Trying to help my husband with building a style with a classic menswear pieces :)

Hello everyone,
I ve been reading posts on this forum for a while, but sometimes things are a bit complicated for me
so I would like to ask you guys for some advices.
My husband recently started working at the exclusive hotel as a part of marketing management team.
Suit and tie is a must, no improvisation nothing casual.

So far he has this.

Navy suit
Gray
Black

shoes
black
brown

ties
red,blue,black,gray

shirts
white
dark gray (green undertone)
dark gray (blue undertone)




this is the gray suit ....i dont know if it is visible but it has some sort of shiny texture so in the bright daylight it appears sort of silver but i think it is medium gray

the black one has a super fine texture almost like there is no texture and it also has some sort of shine in it ...you can see the difference between my plain black blazer/jacket







the last one is navy







the color is less saturated like the last one ( i think it is the same zara suit from their look book) and there is a interesting pattern texture


also you could see one pair of shoes on the last photo
...it is really hard to describe the color it s not tan it s not sand we had difficulties finding the right matching belt color for them

the black shoes

http://www.amazon.com/GIORGIO-ARMANI-Leather-Wingtip-Oxfords/dp/B00VQR705Y

We both those because they were on special sale and the quality is really amazing I would also like to heras some opinion about them are they to fancy? I am aware that they are not a classic formal dress shoes- they have open lacing some broguieng... but the leather makes them more dressy

also he has this boots but im not sure if they are right for any of thous suits (or suits at all)



I wonder if they would be more formal if i could make the leather more shiny and dye them in cognac or oxblood?


We are very afraid of any mixing so so far he wears only white shirts and his everyday choice is the navy suit.

Any suggestions what should he buy next and what should he try next?
Any comments would be much appreciated because we are really newbies in classic menswear

some outfits that we really liked
colors details they way suits is fitted ... basically classic dark but with some more modern cut and details













thanks

Ok, that's a lot in one blast. It would be easier to break it up into specific questions rather than trying to fix everything at once. Here are a few good threads to read through if you are just starting to compile a business wardrobe:
http://www.styleforum.net/t/375309/...ice-thread-improving-a-business-wardrobe/0_30
http://www.styleforum.net/t/309783/...ollowing-things-you-are-not-well-dressed/0_30

Vox deleted it, but here's a cached version of his "Practical Thoughts on Coherent Combinations for Beginners"
http://web.archive.org/web/20120711...oughts-on-coherent-combinations-for-beginners

The Put This On season 1 and 2 videos are pretty good if you are just starting too:
http://putthison.com/post/97738062833/put-this-on-season-one-put-this-on-isnt-just-a
http://putthison.com/post/97738144768/put-this-on-season-two-for-the-second-season-of


A few comments:
You aren't going to get a lot of love for a black suit around here, and most would say it is unnecessary for work.

Those shoes are all too casual, and quite frankly are pretty ugly, sorry. The tan shoes are too light to be worn with a navy suit and the leather is too casual. The boots are most definitely too casual to be worn with a suit. The Armani shoes aren't particularly good either. The broguing actually makes them more casual, not "fancy" as you put it, and that combined with the open lacing, the bizarre mix of a cap toe and wingtip, and the odd contrasting suede stripe on the side makes them not particularly appropriate for a suit either.

He really should get a basic black cap toe with closed lacing. The "starter" black bal that gets recommended a lot is the Allen Edmonds Park Ave, which you can get from the AE Shoebank:
http://www.shoebank.com/

Personally I'm not particularly a fan of the AE PA, but there's an entire thread devoted to black cap toe bals here: http://www.styleforum.net/t/362365/the-quintessential-dress-shoe-black-cap-toe-oxford/0_30

Be aware his dress shoe size will likely be smaller and/or wider than his sneaker size if he is new to nicer footwear.


Good luck!



Fred G. Unn said:

Ok, that's a lot in one blast.

Click to expand...

TWSS



unbelragazzo said:

TWSS

Click to expand...

LOL!

I understand i wanted to ask so many things at once ...
And i agree with you about the shoes but bielive it or not they were the best option at the they were bought.
And i forgot to say few things about our surrounding, here in Serbia people do wear a suit only when they have to wear it.
Usually because they work at the bank or that is a part of dress code at the company.
Other occasions would be ...wedding?? But even then most would just wear just the jacket with some half casual shoes ...and hmmm prom night ? the same thing.
So I could honestly say that i have never seen a stylish young men (around 30 years old) wearing a suit at the streets of Belgrade.
It doesn't mean that people dont look stylish but it is always some sort of smart casual and non formal.
The suits are usually from someone else (dad or uncle), too big or just too old fashioned ( think about the end of 80 ties or early 90)

There are few exceptions but they are still not half as good as people from the rest of Europe.

Also there are very few designer stores here, especially when it comes to classic menswear.
I guess we are the "sporty" nation, we have so many nike, reebook ,,,stores and we had burberry and hugo boss, but both of them are closed now.
So basically we have zara , mango, massimo dutti, beneton, h&m ,marks and spencer , c&a...and that would be it - more or less.
Shoes ?? hmmm zara,aldo.

