Slim Cut Khaki Suit

[Ebonyman]

Goodday Gentlemen:

Recently, while browsing the latest offerings at my local Daffy's (discount "designer" store) here in NYC, I lucked upon a nice made in Italy Khaki suit. The suit is single breasted, double vented and has a very nice slim cut with flat front trousers. I've recently spotted several similar suits on the pages of Esquire and GQ and thought it might be nice to have one for the warmer months to come. It's 98% cotton and 2% nylon so it has a little give and is very comfortable despite it's slimmer fit.

I have a couple of questions for you guys.

1. Since the pants are pretty narrow at the bottom would it be better to do without cuffs?

2. For work, would a suit like this look better with a thick soled wingtip or your standard cap or plan toe oxford? Most of my shoes (Mezlan, Bally, Moreschi, Magli ) tend to be a bit elongated and have a rounded or somewhat pointy toe. I don't see these as the best style for this particular suit and I'd love some recommendations for suitable footwear.

Thanks for your help.

Paul

 

[Ebonyman]

78 views, no reply? Bueller.... Bueller.....anyone?

 

[NoNothingGuy]

I am not a pro around here, but my advice would be the following:

No cuffs... flat front pants and cuffs rarely look right, especially if they are slimmer.

I'd go with the plain oxfords for shoes at work since the suit is less formal.

 

[TRA8324]

No cuffs.

Seeing as how it is a more casual suit, I think it would look best with some more casual shoes. I would go with a pair of shell cordovan wingtip bluchers.

 

[Bounder]

I, personally, usually go with the flat front-no cuffs, pleats-cuffs rule, which isn't really a rule. But the bigger concern is the material. Cuffs help the pants fall correctly as they add weight to the bottom of the leg. If you have a soft, light fabric, as you often do in the summer, cuffs will make the pants look much better. If, by contrast, the material is heavy and stiff, cuffs don't make that much difference.

As for the shoes, the brands you cite aren't really popular on SF, which is usually going for a more classic look. But rounded toes will probably be better than pointy. A word about color, though. Unless you are in the military, anything but black with khaki! Brown or cordovan looks great.

 

[UrbanComposition]

I'll echo Bounder's statements about brown shoes.

As for cuffs, I personally think they look better 90% of the time, but that's just me. If the leg opening at the bottom is narrow, then you can go either way. No cuffs + narrow leg opening + slightly pointy shoes = very clean, very mod, very 60s. Add a cuff, wear some chunky wingtips & it'll look Americana. Depends on what you're going for.

 

[Ebonyman]

Thanks for the feedback gentlemen! I decided to go without cuffs. I had not considered wearing black shoes so I'm glad that I'm on the right track in that regard.

I might have to invest in a more suitable pair of shoes it seems. I did try on a pair of Allen Edmonds loafers in a very dark brown that looked really nice with the suit. However, that look won't fly in the office.

 

[Bounder]

Originally Posted by Ebonyman

I might have to invest in a more suitable pair of shoes it seems. I did try on a pair of Allen Edmonds loafers in a very dark brown that looked really nice with the suit. However, that look won't fly in the office.
If you are thinking of getting something new, consider a pair of dark brown chukka boots. Extremely versatile -- much more so than loafers. Can work with everything from a suit (depending on the suit, but a khaki suit, for sure) to jeans.

In this example, the pebble grain makes it somewhat more casual but it still works very well in a variety of situations.

 

[Sazerac]

Those shoes are gorgeous.

 

[jasonmarshalljazz]

cuffs on all suit i say