Help with high school formal suit!

[Charlie Zhao]

Hey guys, I'm so clueless with this that I've resorted to joining a fashion forum to seek advice. My school formal is coming up in a few months and I was just wondering if these suits:

http://www.asos.com/au/ASOS-Skinny-...13533&sh=0&pge=0&pgesize=36&sort=-1&clr=White

http://www.asos.com/au/Selected/Sel...sh=0&pge=1&pgesize=36&sort=-1&clr=Wild+ginger

would be appropriate for this venue:

http://www.doltonehouse.com.au/gallery/filter/f43d3/view/11/jones-bay-wharf-pyrmont

I'd prefer the white one because it'd be somewhat unique LOL. Thanks.

 

[GBR]

That is a clueless selection of pure rubbish.


Why not use the search function and find some of the threads about such functions before making any more mistakes.

 

[archibaldleach]

Both are equally hideous and made of awful fabric, though the white one will look even worse the second something gets spilled on it(trust me, a bunch of high school kids partying, it will happen). There have been probably hundreds of threads on this very question and you'll probably get a lot more out of reading those threads.

You asked about what is appropriate; trying to stand out and peacock at a formal event is not. The best thing to wear if people are not showing up in a tuxedo (in which case read www.blacktieguide.com) is a dark navy or grey suit, white shirt and conservative tie (black or some shade of blue with a grey suit, some shade of grey / silver with a navy suit). Avoid anything with an obnoxious sheen.

 

[Calder]

Those are genuinely vile. The "Wild Ginger" deserve to be beaten like the red headed stepchild of satan that it is.

Moving one - the venue looks like a reasonably nice place, and by the sea. For a daylight even, wear blue or grey, with a white, light blue or lilac shirt and accents in either silver or gold.

For evening, wear charcoal, with white shirt and accent with gold.

 

[Charlie Zhao]

Hahaha thanks a lot guys, even the first person . Awesome responses, gave me a laugh too; I learnt the hard way I guess

 

[MisterFu]

Hey guys, I'm so clueless with this that I've resorted to joining a fashion forum to seek advice. My school formal is coming up in a few months and I was just wondering if these suits:

http://www.asos.com/au/ASOS-Skinny-...13533&sh=0&pge=0&pgesize=36&sort=-1&clr=White

http://www.asos.com/au/Selected/Sel...sh=0&pge=1&pgesize=36&sort=-1&clr=Wild+ginger

would be appropriate for this venue:

http://www.doltonehouse.com.au/gallery/filter/f43d3/view/11/jones-bay-wharf-pyrmont

I'd prefer the white one because it'd be somewhat unique LOL. Thanks.

First, welcome to SF, where your choices will be savaged without mercy (so that you might dress better). That white monstrosity is unique only in its awfulness. I did a brief review of the other suits at "Asos" and can only say, my God, what an unbelievably horrible mess of cheap, ridiculously too short rubbish. Unless your goal is to look like Justin Bieber, I'd recommend staying far away from the tacky crap on "Asos". If you want some reasonably priced and fairly good options (that lean towards the fashion-end of the menswear spectrum) check out Suit Supply (they ship to AU).

A couple of quick pointers:

1. If the jacket, when buttoned, exposes substantial pants front, it's too short and faddish, not stylish . A simple measure is that the bottom of the jacket should intersect your pants inseam or lower. On a proper suit or sport coat, it should not be substantially higher.

2. The whole neo-60's micro-lapel thing is done. Buy something with reasonably balanced lapels.

3. Your pants should not look like you are wearing shorts. A short-break, where the pants rest at the top of shoe without breaking (e.g. not creating a crease), is somewhat okay, but the high-water look is another utterly ridiculous fad. Also, your suit pants should not fit like meggings (another abomination that Asos seems to have plenty of).

4. Make sure you find a good local alterations tailor as anything ready to wear will probably need alterations to fit well.

5. While almost nobody follows this advice, as others have said, you really should peruse the CM forum and read some of the many threads and topics already posted on this subject.

 

[Charlie Zhao]

Thanks MisterFu, I'll avoid ASOS from now on. Also, good pointers!

 

[MisterFu]

Thanks MisterFu, I'll avoid ASOS from now on. Also, good pointers!

Well, you came to right place with the right attitude. You are off to a better start than 99% of the population.

 

[Veremund]

Here's your homework assignment. Read these two articles:

http://dappered.com/2011/02/the-suit-fit-priority-guide/

http://dappered.com/2011/02/how-to-buy-a-cheap-suit-and-still-look-like-a-million-bucks-2/

 

[Charlie Zhao]

Here's your homework assignment. Read these two articles:

http://dappered.com/2011/02/the-suit-fit-priority-guide/

http://dappered.com/2011/02/how-to-buy-a-cheap-suit-and-still-look-like-a-million-bucks-2/

Ermahgersh, thanks becnal!

 

[AlexE]

Well as the others have said, both suits are ridiculous and utterly ugly by the standards of the members of this forum, who indulge in timeless classic menswear (and who are mostly >10 years older than you).

HOWEVER, high school is probably the last time in your life when you can get away with wearing this crap. Realistically, you are very unlikely to wear whatever suit you get for this occasion ever again since by the next time you wear a suit you will need another size. So do not worry if this will be useful for future occasions and wear whatever will get you laid that night.

