It serves a similar function to a casual sportcoat, adding a touch of color and style to a dress shirt and trousers without attempting to imitate the formality of a matched suit. The term “waistcoat” is generally a more specific one than “vest”— it refers, literally enough, to a sleeveless garment that covers a man’s waist, hiding the top of the trousers and the bottom of the shirt.

As a stand-alone item of clothing, a waistcoat similar to those worn with a three-piece suit is an appropriate piece of business-casual wear. A sweater-vest can be worn to basically the same functions that a sweater can, but appears as a more conscious choice on the wearer’s part simply by being the less common option.The Dictionary of Fashion History (2010) gives a chronology for the use of the word vest in menswear: Wilcox, R. Turner. The Dictionary of Costume. 1st Macmillan Hudson River ed. New York: Macmillan, 1987. http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/456762613. The same applies to fleece activewear, and so on — these are all undress garments, made for casual day-to-day wear with friends and family. A vested style is a minor stylistic flourish and a comfortable choice for warmer weather. Greatrex, Tom. “Waistcoat.” In The Berg Companion to Fashion, edited by Valerie Steele. Oxford: Bloomsbury Academic, 2010. Accessed October 03, 2017. https://www.bloomsburyfashioncentral.com/products/berg-fashion-library/encyclopedia/the-berg-companion-to-fashion/waistcoat. The look then becomes more dressed-down, almost playful — suitable for a relaxed evening on the town rather than a serious business event.

Hill, Daniel Delis. History of World Costume and Fashion. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2011. http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/768100950. For women, the vest arrives later and takes several forms before resembling the menswear garment familiar today:Formal waistcoats often feature lapels, which is uncommon on most other vests. They tend to be cut much lower in the front than the waistcoats that accompany three-piece suits, leaving more of the formal dress shirt visible. After a first waistcoat, the decision of how often to wear vested garments is really every man’s choice. Any style worn without variation gets boring, so don’t be “the vest guy”— but have at least a few standing by for days when a little extra flair is called for. Vests and waistcoats are elegant garments that add more to an outfit than most accesories. They can add formality to suits, style to unmatched outfits, comfort to casual wear, or warmth to business dress in cool weather.