soon as I had my first pair of cufflinks (which are still my most used ones) I never bought barrel cuff shirts again.

[@jinh6733]

Here I am watching a video on cufflinks, yet I don’t even own a shirt that requires them 😭

[@KC9RXP]

Fits the same role for men as earrings do for women.

[@stephenbrown2054]

KNOWS HIS STUFF--but for a very exclusive audience. I stumbled on this site. But the more I watch I realize that you must have a six-figure income to follow most of his advice. I need to find a channel with a title like "Looking Sharp on a Budget"

[@jesseblueman1517]

This is really not true, they have many videos on this topic. They have great videos with advice in vintage clothes and dressing well without spending a lot.

[@Alandale45]

Why don't you try "The Chap Guide" videos

[@Reziac]

Of course if you're really poor, you use two plastic buttons connected by a bit of string, or for a more upscale look, two leather buttons... yes, those used to be a Thing...

[@oscarfelipe76]

Traducir al español gracias

[@patriotadam4091]

Ps did you realize that at 4:20 there was a pair of swastika cufflinks. I know it is an accident, but be careful next time. If it wasnt so evil they are actually kinda nice

[@xtube9157]

Before the Nazis it was used by many army’s plus it’s a religious symbol

[@teddycuthbert]

14:13

[@henrylemelay5436]

Dutch:de klassieke zijn van zilver,parelmoer en goud.En beslist geen halfedelsteen!

[@angowT]

Great vid, as your's always are, but for goodness sake old boy, it's "jewellery".

[@sensationalfailure]

The picture you show at 1:37 does not show medieval clothing. (Very) far from it. Such poor research devalues your entire video. Sehr geehrter Herr Schneider, sehen Sie sich bitte einmal Bilder zu den Begriffen Cotte, Surcot und Fürspan an.

[@hashamofficial558]

Hearrrrt

[@iainmcclure416]

18:20 Cufflinks and matching ring? Absolutely not, sir.

[@macariodosdos4196]

i'm just here to listen to you talk hehehe

[@spudhead169]

Congrats on your success, don't let it go to your belly. Oops too late.

[@freedyorozco8451]

🎩🥃

[@king_charles]

4:20 Cufflinks with swastika!?

[@ben2808]

Jesus loves you

[@lingo654]

hey, just so you know. there is a cufflink at 4:21 with a swastika on it. I know it's the Hindu one based upon it's look, but i just feel like it's important for you guys to be aware

[@caporegime1905]

I’m not a fan of knot cuff links

[@nexusrnah6418]

Please talk a bit loader

[@SagarZalavadia]

In your country clothes make man perfect that's why you need to spend a lot of time behind this idiot stuffs in our country characters make man perfect

[@heinrichheuer6510]

Das trägt doch heute niemand mehr

[@iansoutryer3189]

Da sind Sie aber hier auf dem falschen Kanal... (Wobei Sie nicht unrecht haben. Deshalb gibt es sie ja zum Glück auch so billig auf Flohmärkten!)

[@heinrichheuer6510]

@@iansoutryer3189 ich mag den Kanal aber selbst bei meiner Arbeit kann ich mittlerweile auf Krawatte und Hemd verzichten

[@iansoutryer3189]

@@heinrichheuer6510 Ich nicht - selbst wenn ich mitunter den lieben langen Tag alleine hier sitze. Ich brauche das einfach für mich selber: Krawatte, Sakko, Krawattennadel und Manschettenknöpfe. Es ist wie ein Korsett - sonst sitzt man hier irgendwann unrasiert, im Jogginganzug und Asiletten... :-)