• Hi, I am the owner and main administrator of Styleforum. If you find the forum useful and fun, please help support it by buying through the posted links on the forum. Our main, very popular sales thread, where the latest and best sales are listed, are posted HERE

    Purchases made through some of our links earns a commission for the forum and allows us to do the work of maintaining and improving it. Finally, thanks for being a part of this community. We realize that there are many choices today on the internet, and we have all of you to thank for making Styleforum the foremost destination for discussions of menswear.
  • This site contains affiliate links for which Styleforum may be compensated.
  • We would like to welcome House of Huntington as an official Affiliate Vendor. Shop past season Drake's, Nigel Cabourn, Private White V.C. and other menswear luxury brands at exceptional prices below retail. Please visit the Houise of Huntington thread and welcome them to the forum.

  • STYLE. COMMUNITY. GREAT CLOTHING.

    Bored of counting likes on social networks? At Styleforum, you’ll find rousing discussions that go beyond strings of emojis.

    Click Here to join Styleforum's thousands of style enthusiasts today!

    Styleforum is supported in part by commission earning affiliate links sitewide. Please support us by using them. You may learn more here.

James1051

Distinguished Member
Joined
Jul 22, 2013
Messages
7,654
Reaction score
28,211
The whole thing seems odd to me! Can someone explain the appeal of a button down that's made out of pique cotton instead of just getting a long sleeve polo?
Similar but its knit, not woven like the LS polos, so should stretch more I would think?
 

reidrothchild

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 27, 2010
Messages
948
Reaction score
463
Just got my Neo MTO suit I mentioned last week back from the tailor. Pictured here with a SM light blue/sky blue fine twill shirt, and Drakes tie. Don't laugh if you see me post a version of this outfit Friday, as I may wear something similar for work. A couple of thoughts...

-This was made in the new Neo cut, in size 38L contemporary

-The fabric I used is found here: https://www.spierandmackay.com/product/medium-gray-10005-0012-2152-mto-s

- I can see I'm going to really enjoy wearing this suit. It's cut and fits better than the Cavendish. Shocker, yes. But such was the impetus for me seeking this MTO.

-Yes, besom pockets on business suits for the foreseeable future.

-This suit is elegant in its simplicity. It puts me in the mind of Italian conservative business attire, which is the aesthetic I aspire to strike for more formal leaning occasions. Examples can be found here and here.

-The drape? So far, so good. Will see how it performs after wearing it for a couple hours on Friday.

-The weight feels apt for the climate I occupy. It can be worn year-round. I thought it was going to be on the light and skimpy side, but naw, the fabric has presence.

-Lastly and most importantly, absolutely nothing compares to wearing a suit. Reading the last couple of pages, I hear the arguments advancing the notion the CM is on the decline. However, I'm not so sure I see any strong evidence of that. The streetwear section of my closet is deep: Jordan 3s black cement, multiple OG AJ1s, All Saints, and so on, to name a few. But the feeling I get when wearing a suit or sportcoat and trews is far away and above anything I get when wearing streetwear. Not to mention, how I carry myself and how people respond to me are other reasons I frequently reach for CM on the day-to-day vs. streetwear. This is not to say that I don't enjoy wearing streetwear. But it is to highlight that there is something vastly different that goes on psychologically and sociologically when wearing a nice suit that I'm not sure can be achieved with streetwear.

View attachment 1684751 View attachment 1684752 View attachment 1684753 View attachment 1684754 View attachment 1684755 View attachment 1684756 View attachment 1684757 View attachment 1684759 View attachment 1684761

This suit looks awesome on you! I hereby recant all my previous statements in this thread about the decline of business formal attire.
 

reidrothchild

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 27, 2010
Messages
948
Reaction score
463
The whole thing seems odd to me! Can someone explain the appeal of a button down that's made out of pique cotton instead of just getting a long sleeve polo?

I accumulated quite a few of these over the years back when my office first started doing business casual attire. The appeal to me used to be that, if you don't look too close, it appears to be a normal button down dress shirt, but feels like a polo. So I could wear one of these with a sport coat and get the comfort of wearing a polo while looking like I was wearing a button down dress shirt without a tie. Now that my office has gone casual enough that long sleeve polos are fine, I can't justify picking up any more of these because, as you say, a long sleeve polo makes more sense.

While I probably won't be picking up any more of these, it's making me hopeful that maybe Spier will have more comfort-minded business attire coming during their F/W drops.
 

Riva

Distinguished Member
Joined
Jul 29, 2013
Messages
4,552
Reaction score
3,380
I accumulated quite a few of these over the years back when my office first started doing business casual attire. The appeal to me used to be that, if you don't look too close, it appears to be a normal button down dress shirt, but feels like a polo. So I could wear one of these with a sport coat and get the comfort of wearing a polo while looking like I was wearing a button down dress shirt without a tie. Now that my office has gone casual enough that long sleeve polos are fine, I can't justify picking up any more of these because, as you say, a long sleeve polo makes more sense.

While I probably won't be picking up any more of these, it's making me hopeful that maybe Spier will have more comfort-minded business attire coming during their F/W drops.

It's all about tshirts and polos now. More comfort + deformalize the biz suits we have too many of. I probably won't ever buy a buttondown again in this lifetime.

 

sentry

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 20, 2015
Messages
124
Reaction score
37
Hard to keep up with the pace of this thread... but according to Rick on IG images are correct and accurate.

