The Suit Thread

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Briansol

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Who makes a good suit for the money these days? I have a suit, but it's way too big for me now, so it's time to go get fitted for a new one.

I really don't want to spend a fortune, but I don't want to look like a dweeb from the 70s with elbow patches either.

There's a Mens Wearhouse and Jos A Bank near by that I'm going to pay a visit to tomorrow.

I know @BigJ rocks a suit for work, anyone else?
 
Neither of those options.

Suitsupply.com is a good option and they have stores in major cities.

Otherwise go custom. There's quite a few services that can put together a completely custom suit for $500ish at this point.
 
The only problem is that I need it kinda quick... Tuesday :ph34r:

closest one is NYC soho... i'm not that picky.

I just tried on my suit... lol this used to fit me tight :X yes they are buttoned. I just wore this in october to my great aunts funeral and it fit fine. geeez

I have gym shorts on under this too...

20140718_224326.jpg
 
Men's wearhouse is decent but kind of over priced.
 
Suits, in general, are over-priced. I mean, how many sheep does it take to make a frigging suit? lol

i'm looking in the ~$300 price point mostly it looks like. I can't justify more than that but I don't want to look shabby/cheap either.

my suit jacket is 48L. it's like a dress on me now. lol
I found an old sport coat in 46R. The shoulders fit good but the rest of it is baggy and the arms are too short. So, i think I need a 46Long in a slim fit/modern fit cut.
 
I bought a full suit on sale from. Mens Warehouse. Fits nice. Lifetime tailoring. I think I spent $300. Not bad imo, nothing fancy but it suffices.
 
My friends and I in lawschool hit up the JAB buy one get two free suit sales. You have to spend close to $800 for a suit, but the next two come free. Great cut, permanent creases travel well, don't know if you can do that quickly but they have a lot of sales.
 
yeah, I don't really need 3... I don't plan on wearing a suit every day to work, just for the interview process.
 
Yeah I only wear them for client meets and in court. Client meeting will probably become more routine now that I am moving from clerk to attorney, but court can be somewhat rare... which is good because I'm undefeated and want to hold on to it a bit longer, lol.
 
I got my suit for my wedding at Haggar Outlet. The pants and jacket actually look good for a $70 suit, but it the way some of their suits fit they aren't for everyone.
 
Screw men's warehouse. After pushing the founder out... No thanks.

Macy's can have some good stuff. Priced well also if It's on sale. You can also find 10-20% off coupons.

Linh bought a nice Calvin Klein women's suit from them not too long ago.

 
im pretty partial to express for a slim/modern cut suit that doesnt really need any tailoring. they usually have some kind of sale going on.
 
Went to JosABank today. I'm a 44R in a slim fit now. It's at the tailor now getting taken in a bit in the mid section because it's still to big around my waist, but a 43 jacket was too tight in the shoulders. The pants it comes with are 39's. Which are way too big even in the slim fit. So they are also getting taken in quite a bit and getting hemmed at the tailor. Lady worked with me at the store pretty good. It was nice to have customer service like the old days. Walked in and immediately was directed to the right place and she asked my budget, what i was going to wear the suit for, and started picking out a bunch of styles to try.

suit was $275, tailor is $52 and will be ready wednesday. I only meet with the recruiter guy tuesday so i don't need the suit until the client meeting anyway.
I honestly didn't know you had to tailor suits.. lol shows how much i know. my last suit was just off the shelf at kohls or something.

pretty sure its this one... traveler series
http://www.josbank.com/menswear/shop/Product_11001_10050_357165
might be a slightly different color, but its the same model line. its a nice blueish gray.... but that's what i see. lol
maybe this one...
http://www.josbank.com/menswear/shop/Product_11001_10050_411528

So, now it's time to polish up/clean the old shoes and decide what shirt and tie i want to wear.
 
