What to Wear to Christmas Lunch in Australia: A Men's Guide
Share
Wear a long-sleeved linen shirt with the sleeves rolled, tailored shorts or light trousers, and leather sandals or loafers. That covers the backyard, the beach and the family table, and for a restaurant you swap the shorts for trousers and the sandals for closed shoes. A shirt in one clear colour, a strawberry pink or a strong sky blue, does the festive work, so the novelty shirt can stay in the drawer.
I make shirts in Napoli, where Christmas falls in winter. Yours lands in the middle of summer, and that changes the whole brief. You are dressing for heat, for sun, for a long table that runs into the evening, and for a family that will notice if you turn up in a singlet. This is how I would think about it.
Start with the heat, then the dress code
Christmas lunch in Australia is a summer meal. Here are the average December highs in each capital, from Bureau of Meteorology records for 1991 to 2020, rounded to the nearest degree.
| City | Average December high |
|---|---|
| Darwin | 33°C |
| Brisbane | 30°C |
| Perth | 30°C |
| Adelaide | 28°C |
| Canberra | 27°C |
| Sydney | 26°C |
| Melbourne | 25°C |
| Hobart | 21°C |
Those are averages. Any given Christmas Day can run well above them. Picture a Brisbane backyard at 30 degrees, lunch under a sail shade, the table set for twelve and the sun sliding off the shade by two o'clock. Whatever you wear has to cope with three or four hours of that.
So the first rule is fabric. Synthetic shirts trap heat and damp against your back, and heavy cotton is slow to dry. Linen breathes and dries quickly, which is why it is the obvious choice for a hot lunch. I wrote about the reasons in the physics of linen in heat.
The second rule is coverage. Cancer Council's SunSmart advice is to wear clothing that covers as much skin as possible, and it names shirts with long sleeves. It also says to seek shade whenever the UV index is 3 or above. A long-sleeved linen shirt with the cuffs rolled once is the practical answer. Roll them down when you walk from the shade to the barbecue.
Match the outfit to the setting
Think of four kinds of Christmas lunch: the backyard, the beach or park, the family table indoors and the restaurant. Each asks for something slightly different. The shirt can stay the same. What changes is everything below the belt.
| Setting | Shirt | Bottoms | Shoes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Backyard | Linen shirt, Italian collar, untucked, sleeves rolled | Tailored shorts or linen drawstring trousers | Leather sandals or loafers, no socks |
| Beach or park | Linen shirt worn open over swimmers, sleeves down in full sun | Swim shorts or tailored shorts | Thongs or leather sandals |
| Family table indoors | Linen shirt, one button open, tucked or neatly untucked | Light trousers or linen trousers | Loafers |
| Restaurant | Linen shirt, Italian or mandarin collar, pressed that morning | Trousers, not shorts | Closed shoes, leather or suede |
The backyard is where it is easiest to underdress. A T-shirt and board shorts is fine for the cricket afterwards. It is less fine at a table where someone has put out the good glasses. A collar is the smallest thing that says you made an effort.
The beach is the easiest. Wear the shirt over your swimmers, take it off to swim, put it back on when you come out. Cancer Council points out that UV can still reach you by reflection, off water for example, even when you are in the shade, so the long sleeves earn their place here more than anywhere.
The family table indoors carries the most expectation. Someone has ironed a tablecloth. Meet them halfway with trousers rather than shorts and a shirt you pressed that morning.
A restaurant is the most dressed of the four. Trousers and closed shoes are the floor. A jacket is optional, and on a hot day you will carry it more than wear it.
Colour does the festive work
It is Christmas, and colour is allowed. You do not need a shirt printed with reindeer to show it. One strong colour, worn well, says more.
Two work especially well at an Australian Christmas table. Fragola, a warm strawberry pink, sits naturally beside the prawns, the cherries and the pavlova, which are already the colours of the day. Cielo, a strong midday sky blue, is the quieter festive move, and it suits a man who would never wear pink. Both look like you tried. Neither looks like a costume.
If red and green are the family tradition, Olive Grove, a dusty green that leans towards brown, gives you the green without the tinsel. Coral Pink is the other pink in the range, bolder than Fragola, if you want the colour turned up.
The honest trade-off is with the dark shirts. A dark shirt absorbs more sun than a light one. Midnight Blue is a good shirt for an evening restaurant booking, but at a one o'clock backyard lunch in direct sun you will feel it. Keep the dark colours for the shade, indoors or after sunset, and wear the lighter ones outside. For a walk through all thirteen, see which Positano colourway to buy.
