10 suit wardrobe

[Balfour]

...2 cotton suits from Loro Piana cotton. 1 khaki the other Brown or Cream.

Interesting. Genuine question - a lot of advice out there suggests staying with open weave wool for summerweight suits (e.g. fresco) and avoiding cotton because of the wear issues. Do you think high quality cotton suits are a worthwhile investment?

 

[David Reeves]



Interesting.  Genuine question - a lot of advice out there suggests staying with open weave wool for summerweight suits (e.g. fresco) and avoiding cotton because of the wear issues.  Do you think high quality cotton suits are a worthwhile investment?

Well as I am sure your aware there are wools and there are wools and I feel the same goes for cotton as well. Although it may seem like more of a throw away item I find that a good quality cotton does wear and look a lot better than the inexpensive OTR options. It gets very hot in NYC and cotton suits are useful to me as suits and as separate jackets.

All that being said I have two cotton suits myself in khaki and brown and I chose to have them made up in my mid range make rather than Bespoke because of potential wear issues. Then again I don't usually have anywhere near the income of my clients so I have to be a bit economical personally, but if I was even a "mere" millionaire I would have them made Bespoke anyway.

After wearing the two cotton suits over two summers I have noticed some wear but I think it adds a bit of character to the suits, theres no holes or tearing. I supplemented them with a wool and silk 7 oz this year but I found it looked rather out of place on the hottest days.

A lot of tailors don't advise cotton mainly because its nearly as expensive as wool and because they aren't often good at making things up in it.

 

[Tropicalist]

Assuming 10 suits (Not including odd jackets) here is what is hanging in my closet

1) navy plain - escorial and mohair fresco
2) charcoal plain- wool and cashmere
3) mid grey plain-worsted- wool mohair fresco weave
4) solaro/khaki -cotton , unlined
5) navy pinstripe - heavier milled worsted
6) charcoal with windowpane check- cashmere and wool
7) blue /grey glen plaid db, wool mohair fresco
8) natural Irish linen unlined
9) seersucker in blue stripes, unlined
10) navy with Micro stripes in blue, Escorial
11)navy with chalk stripes- cashmere with wool

My overcoats are in natural camel and goes with 90% of the suita

 

[Gus]

I think the staples of a good suit wardrobe depend upon where you live, it's climate and where you work.

 

[Will]

If you wear a suit to work most days you will will have more flexibility with two casual suits instead of five, and a glen check that can go both ways.

 

[MikeDT]

1) Mao suit, blue polyester.
2) still thinking....

 

[Despos]



Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

Think seasons, not degree of formality. At only ten, you really don't have much room for strictly casual suits. So:

5 flannel (navy, air force blue, charcoal, medium grey, light grey)
5 fresco (same colors, but feel free to ditch the charcoal and/or navy for lighter colors)

Worst advice in this thread

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

I think the staples of a good suit wardrobe depend upon where you live, it's climate and where you work.

Best advice in this thread

Everything you pick should fit your personality and fit in with your workplace. Having your wardrobe made gives you control over every detail.
My experience is clients tend to buy in one general weight for the bulk of the wardrobe. The weight they choose is different for everyone. Have clients who wear 18 ounce twills in Texas summers and others who think 9 ounce is winter weight. It depends on your tolerance and preference but it is good to know what weights you can be comfortable wearing. You will also want to form an opinion about texture, what you like and don't like.

Look at navy blue and pick the home runs in several patterns, the cloths you are drawn to.
Edit down and pick 3 or 4. You might end up with...

Navy beaded stripe. I like the contrast of a silver stripe against navy more than grey. Beaded stripes are more lively. Pick the width between stripes you like most.
Navy hopsack. The texture will give you options how to wear this.
Solid navy in a shade different than the other 2 blues. Sharkskin if you want a dressier finish or a worsted.
Navy pindot is beautiful. Looks like a solid from 5 feet away.

When you need to wear a navy suit, one of these will work for you.

Get 5 grey suits, mix up the finishes and patterns. Sharkskin, nail head, stripes etc.

Charcoal, sharkskin
Grey between medium and charcoal Nailhead/Birdseye, It's not really about the texture with nailhead as much as surface interest. This is a conservative, do anything, go anywhere suit.
Medium grey rope stripe
Medium grey sharkskin
Lighter grey in a dressy finish or a textured cloth.

Add a plaid if you like them, Can be a high contrast pattern or very subtle. You will have lots of grey options but look for a brown. If you don't see a plaid you like try windowpane. They don't have to be loud. Find something with a subtle color and not high contrast.

Get one suit that travels well. Ask the tailor about what cloths to use and pick the color and pattern you would use the most.

If you get these ten suits in a weight you can wear anytime and with this diversity of color and pattern you will have something to wear anytime for any occasion. You won't avoid wearing something because it looks too seasonal.

The next suits should be season specific and a contrast to the season you dress for most.
If you are in a warmer climate where winter is the short season get two heavier weight suits.
If you are in a seasonal climate with shorter summertime, get two summer weight suits. Could be linen, linen/wool blends are better, mohair or a tropical weight cloth in whatever color or pattern you want. After you get these two get the two suits for the other season so you have 2 specific summer and two specific winter suits.

Add trousers along the way, all types but mostly shades of grey.

At Some point get a navy jacket or 2 or 3. If navy isn't your thing get one navy and get a very dark brown, almost black odd jacket.
One light colored jacket to wear over dark trousers
One medium carmel brown jacket that works with lighter trousers or darker trousers for versatility
One rustic jacket you can wear with cords, cottons, or flannel.