You don't need to tailer a suit. Most people don't. With that being said. Most suits don't fit people correctly because they never get them fitted correctly. $52 for a correct fitting suit is a small price to pay on top of the standard price. Or be like me and pass the stuff to my mother in law. She takes care of all my clothes.
 
The pants were raw... un-hemmed. So at the very least, that needed to be done.

my mother can do buttons... i wouldn't tust her with my brand new suit
my mother in law.... doesn't exist.
 
That's pretty good deal B. I usually buy off the rack and get it tailored like that. I'm a 42L now, but until recently I was a 44 and now everything is a bit loose. If I keep the pounds off in the fall I'll get a new suit.


I think I have suits from the following:

Kenneth Cole - Piece of shit. Color gets bunched after 2 wears and needs a week or so to "rest" before it'll flatten.
Banana Republic - Meh. Wears great and gets compliments.
Brooks Brothers - Heavy wool, so mainly winter. Needs to get tailored AGAIN....
Hugo Boss - Fits great but shows every single smudge and requires cleaning all the time.
Men's wearhouse brand? - Fits good, wears good, but is super hot for being a summer suit. Bought for a wedding. Not my choice.

I actually like my banana republic ones the most. They're not anything special, if anything kind of crappy, but they wear the best, require minimal dry cleaning, and so far have held up good. Always look sharp.
I have 5 suits I think in my weekly cycle (7 total), and I hate going to the dry cleaner, so I tend to just refresh in the dryer and iron if its wrinkly and not smelly yet.
 
You don't need to tailer a suit. Most people don't. With that being said. Most suits don't fit people correctly because they never get them fitted correctly. $52 for a correct fitting suit is a small price to pay on top of the standard price. Or be like me and pass the stuff to my mother in law. She takes care of all my clothes.

Okay, I am not going to go super snob here - but I do know your taste for expensive hobbies and fine craft. You ABSOLUTELY DO NEED A SUIT TAILORED. In fact, anyone who gives a five about what they look like, will tell you to buy a CHEAP suit and spend more money on a GOOD TAILOR. You can make a well tailored, cheap suit, look like a $1,000 suit. You can easily make a $5,000 Zegna look like a $300 suit if it is not tailored well.

Two rules about suits.
Always have the suit tailored.
Never buy a black suit (except for a funeral).

Third rule is by a jacket that has shoulders that fit well. If the shoulders don't fit well, you need a really good tailor and generally to spend more money than the jacket is worth, to fix it.

Everything else - euro cut versus traditional, side vents versus center vents, 2 button versus 3 button - all of that stuff is up for debate and can change based on body type and use of the suit.

Your best BASIC all around suit? 2 Button, Navy Blue suit that is well tailored and that is worn with some variation of brown dress shoes.

About 8 years ago, I used to buy my suits at Jos A Bank when I thought I knew what I was doing by spending $800 on 3 suits. Sadly most of their suits are behind the times and were far too baggy and pleated to fit in, in today's work world. I actually have the suits hanging in the closet and I just can't wear them anymore knowing how out of style the suit is for today's day and age. They were out of style back then, too.

They may have some decent stuff in the store that you can find but it is generally overpriced. If you know what to look for, you can do fine at a Macy's, Jos A Bank, or Mens Warehouse. Out of those three, I would choose Macy's house brand in the red label variant which is their slim fit/euro cut. You also have the option to buy suit separates there which would have probably worked much better for you than having a 39inch waist tailored. Could have bought a 44R jacket and 32, 34 or 36in pants that could then be tailored where needed and far less cuts would need to be made.
 
There wasn't anything priced right in the separates line. the 37" slim fit pants fit the best. So, the 39's aren't too too bad. I have thicker legs than most (i never skip leg day :D) so having a little baggy in the legs with still a slim cut actually fits me pretty good.

So i got a grey ish blue 2 button with side vents, so i think i did ok.
i didn't care for the navy they had.... it looked like something my dad would wear. And maybe that's to your point about it being out of date.


This will do for now. If I need more, i'll try a different store.
 
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