Beginning Wardrobe

[Crosea]

I am a senior in college majoring in civil engineering. I already know that the office will be business casual so I am looking for some recommendations, mostly brands, that I should be looking into. I am basically starting from scratch with a budget of about 1,000-1,500 to start off with. I am in no rush at the moment to buy things so I have time to shop around to find some deals. Any advice you can lend will be greatly appreciated. Also, I am 5'5" 145 lbs so if you know any brands that fit really well on a smaller frame that would help.

 

[unbelragazzo]

http://www.styleforum.net/a/how-should-i-start-my-business-wardrobe

 

[Crosea]



http://www.styleforum.net/a/how-should-i-start-my-business-wardrobe

. Thank you for taking time to read and respond to my thread. I have seen that post and I understand the essential pieces of the wardrobe and I am now looking for some brands to look for. I know all about the custom made dress shirts and the Crockett and Jones shoes, but with a 1,500 budget I can't afford those so I wanted to know of some "cheaper" brands that are still of decent quality. If you know brands for some nice shirts, trousers, shoes, ties etc...

 

[unbelragazzo]

You can get dress shirts made for you for as little as 50 bucks online now. Keep browsing the site and you'll get an idea of what different brands look like. Or just go to stores and look at them. It would be a huge waste of time for everybody to come in here and start naming brands for you. It probably wouldn't even serve you that well. Also at that budget level, eBay is ur friend.

 

[Mariooo]

welcome to the forums!
do you know the "business casual" definition of the office by actually seeing it or being told?

 

[Crosea]



You can get dress shirts made for you for as little as 50 bucks online now. Keep browsing the site and you'll get an idea of what different brands look like. Or just go to stores and look at them. It would be a huge waste of time for everybody to come in here and start naming brands for you. It probably wouldn't even serve you that well. Also at that budget level, eBay is ur friend.

Ok thank you.

welcome to the forums!
do you know the "business casual" definition of the office by actually seeing it or being told?

I was told that it was business casual.

 

[Mariooo]

I dare to say that at least in europe in the engineering branch nice jeans/chinos and a a polo or sport shirt will be fine as everyday workwear.. even sneakers and t-shirts..

unless you have to attend a meeting.. nicer shoes and a sport coat/blazer..

dress shirts, oxfords, ties, suits... ... for formal/official occasions only

I'd ask what they mean, or if you get invited to an interview you'll see it anyways..

good luck


for brands: lurk, browse, search through the forums to get some ideas and discover brands you might like

 

[Crosea]



I dare to say that at least in europe in the engineering branch nice jeans/chinos and a a polo or sport shirt will be fine as everyday workwear.. even sneakers and t-shirts..
unless you have to attend a meeting.. nicer shoes and a sport coat/blazer..
dress shirts, oxfords, ties, suits... ... for formal/official occasions only
I'd ask what they mean, or if you get invited to an interview you'll see it anyways..
good luck
for brands: lurk, browse, search through the forums to get some ideas and discover brands you might like

It is a privately owned consulting firm and business casual is how he likes to be represented unless we are doing field work. I have done some lurking the last few days and most of the brands mentioned here especially for shoes, would destroy my budget after buying just a few pieces.

 

[add911_11]

Don't bother buying anything, just use what you have

I can image a guy have no chinos or shirts in the wardrobe before they have their sartorial enlightenment.

 

[unbelragazzo]



It is a privately owned consulting firm and business casual is how he likes to be represented unless we are doing field work. I have done some lurking the last few days and most of the brands mentioned here especially for shoes, would destroy my budget after buying just a few pieces.

You should start off with two pairs of shoes. Spend ~200-250 on each. That can get you Meermin, Ed et al, AE on sale, etc....

 

[Crosea]



Don't bother buying anything, just use what you have
I can image a guy have no chinos or shirts in the wardrobe before they have their sartorial enlightenment.

I do have some stuff but I wouldn't dare to be seen in them in a professional atmosphere, they are things that I bought just in case something came up.

You should start off with two pairs of shoes. Spend ~200-250 on each. That can get you Meermin, Ed et al, AE on sale, etc....

Thank you, this is the advice that I was hoping to get. Also, do you have any experience with T. M. Lewin shirts?

 

[mensimageconsultant]

What's the location? The small stature will make it harder. What size shirt and pants do you wear?

 

[Crosea]

What's the location? The small stature will make it harder. What size shirt and pants do you wear?

I live in Florida. I wear a 15 inch neck 32 inch sleeve in my dress shirts, a 30 inch waist 30 inch inseam for pants, and a 10 for shoes.

 

[mensimageconsultant]

Paul Fredrick, T.M. Lewin, and Charles Tyrwhitt are some of the less expensive yet decent brands that have dress shirts in 15/32. All sort of colors and patterns that would be okay for business casual.

As it's Florida, the guess is that "business casual" is more chinos than wool pants. L.L. Bean and Lands' End have some 30/30 pants. J. Crew, Banana Republic, and other mall brands might be worthwhile, if they have local stores. Shades of brown and olive work best for chinos. Navy might be okay. Black is a lousy choice. Avoid cuffs.

"Florida" is still too vague to recommend a local shoe store, and you didn't mention shoe width. It's always best to try on a new shoe style before buying. As they say, Allen Edmonds should look good enough, barring a few ugly models. Florsheim runs cheaper but so does its quality, and its shoes usually look old-fashioned, which not everyone wants.

 

[Misanthropist]

You're 5'5" with a 32" sleeve? You may have missed your calling as a UFC fighter.

Apropos of the thread, there are many routes one could take: RTW and then tailoring or simply MTM from the go, neither of which, given the ever-decreasing cost of MTM, is significantly cheaper than the other. My advice would be to focus on the bare essentials and get a strong foundation wardrobe from which you could build a large array of versatile arrangements.

Since you want brands.. Shirts:
ModernTailor
Ratio
Charles Tyrwhitt
J.Crew

Trousers:
Howard Yount
Bonobos


Shoes:
Allen Edmonds
Alden
Magnanni (their best line)
Johnston & Murphy (their best line)

Brands are really rather irrelevant.. Focus on fit first, as always.