Suit buying advice from a butler.

[chasea]

hey i re-read something in there.....who the hell wears a suit with no belt?

that sounds (and looks) ridiculous.

i (and the world) would be staring at my superman underoos if no muffin top suspension device was in place.

1. Get a tailor.

2. If your tailor wears a belt, fire your tailor.

3. Repeat step 1.

[HorsCat]

hey i re-read something in there.....who the hell wears a suit with no belt?

he who wears suspenders.

the op gave solid advice. for my $$, the only thing worse than a suit, is a suit and a tie! i should know - my job, such as it is, demands that i wear one quite often.

[54ny77]

zing!

hey man, i gave up bulk of my collection of snazzy stuff long ago....

the local homeless shelter on 77th st. probably had an enjoyable laugh when checking out the bags o' donated schwag. you know what? it felt positively wonderful to put it in hands of a good cause.

it was, however, a sad day when their funding got cut thanks to ol' bloomberg the grinch and shut it down. bah humbug.

on topic though, i couldn't imagine stuffing into a pair of pants without a belt unless i was about 30 lbs lighter. then it'd look right.

if you're sporting a few xtra gel packs in the midsection such as yours truly, and of course depending on the use of pants/suit, a belt is a necessity.

i love the feel of suspenders by the way, but they're so friggin' dorky these days and any of my colleagues over the years would be relentless with ridicule towards those who wore them.

i once worked with a guy--a very old man who still came to work at least 4 days a week--who wore not only suspenders but a bowtie and occasional bolo hat. boy was he was cool. the cane was the crowning touch. since he was the father of a lot of modern corporate gobbledygook that many generations of hacks after him would depend on for their livelihood, he could pull that look off in style and people wouldn't dare/dream of saying something derogatory.

oh for the record, bud fox and his sidekick gordon gekko really fucked up the heretofore semi-acceptable nature of suspenders. there's been an air of 80's overhang ever since. those two dorks, and urkel, killed the suspenders market....

he who wears suspenders.

the op gave solid advice. for my $$, the only thing worse than a suit, is a suit and a tie! i should know - my job, such as it is, demands that i wear one quite often.

[AbeNP]

My work uniform:

White shirt, black tie, pinstripe pants, vest, morning coat, black socks, black cap-toes (polished), white gloves.

wait a minute. So a job that requires white gloves doesn't require properly buttoned collar tips?

[chasea]

You don't wear a button down collar with a tuxedo.

[happycampyer]

My work uniform:

White shirt, black tie, pinstripe pants, vest, morning coat, black socks, black cap-toes (polished), white gloves.

You aren't Mr. Peanut by any chance?

[jonnycomelately]

You aren't Mr. Peanut by any chance?

Dammit! Must clean beer off keyboard!

[54ny77]

happy thanks 4 the chuckle. that was solid.

[Uncle Jam's Army]

One other tip re vents. Dual vents are the way to go, particularly if you have a substantial derriere.

Also, functioning buttons on a suit coat are an anachronism in today's age. Nobody pulls up their suit sleeves at work anymore. Save the money and buy a tire instead.

[bellman]

You aren't Mr. Peanut by any chance?

This right here is solid effing gold.

Good thread btw Chase, thanks for posting it. If I ever need a suit i'll look you up.

[chasea]

Functioning buttons on a suit coat (we're talking the buttons on the sleeves, here) don't serve much purpose... other than indicating the overall quality of the work put into the garment. So while, no, you won't actually use them, they are a good indicator that the workmanship is of high caliber.

[lavi]

Good thread. Thanks for the offering up the advice. I play a business dude by day and suits can be part of my "uniform". For me, I've never really preferred button down collars, for anything. That's just personal preference.

I'll have to start paying more attention to pleats and cuffs on suits. For me, a traditional business suit has these things. For whatever reason, I also look the look of cuffs. Like I said, I'll have to start paying attention to what others are wearing though. The last thing I want is to look like a took a dump in my pants...that was a very funny descriptor.

[Til Dropp]

What is the deal with the lapel trend these days? I'm starting to think I shouldn't get rid of my older style (but perfectly good) suits and jackets anymore.

It seems anything goes these days or at least it seems to me to be heading that direction. Yes peaked is the new "in" style for the last few years now, though here in US it's always few years slower for these fashionable currents to arrive/take hold than elsewhere... a conservative bunch that we are. As far as the lapel style chronology is concerned there was definite shift from the two button with notched widish lapel in sometime around late 80s(?) to the three button suits until the notched narrow lapel two button small-shortish suits were the new in-style. The gorge, then, started to creep up higher and higher. European suits had such high gorge they nearly seemed to disappear over the shoulders! Then came the "peaked". You can even see peaked lapels on women's clothes.

A year or two ago I bought a pair of two button suits with notched (kinda high gorge but not Euro way high gorge) narrowish lapels and dual vents. Right around that's when the peaked lapel started to become popular on the other sides of the ponds it seemed however so far I don't feel much like I'm a peaked lapel person other than maybe on tux. I kinda feel I lucked out that these suits don't feel too dated thus far thanks to the certain resistance to the peaked lapels by the populous... so far. Is it just me or fashion these days seem to have busted wide open, ie, much less of clearly defined trends.

[quickag]

No belt? Really? Guess I never considered it since I'm fattish and generally don't wear suits. So the no belt rule is just for when wearing jackets, right? Any place that makes customish nice shoes that aren't too expensive? I have caveman feet...

[Eddie]

A properly tailored suit should not require the use of a leather strap to keep the trousers in place. Nor suspenders.

-Chase

A lofty goal for everyday wear, maybe. "Proper," yes.

[Jonathan]

looking good in a suit is not unlike looking good on a bike. Being fit is the key.

[Too Tall]

Chase, should I move this thread?

[chasea]

Chase, should I move this thread?

Yes, please do. Thank you.

[Ben]

I have opinions.

As a general rule, cuffs are correct on patterned suit pants, but not on solid.
A shawl collar is the only way to go on a tux.
Every time I see a four-in-hand knot, I think "that guy doesn't know how to tie a tie." They look awful, people. Awful.
In the right context, on the right body, in the right fabric, nothing looks better than a double-breasted suit.
Socks should match the pants. It makes your legs look longer.
Your waist is higher than you think. Jeans and suit pants should not sit at the same place.
The rule about dark suits may prevail north of the Mason-Dixon, but south of it? Hardly.
I wish I looked less stupid in a hat.

[gt6267a]

i wear this every day. sometimes with a pair of alden cordovan's--but only if it's really important...



(while some of you think i'm joking, my wife will assure you i'm not...)

ok, i'll bite. where are you going in those pants and alden's? don't get me wrong, i wear church loafers and jeans all the time, but my church loafers rarely make it to the pottery studio. BTW, these look pretty sweet, Alden Shoes | Mens Shoes | Dress Shoes | Casual Shoes | Indy Boot.