Edit:
And are very close shades.

huh that's an odd one. i really wish they would have some pictures of the denim on a mannequin or a model or something. not quite sure if i need a contemporary or a slim for the denim.
 

milktoast

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2019
Messages
343
Reaction score
406
Just got my Neo MTO suit I mentioned last week back from the tailor. Pictured here with a SM light blue/sky blue fine twill shirt, and Drakes tie. Don't laugh if you see me post a version of this outfit Friday, as I may wear something similar for work. A couple of thoughts...

-This was made in the new Neo cut, in size 38L contemporary

-The fabric I used is found here: https://www.spierandmackay.com/product/medium-gray-10005-0012-2152-mto-s

- I can see I'm going to really enjoy wearing this suit. It's cut and fits better than the Cavendish. Shocker, yes. But such was the impetus for me seeking this MTO.

-Yes, besom pockets on business suits for the foreseeable future.

-This suit is elegant in its simplicity. It puts me in the mind of Italian conservative business attire, which is the aesthetic I aspire to strike for more formal leaning occasions. Examples can be found here and here.

-The drape? So far, so good. Will see how it performs after wearing it for a couple hours on Friday.

-The weight feels apt for the climate I occupy. It can be worn year-round. I thought it was going to be on the light and skimpy side, but naw, the fabric has presence.

-Lastly and most importantly, absolutely nothing compares to wearing a suit. Reading the last couple of pages, I hear the arguments advancing the notion the CM is on the decline. However, I'm not so sure I see any strong evidence of that. The streetwear section of my closet is deep: Jordan 3s black cement, multiple OG AJ1s, All Saints, and so on, to name a few. But the feeling I get when wearing a suit or sportcoat and trews is far away and above anything I get when wearing streetwear. Not to mention, how I carry myself and how people respond to me are other reasons I frequently reach for CM on the day-to-day vs. streetwear. This is not to say that I don't enjoy wearing streetwear. But it is to highlight that there is something vastly different that goes on psychologically and sociologically when wearing a nice suit that I'm not sure can be achieved with streetwear.

View attachment 1684751 View attachment 1684752 View attachment 1684753 View attachment 1684754 View attachment 1684755 View attachment 1684756 View attachment 1684757 View attachment 1684759 View attachment 1684761
Well done as always! I’m curious, what alterations did your tailor end up having to do?
 

wilcthree

Distinguished Member
Joined
Oct 13, 2017
Messages
1,197
Reaction score
3,314
Well done as always! I’m curious, what alterations did your tailor end up having to do?
Many thanks, my friend. He just did cuffs, hem, and brace buttons. I have more success when he does these because his eye is so good and his skill is amazing. I don’t trust myself to try and get the dynamics of hem, break, and cuff right through inputting numbers into a system.
 

Brennenman

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 21, 2021
Messages
424
Reaction score
1,394
if that
I agree but it doesn't stop the fact that CM is in decline.
if that's actually true, then how to you explain all the new mtm suit companies that have popped up in the last eight or nine years? That's the one i always get stuck on
 

JohnMRobie

Distinguished Member
Supporting Member
Joined
Aug 30, 2019
Messages
4,256
Reaction score
32,293
if that

if that's actually true, then how to you explain all the new mtm suit companies that have popped up in the last eight or nine years? That's the one i always get stuck on
We don’t need to wonder or try to explain or get stuck on anything. There is actual consumer data available that shows steady YOY declines in consumer spending on tailored clothing, even pre-pandemic, as athleisure sales spiked.
 

wilcthree

Distinguished Member
Joined
Oct 13, 2017
Messages
1,197
Reaction score
3,314
I have two DBs from S&M and they're fairly balanced in my opinion. Without the curved quarters you'd get on a sb sportcoat the jacket certainly can look and feel longer. I wonder what @wilcthree would say about it.
I agree the DBs SM dropped from SS ‘21 onward are fairly balanced. I own two from that drop, the serge and the di Fabio, both in 38L contemporary. I wear both of them off the rack without any alterations. The serge seems to balance just enough drape in the chest, with a easy-going, spalls camacia shoulder, and a very subtle shaping of the waist achieved through its cut. For me, this produces a nice silhouette on the DB and I haven’t notice any skirt flaring.
 

MrFingers

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 7, 2021
Messages
859
Reaction score
2,049
It's all about tshirts and polos now. More comfort + deformalize the biz suits we have too many of. I probably won't ever buy a buttondown again in this lifetime.


Personally I think you’re missing a point here. This guy could be wearing the ugliest shirt there is, he’s a good looking guy in reasonably good shape. That’s probably why clothes look okay if not good on him that would look ugly in 99% of the people that don’t look after their bodies. This is like watching the sopranos, great clothing and all but you can see how some characters pull off looks simply because they’re good looking
 

Featured Sponsor

How important is full vs half canvas to you for heavier sport jackets?

  • Definitely full canvas only

    Votes: 55 35.3%
  • Half canvas is fine

    Votes: 61 39.1%
  • Really don't care

    Votes: 17 10.9%
  • Depends on fabric

    Votes: 27 17.3%
  • Depends on price

    Votes: 28 17.9%

Forum statistics

Threads
505,207
Messages
10,579,321
Members
223,892
Latest member
cprice
Top