Building Wardrobe 1-item at a time. Properly Prioritizing?

[Ahheck01]

Originally Posted by musicguy

My advice:
It'll take time to develop your own style. Start slowly. It may end up that you change your mind about wearing some items. Get a few nice pieces at first and go from there.

Originally Posted by tim_horton

This should be automatically forwarded to everyone who creates a new account on SF - and I'm speaking as a guy who's not far away from where the OP is (except for his height.

)

The problem when someone (like me) gets his first piece of clothing/pair of shoes that fits well and looks good is that all of a sudden it's hard to go back to your old clothes the other six days of the week. But I think going slow was the best advice I got from here.

This is half of the thought-process behind the one-thing-at-a-time approach (the other half being limited finances).

That said, there are clearly many staples of a well-dressed man's wardrobe, none of which I own. A strategic collection of those staples gives me time to continue researching, trying-on, etc. to develop my own style with the staples are already in the closet.

Thank you all for the suggestions so far, and keep them coming! I'll rewrite the list based off my take on the recommendations here in a minute.

-Evan

 

[amplifiedheat]

Originally Posted by musicguy

Don't go into credit card debt over clothes.

Or anything, short of saving a life.

 

[Ahheck01]

Edit: See Post #27

 

[Butter]

Advice from other posters that needs to be echoed: 1. Do NOT use your credit card to build your wardrobe. Buy it with cash/debit only. I don't think this advice is heeded enough even though it's been repeated ad nauseam. Don't ask why, you already know why. 2. Take your time to build your wardrobe. This is another very important advice to people who have been here for less than a year or 2. There is no question you will find a LOT of stuff you like posted here. Not only that, you will also hear comments from people who can justify you doubling your budget. Not to say they are wrong, but they are not operating on the same budget and constraints you are so always take it with a grain of salt. What you should take away from this forum isn't what people recommend you should have but rather their experience with the quality of the goods they purchased.

 

[GucciKid]

I would buy yourself a book on men's style and go through it.

I recommend either Dressing the Man by Alan Flusser or a book called The Suit.

I recommend buying both, actually.

This forum will teach you a lot, but sometimes it can be tough to know what to look for. Both those books will give you a very solid foundation in how to dress well, from proper fit to levels of formality and pretty much everything else you'll need to consider.

 

[Ahheck01]

Originally Posted by GucciKid

I would buy yourself a book on men's style and go through it.

I recommend either Dressing the Man by Alan Flusser or a book called The Suit.

I recommend buying both, actually.

I've just finished reading Dressing the Man. I'll give The Suit a look.

Also own the Esquire Handbook of Style, which more tells what everything is and what its function is, rather than advising on the thought process behind building a wardrobe and dressing yourself.

Any feedback to my revised schedule?

-Evan

 

[LanceW]

Now when you are excited is when you most want to purchase a lot of things. It's also the best time to buy slowly. Half of the stuff you buy now you will regret next year. Not due to changes in fashion, but due to changes in your own perceived style.

 

[KingOfTheForum]

That looks like a solid list. I didn't pick the list apart piece by piece, but it looks like the makings of a pretty nice wardrobe. When I read the title, I immediately thought that you should emphasize buying pants and shirts. It looks like that's what you're doing. I'd suggest several pairs of khaki colored pants. They tend to stain and collect smudges quickly, so I don't like to wear the same pair frequently. The same goes for white shirts. I buy a boat load of white shirts to avoid wearing them out.

Here's a tip, focus on buying a few quality items at a time, and make sure that they fit well. Take a little time and figure out what the right quality is for you and how you want your clothes to fit. If you do that, you won't feel ripped off a few months from now.


P.S: Unless you really like blazers, you don't need one. They aren't as essential as the forum may make them seem. Personally, I opt for a sweater in most situations that are casual enough to go suit-less.

 

[Requiem]

Considering August is coming to an end, I would buy a couple of polo shirts right away, as probably you will not wear them after October. Quality is very easy to spot in polo shirts, so get really good ones, in basic colors (navy, mid grey, or cream).