And I think the zara and h&m are more expensive here then anywhere else in the europe.
The price for zara jacket would be around 150e the pants 80e shoes around 100e
and i guess you would agree with me about the quality...
Thats why i said that those armani shoes look at least like real leather...in zara The Black Cap Toe Oxford looks like it s made from paper not leather. It just looks awful. And we were aware that he needed black shoes as soon as possible.

So it s really not easy...

And here are some outfits of "the best dressed man" who "knows" about fashion at my husband s working place


more or less everybody else around looks like this ( Sorry Liam N.)

It sounds like you won't have much luck shopping locally then, so look at online retailers and eBay. The site "This Fits" has some good eBay and Yoox searches already set up so you can search for some better brands: http://thisfits.me/ebay

A lot of eBay sellers and web retailers now list the dimensions of the garments they are selling. I would consider measuring one of his best fitting suits, shirts, etc., and look for things that approximate those measurements. Shoes of course are a bit trickier, but there is a ton of information about lasts and fit in some of the various shoe threads here.

Is this serious? Surely he can dress himself and in any event he should look at his peers and follow their lead.

GBR said:

Is this serious? Surely he can dress himself and in any event he should look at his peers and follow their lead.

Click to expand...

It is serious, and as soon as he finds some time he will ask for more questions.He asked me for some help.And as I said before there are not many people around him, or I should say at all here, that he could follow. I am not playing some sort of "dress the paper doll" game. Everything i showed here is something that he likes, or he made a final decision about purchasing that thing.

For example he really wanted that gray suit, and first he bought the jacket to wear with some black trousers. Later he bought the suit trousers that went with the jacket.
My choice was the navy suit, to be honest i insisted on buying the navy and the black one ... Now the navy suit is his favorite and he never had a chance to wear the black suit.

About the shoes I wanted to go with the more classic look but he didnt like them and said that they look to plain and cheap ( the price was the same ) so his choice was to buy that one.

I am really very thankful about everything you said and i will read more and I will ask more

Although not favored on this forum, black suits are certainly very common in Europe, and your husband won't stand out in one. I think his priority is to upgrade the shoes. Suits aren't ideal but they can wait until he gets better shoes. Agree with plain black and dark brown cap toe or punch cap shoes. What about the ties; can we see those too?

He bought some basic ties simple and the wide of all of them is matched with lapels of his suits...

his collection (the first one is navy )


i will take some pictures of my husband in his suit in the morning before he goest to work
the herringbone and the othe gray one was a present so he bought green,blue,navy,red and black one

Im not sure what are those marked with red, but i think i get it - the first 3 are formal and must have shoes ??
also they should be with closed lacing ? Am I getting things right ???

tnx

I wouldn't say that they are must haves, certainly not the far right one that is checked. My wife works in the luxury hotel industry so, from what I've seen, I would say that any one of (from left to right, and ranked in that order of preference) the 2nd to 4th shoes would be perfectly acceptable.

The main thing is for your husband to take things slow and not buy too many things at once. Once you get him a pair of work shoes, you can slowly add/upgrade items as you go along. But definitely take your time as you don't want to buy a bunch of things and then regret some of the purchases later, speaking from experience.

Good shoes are really important to business outfits. Buying two good pairs, one black and one brown, would be a good start. Picking something conservative (e.g. captoe) is always a good bet.

In terms of color, gray and navy suits are the easiest to wear. Your husband could try some pale blue shirts as an easy alternative to white. Wearing the same suit with different shirts and ties will stretch his wardrobe. A navy suit with white shirt and black tie can look quite sharp, and you can achieve a different look with a blue shirt and green tie with the very same suit. Gray suits are also a good neutral backdrop for different shirts and ties. I'd try to create a few different combinations for each suit.

Shopping online for suits is tough, but shirts and ties are pretty easy to buy online. Lots of folks on this forum use Luxeswap.com via ebay. The owner is a member here, and he sells only good stuff.

Good luck!



EyeCandy said:

Am I getting things right ???

Click to expand...

Close, but not exactly. 3rd one is often called a quarter brogue, 4th a semi or half brogue (or perf cap), wingtip is also referred to as a full brogue, 6th is just a mess that should never have been made. Not pictured, but a shoe with an apron on the vamp and a seam at the front is called a Norweger, Norwegian, or Norwegian split toe (NST).



EyeCandy said:

It is serious, and as soon as he finds some time he will ask for more questions.He asked me for some help.And as I said before there are not many people around him, or I should say at all here, that he could follow. I am not playing some sort of "dress the paper doll" game. Everything i showed here is something that he likes, or he made a final decision about purchasing that thing.

For example he really wanted that gray suit, and first he bought the jacket to wear with some black trousers. Later he bought the suit trousers that went with the jacket.
My choice was the navy suit, to be honest i insisted on buying the navy and the black one ... Now the navy suit is his favorite and he never had a chance to wear the black suit.

About the shoes I wanted to go with the more classic look but he didnt like them and said that they look to plain and cheap ( the price was the same ) so his choice was to buy that one.

I am really very thankful about everything you said and i will read more and I will ask more

Click to expand...

I, jel si uspela nesto da nadjes ili ti jos treba pomoc?
Znam o cemu pricas, Beograd je, na zalost pustinja za pristojnu musku odecu. ;-)