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Help with a good basic wardrobe for the office

post #1 of 16
4/4/12 at 11:19am
Thread Starter 
Hi everyone,

I'm gonna start working at one of the big 4 accounting firms in a few months and I need some advice.

I'm a student right now and I don't have that many business outfits at the moment.
So I'm planning to buy some clothes the next months to build up a good basic wardrobe for my job.

This is my plane:

3 suits - 1 navy, 1 charcoal, 1 mid grey.

3 shoes - 1 black oxfords, 1 dark brown oxfords, 1 black derby.

10 shirts - 3 white (where of 1 with french cuff), 2 light blue, 2 light blue striped, 1 light blue checkered, 1 light purple, white and black checkered.

4 ties - navy with white dots, burgundy with white dots, brown, grey wool.


What do you think about this?
All advice and comments are welcome!
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post #2 of 16
4/4/12 at 11:28am

i think you are great at counting and categorizing things so you should be a great accountant.

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post #3 of 16
4/4/12 at 11:33am

Suits sound good. Stay solid for the first 3, but think about texture. Maybe a herringbone or something for the fabric.

 

Trade out the black derbies for a medium brown or burgundy semi-brogue.

 

Trade out the last 2 shirts for a few more ties. Maybe a grenadine or two.

 

What's your budget for this list, out of curiosity? It may be better to up the quality, and do half the shirts, just the first 2 pairs of shoes and keep the ties the same as your list to free up several hundred to add to the quality of the suits and shoes.

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post #4 of 16
4/4/12 at 11:46am
You've got the right idea. But nitpicking:

-I'd eschew the purple shirt.
- your patterned to solid shirt ratio is high for my taste - get more light blue solids in different shades and weaves in lieu of the black and white checkered shirt and one of the stripes
-There's also no particular reason for having one french cuff shirt. I'd just keep it all barrels.
-Lay off the wool tie until you get a few more silks, including grenadine solid as suggested.

Finally, and most importantly:

DO NOT ACQUIRE THIS ALL AT ONCE. Spend a while figuring out one suit to buy. Doesn't really matter which one you start with. Get it tailored and wear it a couple of times with a new shirt. If you like it, then go to the same maker or store or whatever for the other two.
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post #5 of 16
4/4/12 at 11:50am
Thread Starter 
Actually, I haven't think about any budget yet.

But I have a pair of black derby right now, and I think I'm gonna buy the oxfords at crockett & jones.
You may be right about the shirts. I like Eton, but I only have 2 right now (white & light blue), so probably I stay with eton or something similiar.
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post #6 of 16
4/4/12 at 11:55am
Where are you located? I'd suggest getting made-to-measure shirts - you can do this online but it might take a couple of iterations before they get it right. Or if you're in NYC you could go to CEGO. Brooks Brothers has a MTM program too I think. Once you've tried the difference between a MTM shirt and an off the rack shirt, I think you'll be happy with the decision.
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post #7 of 16
4/4/12 at 12:10pm
Thread Starter 
I'm located in scandinavia...
You are probably right about the MTM shirts unbelragazzo. Of course it will be more expensive for me, but perhaps I should start with only 5-6 shirts and go for quality instead. But can you really have just 5-6 shirts when worn shirt to work every day?
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post #8 of 16
4/4/12 at 12:13pm

Looks like a solid plan with some sound advice to boot. I'd also swap out the black derbys for something like an oxblood brogue. And definitely don't rush this process. Don't buy anything you aren't absolutely stoked on.

 

What weights are you thinking for the suits? All worsted wool for all-season? That would certainly maximize your bang for your buck. If you live somewhere colder maybe make the charcoal a flannel?

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post #9 of 16
4/4/12 at 12:31pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Stirre View Post

I'm located in scandinavia...
You are probably right about the MTM shirts unbelragazzo. Of course it will be more expensive for me, but perhaps I should start with only 5-6 shirts and go for quality instead. But can you really have just 5-6 shirts when worn shirt to work every day?

Sure - I really only have 5 that I wear on a regular basis. Especially if you wear undershirts, you can wear a dress shirt a couple of times before laundering without problems. And you can add more gradually. If you go the online MTM route, for instance MyTailor or ModernTailor, I think you can get shirts for less than $100, which isn't too bad. Shipping might be more for you though, not sure how that works for Scandinavia.
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post #10 of 16
4/4/12 at 12:34pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Maegnus View Post

Looks like a solid plan with some sound advice to boot. I'd also swap out the black derbys for something like an oxblood brogue. And definitely don't rush this process. Don't buy anything you aren't absolutely stoked on.

What weights are you thinking for the suits? All worsted wool for all-season? That would certainly maximize your bang for your buck. If you live somewhere colder maybe make the charcoal a flannel?

The problem is that I don't like brogues....but I'm still a young man and I will probably like it some day that so many other grown up things here in life, like beer, single malt and coffe.smile.gif

Worsted wool for all season, yes. That was my plan.
Do you think brown oxfords is good choice for my "second shoes" after the black oxfords? I personally like dark brown oxfords a lot, but I've been told from "experts" that a dark brown brogue will be a better choice. But I don't agree...
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post #11 of 16
4/4/12 at 12:35pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Stirre View Post

The problem is that I don't like brogues....but I'm still a young man and I will probably like it some day that so many other grown up things here in life, like beer, single malt and coffe.smile.gif
Worsted wool for all season, yes. That was my plan.
Do you think brown oxfords is good choice for my "second shoes" after the black oxfords? I personally like dark brown oxfords a lot, but I've been told from "experts" that a dark brown brogue will be a better choice. But I don't agree...

In cases like this, let your own preferences guide you. There's certainly nothing wrong with brown oxfords. If you like them, go with them.
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post #12 of 16
4/4/12 at 12:43pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by unbelragazzo View Post


In cases like this, let your own preferences guide you. There's certainly nothing wrong with brown oxfords. If you like them, go with them.


This.

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post #13 of 16
4/4/12 at 1:00pm
Thread Starter 
Thank you for comments, I really appreciate it.
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post #14 of 16
4/6/12 at 2:39am
Thread Starter 
Perhaps I'm gonna trust you and go with solid colors.

This should be a good start I think:
2 white
2 light blue
1 light blue striped

Then add 1 more of each after a while when I know what I like and what I need.
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post #15 of 16
4/6/12 at 2:53am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Off My Rack View Post

Suits sound good. Stay solid for the first 3, but think about texture. Maybe a herringbone or something for the fabric.


Maybe navy and mid grey as solid and the dark grey as herringbone for example?

I really like the herringbone pattern, gives more life to the suit. But it's not as formal as a solid, right?
I still need at least one or two solid suits...?
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