Plan for the afternoon after lunch
Christmas lunch rarely ends at lunch. It turns into backyard cricket, a swim, a nap in the shade and leftovers at six. Your outfit has to last through all of it.
The weather can move in the arvo, too. In Sydney, the Bureau of Meteorology describes the southerly buster, a southerly wind change that comes mostly between October and February, with the stronger ones reaching Sydney in the late afternoon or early evening. When one comes through, falls of 10 to 15°C in less than an hour often happen. Melbourne has its own version, which locals call the cool change, when a hot afternoon gives way to a swift drop in temperature. Picture the leftover prawns on the table, the wind turning, and the temperature down ten degrees before the pavlova is cleared.
Two things help. Keep a light knit or an overshirt in the car. And choose the long-sleeved shirt in the first place, because sleeves rolled down are often all the extra warmth you need for an hour.
Then the creases. By four o'clock a linen shirt that has been sat in, leaned on and hugged by every aunt will be creased. That is real linen doing what it does. If it bothers you, hang it in a steamy bathroom for ten minutes before the evening. There is more on this in how to stop linen wrinkling.
If Boxing Day means the Test at the MCG, in 2026 against New Zealand from 26 December, the same thinking carries over. Long sleeves, a light colour and a wide-brimmed hat, since Cancer Council notes that caps and visors do not give enough protection. Pack a second shirt rather than rewearing the one with gravy on it.
What I would wear from Santoli Napoli
I will be open about my bias. I make linen shirts in Napoli, and I think Christmas lunch in an Australian summer is close to the ideal day for one.
For most men, the Positano Capsule is the place to start. Italian collar, 100% Italian linen at 180 GSM, cut and sewn in Napoli in small runs, A$199 in Australia. Fragola or Cielo for the festive table. Pescatore, a heathered worn blue close to chambray, if you want something that looks lived in from the first wear. For a restaurant, the Sand mandarin collar looks finished with the top open and no tie. Pair any of them with linen drawstring trousers for the family table.
Linen suits this day because the day is long, hot and spent half in the sun. It breathes, it dries quickly, and it softens with every wash, so the shirt you wear this Christmas will be softer by the next one. Machine wash cold, hang dry.
The honest catch. Linen wrinkles, and by the pavlova yours will be creased. That is real linen, and at a summer lunch I think it looks right, but if you need a crisp shirt at six o'clock, linen is the wrong fabric. The fit is relaxed and tailored, close through the shoulder, so if you are between sizes, size up.
A shirt also makes an easy Christmas gift, and if you do not know his size, a gift card solves it. Three or more shirts take 10% off automatically, which helps if you are buying for the family. Orders ship from Florida within one business day and usually reach Australia in 7 to 10 business days, so order with time to spare. The week before Christmas is not when you want to be refreshing the tracking page.
Frequently asked questions
Is a linen shirt too casual for Christmas lunch?
No. A collared linen shirt in a clear colour reads as dressed for a summer lunch in Australia. For a restaurant, pair it with trousers and closed shoes rather than shorts and sandals.
Can I wear shorts to Christmas lunch?
At a backyard or beach lunch, yes. Tailored shorts with a collared linen shirt and leather sandals is a sound outfit. For a restaurant or a more formal family table indoors, trousers are the safer choice.
What colour shirt should a man wear on Christmas Day in Australia?
One clear colour does the festive work without a novelty print. Strawberry pink or a strong sky blue suits a summer table. Keep darker shirts for the shade, indoors or the evening, because a dark shirt absorbs more sun.
Should I wear long sleeves in the heat?
Yes, if the fabric is light. Cancer Council's SunSmart advice is to cover as much skin as possible, including shirts with long sleeves. A long-sleeved linen shirt with the cuffs rolled lets you cover up whenever you leave the shade.
How long does delivery to Australia take?
Orders ship from Florida within one business day and usually arrive in Australia in 7 to 10 business days. There is no duty on orders under A$1,000, and GST is collected at checkout, so nothing extra is due at the door. Order with time to spare before Christmas.
What if a shirt I give as a gift is the wrong size?
Returns are accepted within 30 days of delivery, with return postage paid by the customer. Sizes run M, L, XL and 2XL, and our model is 180 cm and 85 kg and wears L. For conversions, see the Australian and NZ sizing guide or the size guide.
Will a linen shirt survive a whole Christmas Day?
It will crease, and it will keep you comfortable. Press it that morning, hang it rather than folding it, and expect soft creases by the afternoon. That is real linen, and it softens with every wash.