Corneliani Super 150 as a workhorse suit?

[j1q]

I was just wondering what people's opinions were on this. I found a beautiful gray pinstripe, 2-button, fully-canvased Corneliani suit with flat-front pants, basically everything I've been looking for, marked down at Bloomingdale's to around $820 (from $1500), which strikes me as a pretty decent price given the quality of the construction. I love the way it looks, feels, and fits. My problem is that the wool is Super 150 and I'm in a job where I need to wear suits every day.

My other suits are less expensive (Zara, Brooks Brothers, etc.) and wear very well, and I'm worried, especially after reading that WSJ article, that this Corneliani suit is more of a special occassion kind of garment. But I also hear that the S number really doesn't mean as much as the quality of the wool, and that even a silky smooth fabric might last a long time if the quality is high enough. So what do you think? Is this a suit I can wear once a week, or even every other week, and still get years of use out of, or should I keep looking?

 

[rnoldh]

My feeling is that you could do it with a Corneliani canvassed suit.

But, I don't speak from personal experience! I think the consensus would be that a quality canvassed suit, with a quality fabric ( regardless of the Super #), should work for you.

I'm pretty sure that AF( Artisan Fan), has commented on this and has personal knowledge of wearing Super 150's in a regular suit rotation.

A question for you. I see why you bought the suit. A good price and it's what you wanted( style, color, flat front pant). But, was the Super 150's a part of your buying decision? Would you have bought it at the same price if it were 120's?

I ask because I think I would prefer 120's over 150's even if the same price.

 

[retronotmetro]

I have just under a two-week cycle on my suits, and 2 suits made of Charles Clayton 150s that have been in the rotation for a little over a year. So figure about 30-35 wearings each suit. No signs of "general" wear on either suit, although the trousers on each have a snag or two from things like errant staples.

At this point, I wouldn't use Clayton 150s again for a work suit, but that's largely because I don't like the way it drapes and not because of any durability issues. I do think 150s cloth can stand up to general use.

 

[DocHolliday]

It's hard to read much just from the Super number. Some higher Supers wear very well, some don't. Once you get to 180 or above, the fabrics tend to be very delicate. But 150 is in the netherworld between that and the more sturdy 110s and 120s. I certainly think that a Super 150 Corneliani will give you good service, but for just how long, only time will tell.

Personally, I'm given more pause by the pricetag. I find $820 for a pinstripe a bit on the pricey side, as pinstripes often drop to less than $500 on STP. But if it's just what you want, it might be worth getting, particularly as you can try it on.

 

[pkincy]

I didn't read the WSJ article closely (since I didn't think it deserved it) but I recall that unless you hang 80 lb pieces of iron on your suit you should be OK. Now if you do hang large metal objects weighing over 80-100 lbs on your suit fabric I am not sure your other suits would hold up to it either. I would find this whole controversy laughable except that some people actually believe this stuff. Admittedly, I don't farm in my suits nor do I hunt in them, but I find absolutely no loss of wearability in a 150 from a top manufacturer than I do in a lesser fabric particularly from a lesser mfg. However if you really need your suits to stand up to extraordinary wear you might try denim.

Perry I suppose to be fair I should add that you will wear out most suits if you wear them 1-3 times a week, week in and week out. And also that my experience is based on a rotation that is closer to once/month or two for the rotation although I did wear my 14 micron twice last week, which is a bit unusual.

 

[dirk diggler]

you can get a very nice MTM suit for $800 - I have approx. 21 suits in the rotation and 12 are MTM - the most I spent was $900.

www.suitmaker.com

 

[edmorel]

I wouldn't worry about the super 150 but I would worry about the finish and weight of the fabric if you are planning on wearing it every week. I'd go worsted wool and something in the mid weight range, so that you can use it pretty much year round. Also, pinstripes are very unforgettable. You start wearing that suit every week, and people will very quickly notice.

 

[pkincy]

I suppose I may have been a little flippant in my earlier reply.

The thing that destroys a suit in my experience is drycleaning it. And it is possible that dry cleaning destroys smaller diameter wool fibres more readily than more robust fibres. I really can't comment on that.

But if you have a good steamer and you religiously steam the pants of the suit or the entire suit each wearing you will have a suit without wrinkles and that will last a very long time. Whether it is made of 110s or 150s.

If you need to wear suit in such a way that you are hard on it, because of say a long difficult public transportation commute or inclement weather or a very small suit rotation than getting a hardier fabric may be worthwhile for you.

Perry

 

[j1q]

The prices on STP do seem good, and I admit I feel like I may be paying a bit much, but STP doesn't seem to have a single suit in 38R, is it just timing or do they generally only stock larger sizes? And where would one get a fully-canvased MTM suit for $800? I was at the Zegna and Canali stores the other day and MTM ran around $2800. I'm sure it can be had for less, but that much less and I would worry about quality.

As for solids, I have a couple solid suits now and have actually been looking for a solid navy, 2-button suit with side vents and flat front pants but had almost no luck. You would think it would be easy to find the absolute most basic suit color, but virtually everything everyone sells is in some sort of pinstripe. Of course, Canali had a beautiful one but it was $2000, which I think is a bit much. And H&M used to make one, but never had my size. If anyone has any suggestions, I'm all ears.

 

[DocHolliday]

Originally Posted by j1q

The prices on STP do seem good, and I admit I feel like I may be paying a bit much, but STP doesn't seem to have a single suit in 38R, is it just timing or do they generally only stock larger sizes?

Timing, really. But the 38Rs usually go pretty fast, particularly the solids.

 

[knittieguy]

http://www.bluefly.com/pages/product...&Nu=Product+ID

A little bit more than what you were going to pay, but Bluefly seems to have some plain pattern suits, and there might be some discount code available or something

 

[dirk diggler]

I emailed Mike Sahi and asked about his suits (www.suitmaker.com) - his suits are MTM and canvassed. Like I wrote before, only one cost me more than $900. Most are approx. $600-750.