Comments on: Dressing Sharp in Hot Weather: The Guayabera

By: A.M.

A.M. — Sat, 13 Apr 2013 16:34:41 +0000

Thank you Antonio for mentioning the Philippines in the Guayabera equation. As Calvin correctly stated it is called the Barong in this part of the world. It must have crossed the oceans I posit from the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade. There are some articles that state that the Guayabera was once called the Filipina in Mexico. It is really hard for sure to say where it originated. In the Philippines, it was traditionally tucked out because the Spanish colonial authorities wanted to make sure that the natives bore no concealed weapons. The Barong Tagalog is long sleeved and the Polo Barong is short sleeved. Interestingly, the last 10 years have seen the use of the Latin American design for Guayaberas. Thus businessmen in Manila use either Polo Barongs or Guayaberas. If the Philippine origins are true, the Guayabera was exported and re-imported back into the Philippines.

By: Charles

Charles — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 01:26:17 +0000

I love the look and have been fortunate enough to find PLENTY in Miami at a very reasonable price. I wear them when the weather in south FL reaches 80 and above. Excellent for casual/dressy wear when paired with linen slacks !

By: Kamron

Kamron — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 15:11:25 +0000

Guayaberas rock! We call them Bush Jackets here in Jamaica (as in outdoors and not G. “Dubya” Bush). We wear them for work (I’m an Environmental Health Officer), Doctors, Pharmacists, Medical Technologists, Radiographers, Male Nurses and pretty much any other occupation in the Health Field here wear them.

Trust me, a well tailored bush jacket with some wicked neat straight flat front pants and a stylish pair of shoes makes you look like you mean business. All mine are short sleeved. They come in quite handy with the extra pockets, I work on the road a lot and do a tonne of walking so thats when the extra pockets make sense since a satchel can be a bit cumbersome at times.

By: Tora

Tora — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 07:24:26 +0000

If any of AoM readers travels to Guadalajara (Mexico’s 2nd largest city), you could get a custom made, high-quality Guayabera (they also sell pre-made high quality guayaberas) in this adress:
8 de Julio #156 Col. Centro.
phone: 36-58-57-69.

By: Debra Torres

Debra Torres — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 02:15:03 +0000

Hi Andrew,
I am not offended. But I can ensure you that my branded shirts don’t compare to something that retails for 1/5 the price. My shirts are designer quality made to order in NYC and are priced comparable to a product made in such a way. I totally understand price sensitivity and that’s why I also carry guayabera shirts on my website starting at $45. There is a big difference in fabric used and stitching quality, to say the least. But price is an issue sometimes, so we try to meet the needs of that customer as well.

By: Andrew

Andrew — Sun, 25 Nov 2012 08:32:43 +0000

Ms. Torres, no offense to you, but the prices for your shirts are absolutely astronomical! Wow! You can get these same shirts at a men’s big and tall store for 1/5 the price.

By: Samuel

Samuel — Sun, 25 Nov 2012 03:51:36 +0000

If you do find yourself in the tropics, try wearing a pith helmet. I’m not being facetious, I’m entirely serious. Not only does it look cool (lends to a “gentleman explorer” look, when added to other safari garb), but they’re (surprisingly) practical and quite comfortable.
I wore one when I visited French Guyana: it was lightweight; protected me marvellously from the sun; had good ventilation; and retains water like a super-sponge, so that I could soak it in to keep my head extra cool, without the water dripping all over my shoulders.

I understand that they’re quite popular amongst populaces of South-East Asia, particularly Vietnam.

By: Debra Torres

Debra Torres — Sat, 24 Nov 2012 03:30:49 +0000

Hi Antonio: I came across this post after finding the image on Pinterest. I designed the darker “denim” blue guayabera in short sleeves. And I also carry D’Accord guayaberas on my website at http://www.debratorres.com. I love the post you did and hope it helps shed light on the beauty and versatility of the guayabera. It may be a little ethnic for some, but trust me, nothing beats a nice guayabera for looking sophisticated in the summer heat…thank you for sharing the story.

By: B L Salsbury

B L Salsbury — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 21:27:47 +0000

Where can I go to order these to fit my short heavy (5′-8″–220 lbs.) frame ..I leave in Naples Fl . ……and I have been looking for them …..thank you

By: Pwag

Pwag — Fri, 02 Nov 2012 01:30:01 +0000

I like the look at these, but am having issues with the fact that they look like bowling shirts fat guys gravitate to in order to avoid tucking in their shirts.

I do a lot of hot weather fishing and carry a handgun and this looks like I may have to deal with my prejudices and adopt one of these for utilitarian purposes.