First and only suit for awhile (upcoming funeral) *purchased, criticism welcome*

[4mused]

Yes, I used the search option and read most of the threads post 2011 but still have some questions.

I have a budget of roughly $1000 for everything: jacket, pants, dress shirt, belt, shoes. In the past when I was younger I just wore a black knit sweater over a light blue dress shirt and black slacks. I'm now a college graduate and this funeral is for one of my close friends, so I will be expected to be in the front and give a speech. I figured this was a good a time as any to get my first suit considering at this age many of my older relatives will be passing away and friends getting married and of course potential job interviews + any other formal event.

I'm located in Orange County, so I will be heading to South Coast Plaza for those who are familiar with that place. I'm praying Zara or one of the department stores has something in my price range. I need to get it ASAP since the funeral is on April 12 and I still need to get it tailored. If you guys have any other suggestion in OC I can check out, let me know.

I only want one suit for now, which is why I'm hesitant to just get a black suit. I really like the look of a navy suit. My current job does not require me to wear a suit daily, maybe twice a month (I've been getting away with dress shirt + slacks), so there's no reason for me to get more than one for now. I'm not exactly struggling financially, but as a fresh graduate I'm not exactly making bank either.


I saw that dark navy was preferred for funerals if going non black/charcoal. This is the shade I wanted, is it dark enough?

Also, with a navy suit are brown belts/shoes appropriate for a funeral? I have the below shoes and could save a good chunk of money by using those instead of buying new black ones.

Again, I understand a funeral is a place to pay respects to the deceased, but I am going to be upfront giving a speech and I am close friends with their family, so I don't want to embarrass them.


A bunch of other things I have no idea what to get, after going through indochino.com. If someone could go through all the tabs, including the "more options" one and tell me what to get that would be much appreciated.

Keep in mind I'm 5'7 and 105 lbs and my arms are very skinny, pretty much skin and bones. My shoulder width is probably ~28 in and my waist ~25 in, so I have a very narrow frame. No, I am not a woman, I just eat very little. My legs are actually normal sized because I surf and bike a lot. so I look kind of disproportionate.


If these questions have been answered before and I missed it with the search function, I apologize ahead of time. I'm just really short on time so I want to get this done ASAP.


TIA

 

[GBR]

Navy, grey both fine.

Forget all the old fashion nonsense about black for funerals.

 

[ter1413]

And forget about saving a chunk by using said shoes.
You need new shoes.

 

[4mused]



Navy, grey both fine.

Forget all the old fashion nonsense about black for funerals.

So something like this exact color scheme would be perfectly fine? I mean the pants + shirt + shoes, not the tie. I have dark ties.

And forget about saving a chunk by using said shoes.
You need new shoes.

Haha yea I had a feeling those shoes weren't up to this forum's standards. You have any recommendations around or under the $300 mark? Something like pair in the above pic.



No comments on lapels, vents, stitching etc?

 

[johng70]

Funerals are not places to make fashion statements IMO. Navy or Charcoal suit - oxblood, DARK brown or black shoes. I'm a big fan of oxblood shoes - they dress up or down and work with a lot of outfits. Otherwise, ignore the snobs here who detest black shoes - and go with those. I wouldn't call the shoes in those pictures appropriate for funerals. If you only have 1 pair of dress shoes they should be as conservative as possible IMO.

 

[4mused]



Funerals are not places to make fashion statements IMO.  Navy or Charcoal suit - oxblood, DARK brown or black shoes.  I'm a big fan of oxblood shoes - they dress up or down and work with a lot of outfits.  Otherwise, ignore the snobs here who detest black shoes - and go with those.  I wouldn't call the shoes in those pictures appropriate for funerals.  If you only have 1 pair of dress shoes they should be as conservative as possible IMO.

Thank you. I understand it is not a place to show off, I just don't want to embarrass his family, even though most people there aren't going to care what I'm wearing. There are already over 100 people attending between family and friends, so I'm pretty much crapping my pants over every detail.

 

[Mr G from SD]

Over on the other side of South Coast Plaza there is a Nordstrom Rack, Marshall's, and a Saks Off 5th. I'm sure you can piece together an outfit within your budget using those three stores. Good luck.

 

[billythekid]

Just go to Suit Supply and get a navy suit. Black shoes will never go out of style--Allen Edmond are great and you can even order from the factory outlet. Between those two you can send a 1000 and nearly never shop for dress clothes again.

 

[hrefab]

No comments on lapels, vents, stitching etc?

I would stick with notched lapels. Peak lapels would be alittle flashy for a funeral IMO. Dual vents are always nice. Also wouldn't go with contrast stitching, keep it simple.

 

[GBR]



I would stick with notched lapels. Peak lapels would be alittle flashy for a funeral IMO. Dual vents are always nice. Also wouldn't go with contrast stitching, keep it simple.

Peak lapels are a matter of preference, "flashy" is not relevant. They would be fine for a funeral.

 

[socrates]

Navy, grey both fine.

Forget all the old fashion nonsense about black for funerals.

Are you Rip Van Winkle?

 

[GBR]



Are you Rip Van Winkle?

Well that's a constructive contribution. Or is it merely intended to increase your post count?

 

[4mused]

Thanks for all the advice, I'm about to head out. Turns out my friend had a bunch of 20% discounts for Bloomingdales and Macy's so hopefully there's something good there.

 

[4mused]

Getting ready for the mockery that's sure to come..


Got my suit. Dark charcoal. Giovanni Bresciani. I can't even find any reviews on this brand, only a thread from this forum asking the same thing, which probably means it's not that great.. I admit my dumbass didn't even bother asking any questions about the suit the guy picked out for me, I was in too much of a rush. I actually got it from the tailor because nearly everything at South Coast didn't fit my small frame and the few that did were way out of my budget. It's from By Design, a tailor shop literally across the street from South Coast. Picked that place because it had 5 stars on yelp. Don't have pics yet, waiting for sunlight because under the lights in my place it just looks straight black. The suit with all the alterations came out to be $580, I think the suit was $480 without tax. Will post pics with it on probably after the funeral. The fit should be perfect if yelp is accurate.

And I picked these shoes:

They were the only thing that were Balmoral (learning!) and under my budget. I completely forgot there was a Nordstrom Rack there, I'm debating going back tomorrow to check it out if these catch too much flack. I did take a look at the Allen Edmonds store while I was at South Coast but they were a little too pricey for me at this time. Plus, after reading on here it seems they can easily be had for less than $200 if I look in the right places. Probably going to use these for this Sunday, then use them as beaters and buy a pair of AE for actual formal wear. I really liked the Carlyle plain toe. I chose brown instead of black even though my suit is charcoal because I plan on picking up a navy suit soon for work and my boss said she would prefer me in a navy/brown combination when we meet clients. Didn't pick a navy suit this time because he didn't have my size.

If these shoes are fine for formal wear, do you think I should paint the outsole black? The worker at AE told me you could do that and it's a pretty common thing to do after I pointed out a shoe I liked there but expressed that I would have preferred if it had a black outsole.

Again, this is my first stab at it, I'm not exactly rolling in cash as a relatively fresh graduate. How would you rate me on my first attempt out of 10?

 

[Ilikeyourstyle]

You will have many occasions in your lifetime where black shoes will be more appropriate than light/medium brown shoes. I think it would make sense to buy a pair for this and future occasions.