You wanted to make some of the suits casual by using patch pockets but you could do the opposite and make some dressier by adding a vest to one grey and one navy suit.
Make some pieces DB if you like that.

A wardrobe like this has some diversity to it which is only one point of view for a wardrobe.
Some build a wardrobe that is more similar, slight variations on a theme. After wearing things a while you will see what you wear often and maybe somethings not so much. That's part of the learning curve.

You have about 20 pieces now and should have your own blog or at least tumbler sharing your experiences.

 

[globetrotter]

the way I would do it, for me, would be 2 summer weight (fresco, mohair), 2 winter weight (over 15 ounces) , 2 light weight (seersucker or linen) and 4 around 11-13 ounces. for myself, I'd choose a style that I like, say all in gray DB, with variations. but Despos advice is much better than mine

 

[Despos]

^
Globe, do you end up living in the four 11-13 ounce suits and wear the others sparingly or only when needed?

Maybe you wear everything all year because you travel all over the world and timing of seasons are varied.

 

[globetrotter]



^
Globe, do you end up living in the four 11-13 ounce suits and wear the others sparingly or only when needed?
Maybe you wear everything all year because you travel all over the world and timing of seasons are varied.

sort of - remember, I get to northern europe a few times a year in the winter, and I get to kuwait a few times a year in the summer, so I really need the varied weights of suits, but my favorites are about 12 ounce, I wore one friday in chicago, and I've worn them in Dec and Jan in chicago, so the 12 once is very versitile, but I like having the light and heavy as well.

 

[The Thin Man]



^
Globe, do you end up living in the four 11-13 ounce suits and wear the others sparingly or only when needed?
Maybe you wear everything all year because you travel all over the world and timing of seasons are varied.

Do you have a recommendation for a 11-13 ounce hopsack? Thank you.

 

[JLibourel]

I just ordered a 13-ounce blue hopsack from the Harrison's Oyster collection from W.W. Chan. Hope it works out to my satisfaction. It will be my one and only cool-weather suit. (I live in SoCal and don't have very frequent occasions to wear a suit.)

 

[rob]



Worst advice in this thread
Best advice in this thread
Everything you pick should fit your personality and fit in with your workplace. Having your wardrobe made gives you control over every detail.
My experience is clients tend to buy in one general weight for the bulk of the wardrobe. The weight they choose is different for everyone. Have clients who wear 18 ounce twills in Texas summers and others who think 9 ounce is winter weight. It depends on your tolerance and preference but it is good to know what weights you can be comfortable wearing. You will also want to form an opinion about texture, what you like and don't like.
Look at navy blue and pick the home runs in several patterns, the cloths you are drawn to.
Edit down and pick 3 or 4. You might end up with...
Navy beaded stripe. I like the contrast of a silver stripe against navy more than grey. Beaded stripes are more lively. Pick the width between stripes you like most.
Navy hopsack. The texture will give you options how to wear this.
1Solid navy in a shade different than the other 2 blues. Sharkskin if you want a dressier finish or a worsted.
Navy pindot is beautiful. Looks like a solid from 5 feet away.
When you need to wear a navy suit, one of these will work for you.
Get 5 grey suits, mix up the finishes and patterns. Sharkskin, nail head, stripes etc.
Charcoal, sharkskin
Grey between medium and charcoal Nailhead/Birdseye, It's not really about the texture with nailhead as much as surface interest. This is a conservative, do anything, go anywhere suit.
Medium grey rope stripe
Medium grey sharkskin
Lighter grey in a dressy finish or a textured cloth.
Add a plaid if you like them, Can be a high contrast pattern or very subtle. You will have lots of grey options but look for a brown. If you don't see a plaid you like try windowpane. They don't have to be loud. Find something with a subtle color and not high contrast.
Get one suit that travels well. Ask the tailor about what cloths to use and pick the color and pattern you would use the most.
If you get these ten suits in a weight you can wear anytime and with this diversity of color and pattern you will have something to wear anytime for any occasion. You won't avoid wearing something because it looks too seasonal.
The next suits should be season specific and a contrast to the season you dress for most.
If you are in a warmer climate where winter is the short season get two heavier weight suits.
If you are in a seasonal climate with shorter summertime, get two summer weight suits. Could be linen, linen/wool blends are better, mohair or a tropical weight cloth in whatever color or pattern you want. After you get these two get the two suits for the other season so you have 2 specific summer and two specific winter suits.
Add trousers along the way, all types but mostly shades of grey.
At Some point get a navy jacket or 2 or 3. If navy isn't your thing get one navy and get a very dark brown, almost black odd jacket.
One light colored jacket to wear over dark trousers
One medium carmel brown jacket that works with lighter trousers or darker trousers for versatility
One rustic jacket you can wear with cords, cottons, or flannel.
You wanted to make some of the suits casual by using patch pockets but you could do the opposite and make some dressier by adding a vest to one grey and one navy suit.
Make some pieces DB if you like that.
A wardrobe like this has some diversity to it which is only one point of view for a wardrobe.
Some build a wardrobe that is more similar, slight variations on a theme. After wearing things a while you will see what you wear often and maybe somethings not so much. That's part of the learning curve.
You have about 20 pieces now and should have your own blog or at least tumbler sharing your experiences.

This is officially my favorite post.

Rob

 

[tim_horton]



I think the staples of a good suit wardrobe depend upon where you live, it's climate and where you work.

For sure, and also personal taste. I don't think there's a universally right answer, but it is interesting to see the opinions of others.

 

[The Thin Man]

I can see where both mafoofan and Despos are coming from. I think Will's Suitable Wardrobe outline was essentially a synthesis of the two, with six nine-month worsteds supplemented by seasonal fabrics.