Also, I don't see the point on spending more on a shoe care kit than in shoes... if you're planning to buy used shoes, think of them as mere transition objects. You will be interested in getting new shoes in a very near future. (however, used shoes are always to be avoided, IMO).

The sport coat is a must. A nice tweed jacket (maybe a brownish houndstooth or herringbone, given your complection) would be more versatile, from October to February, than a navy blazer.

 

[hatguy]

as you learn more, you will likely recalibrate your stylistic choices.
so as others have echoed, "buy slowly."
if no urgent need, consider buying seasonal clothing out of season for better rates.
that said, the most immediately beneficial purchases would be shoes and a blazer imo.

 

[hst]

Originally Posted by KingOfTheForum

That looks like a solid list. I didn't pick the list apart piece by piece, but it looks like the makings of a pretty nice wardrobe. When I read the title, I immediately thought that you should emphasize buying pants and shirts. It looks like that's what you're doing. I'd suggest several pairs of khaki colored pants. They tend to stain and collect smudges quickly, so I don't like to wear the same pair frequently. The same goes for white shirts. I buy a boat load of white shirts to avoid wearing them out.

Here's a tip, focus on buying a few quality items at a time, and make sure that they fit well. Take a little time and figure out what the right quality is for you and how you want your clothes to fit. If you do that, you won't feel ripped off a few months from now.


P.S: Unless you really like blazers, you don't need one. They aren't as essential as the forum may make them seem. Personally, I opt for a sweater in most situations that are casual enough to go suit-less.


+100. A lot of appropriate advice has been given. I had to toss out a lot of clothes over the last 3-4 years as my style evolved, and I seek for higher quality items (e.g. MTM wool trousers made up from VBC, Dugdale etc as opposed to OTR).

I have half a mind to offer this advice - go for the highest possible quality items that your budget allows. While the trade-off is you will have fewer items in your wardrobe as a start, it helps to improve the likelihood that you will still wear the item 1-2 years down the road. I thought I made the mistake of quickly building up my wardrobe with many acceptable, but not extremely high quality items. Just sharing some experiences

 

[Ahheck01]

Advice on going slowly has been noted. And I wouldn't use credit if I could (ages 19-22 was competitive racing of BMW's, aka excessive and ignorant usage of credit).

I've updated things again to account for Polo's and khaki shorts during still-warm weather, and added more chinos and a second pair of khaki dress trousers for business casual environments. A few various other modifications have been made to result in the following:

Month 1: August - $510
1) Have 2 of my nicest shirts altered ($30)
2) Mid-Grey Wool Trousers (~$60 on B&S/Clearance)
3) Charcoal Wool Trousers (~$60 on B&S/Clearance)
4) Lightly Used Black AE oxford ($60) + Belt ($25)
5) Cedar Split-Toe Shoe Tree ($25)
6) 2 x Dress Shirts (2 x $50 = $100)
7) 2 x Polo Shirts (2 x $25 = $50)
8) Khaki Shorts ($30)
7) Necessary Alterations on the above ($70)

Month 2: September - $560
1) Khaki Colored Trousers ($50) + Alterations ($15)
2) Lightly Used Brown AE shoes ($70) + Belt ($25)
3) AE Shoe Care Kit ($95, but open to quality alternatives)
4) Lightly Used Brown Loafers ($50)
5) Second Pair Jeans ($80)
6) 3 x Casual Button-Up Shirts (3 x $40 = $120) + Alterations ($45)

Month 3: October - $665
1) Navy Blazer (~$200)
2) Tailoring of Blazer (~$40)
3) Khaki Colored (dif shade) Trousers ($60) + Alt ($15)
4) 2 x Chinos ($50 x 2 = $100)
5) 3 x Dress Shirts (3 x $50 = $150)
6) Alterations on the above ($70)

Month 4: November - (Budget ~$650)
1) Winter Overcoat/Peacoat - $???
1.5) Alterations to coat - $??
2) Quality Leather Gloves - $??
3) 2 x Quality Scarves - $??

Month 5: December - (Budget ~$700)
1) 1st Suit, tailored
2) 2 x Sweaters
3) Appropriate Boots
4) 3 x Ties