 

[nerdoldnerdith]

Just so you're warned, this forum is infested with pretentious old men who have been brainwashed into following the groupthink of dressing in ultraconservative attire that allows virtually no freedom of style or expression. You will be flooded with suggestions to wear the same kind of attire that millions of men wear every day. All they want you to do is blend in with the crowd as much as humanly possible, so if it is within your desire to approach your outfit with some creativity and style, take what they have to say with a grain of salt lest you want to show up at the party dressed like a 50-year-old businessman. Of course, a lot of what they have to say is perfectly legitimate - i.e. make sure the suit fits you perfectly; avoid stupid, pointless fashion trends like ugly high waters and ridiculously short suit jackets and overly thin lapels - but some of it is also very suppressive. There's no reason you can only wear a navy blue or gray suit, or a white or light colored shirt, or brown cap toe oxfords, etc. If you want my suggestion, I'd say be creative, but just don't end up making yourself look silly. The suits you have suggested are not very good suits for the money you pay for them. The colors are also too bright to cover your entire body. You want something that will not make you stick out like crazy, but when someone willingly observes your suit, it should still show some creativity of thought. So if you want to do red, a darker red suit would be more appropriate. You could also do a darker red dinner coat with black trousers. Whatever you do, just make yourself look stylish and refined, creative and fashionable, without wearing something that is loud and obnoxious and pointlessly deviant just to make yourself stand out. Also, if the suits you have shown demonstrate your price range, then your best bet on getting a decent quality garment is to find one in either a thrift store or eBay, used. If you need some guidance on the brands to look out for, searching these forums will give you a good idea of the quality and construction of probably any that you have questions about.

My $0.02.

 

[Veremund]



Well as the others have said, both suits are ridiculous and utterly ugly by the standards of the members of this forum, who indulge in timeless classic menswear (and who are mostly >10 years older than you.

It's never to early to learn the right way to dress.

 

[Charlie Zhao]

LOL tis a fair point you make AlexE. HAHAHAHA nerdoldnerdith, I'll actually check a thrift shop out since what AlexE said was probably right, about me not having to wear it again. Those suggestions are nice. Once again thank you for your replies, I'm learning so much :')

 

[archibaldleach]



Just so you're warned, this forum is infested with pretentious old men who have been brainwashed into following the groupthink of dressing in ultraconservative attire that allows virtually no freedom of style or expression. You will be flooded with suggestions to wear the same kind of attire that millions of men wear every day. All they want you to do is blend in with the crowd as much as humanly possible, so if it is within your desire to approach your outfit with some creativity and style, take what they have to say with a grain of salt lest you want to show up at the party dressed like a 50-year-old businessman. Of course, a lot of what they have to say is perfectly legitimate - i.e. make sure the suit fits you perfectly; avoid stupid, pointless fashion trends like ugly high waters and ridiculously short suit jackets and overly thin lapels - but some of it is also very suppressive. There's no reason you can only wear a navy blue or gray suit, or a white or light colored shirt, or brown cap toe oxfords, etc. If you want my suggestion, I'd say be creative, but just don't end up making yourself look silly. The suits you have suggested are not very good suits for the money you pay for them. The colors are also too bright to cover your entire body. You want something that will not make you stick out like crazy, but when someone willingly observes your suit, it should still show some creativity of thought. So if you want to do red, a darker red suit would be more appropriate. You could also do a darker red dinner coat with black trousers. Whatever you do, just make yourself look stylish and refined, creative and fashionable, without wearing something that is loud and obnoxious and pointlessly deviant just to make yourself stand out. Also, if the suits you have shown demonstrate your price range, then your best bet on getting a decent quality garment is to find one in either a thrift store or eBay, used. If you need some guidance on the brands to look out for, searching these forums will give you a good idea of the quality and construction of probably any that you have questions about.

My $0.02.

I do have some sympathy for some of your points (minus the possibly tongue in cheek hyperbole of calling everyone here a pretentious old man), but this is why people look back at their prom pictures 10 years later, facepalm and say "WTF was I thinking?" A burgundy suit or red dinner coat with black trousers both sound truly hideous and don't seem to follow your advice about not wearing something loud. Navy and grey are classics for a reason and it's a bit absurd to say picking one of them is "suppressive," even with a white shirt and black shoes. Classic outfits do not make one look like a 50 year old businessman; they look damn good and are easy to pull off. There are also a lot of people who post some very creative fits and experiment a lot, but who know that a formal event is a time to tone that down.

The problem is that picking an outlandish outfit does not always have the effect of, "Wow, he's so creative," even on normal 18 year olds (and someone with limited fashion sense, as OP has admitted to, will have a hard time treading the line between rakish and outlandish. It often looks dumb. Someone who is not very fashionable should play it safe; he'll look good even if he doesn't win the craziest outfit of the night award. Looking boring is better than trying to get "creative" and failing, which someone who is not very fashionable probably would do. Not everyone can pull off something like the smoking jacket Peter O'Toole wore to the Oscars a couple years ago.

I agree that something like brown shoes would be a relatively venial sin (and btw, a majority of this forum prefers brown shoes in most circumstances, just not for an evening formal event). A better place to get creative is in the shirt / tie department if OP feels the need to do this. White is still best for a formal, but this is a better place to experiment. Light pink shirt with a burgundy tie, light lilac shirt with a green tie, or light blue shirt with a pink tie are all classics that are hard to screw up.

It's never to early to learn the right way to dress.

+1.