stylish suit for a performer. need help.

[dereksmagic]

So I'm new to suits and needs some reading material on them.

I am an magician and I have been wearing the same old suit for years. A 3 button wide lapel suit that just doesnt look very good.

Anyway. I'm trying to figure out what makes a suit look stylish and sexy (ryan gosling in "crazy stupid love") vs business man boxy look.

I want it too look more like what you would see on a movie awards show or Neil Patrick Harris on how I met your mother.

I lost a lot of weight recently (80 lbs) so i really want a slim slim style suit with slim lapels and a slim tie. I love that look for some reason, maybe cus I could never wear it before.

Im going to head to Joseph Banks and look at suits, and don't want them selling me on something that I won't like.

Any threads or YouTube links for a "how to" or guides would be great.

Thanks!

 

[dereksmagic]

Anyone ?

 

[YRR92]

You have much to learn, young grasshopper. Start with fit -- the look you want is based on a heavily tapered jacket and fairly slim trousers. Sometimes, people take that over the line into too tight.

Joey Banks doesn't really do that all that well. I find their shoulders are too boxy for that.

 

[Wayward]

It's hard to provide any sort of advice based on the notion of "I want a slim suit" without any reference points. Have you tried on anything anywhere? Even at places that typically don't offer quality, such as H&M or Zara, provide an idea of what you're looking for. Also, if you're looking for a show wardrobe, this forum isn't necessarily the best place to tell you where to shop. That said, feel free to give more concrete examples and demonstrate a bit of effort (for example, go try on some suits, and take some pics to show what sort of look you're going for) and see if you can get better responses. Who knows, you may realize that it's not worth the money to buy one quality suit, if you're more likely to be going through a bunch of them due to work-related wear and tear.

One thing I will say to look for though: high armholes. As in, the sleeves should hug your armpit a good bit, but without cutting off circulation. This allows the arms to move freely without tugging the entire jacket around. I suspect that as a magician, that'll be the most important thing. Fred Astaire is a good example of a performer who had all his suits with high armholes, so as to allow for dancing.

Jos A Banks is probably the last place I'd shop if I wanted high armholes. Seriously, if you're young-ish (say younger than mid-30s) go to Zara, H&M, or J Crew for the latest and trendiest. Or, check out Suitsupply, which is currently one of the better rated companies on this forum, and caters to the fashionable crowd. There's a huge thread in the forum. Go look at the pics.

 

[Septimus]

Don't you need to hide stuff in the sleeves?

 

[David Reeves]

how about white tie with top hat?

 

[unbelragazzo]

Other ways of differentiating from a business suit:

Peak lapels
1 button
Fabric with sheen

Basically you want to kind of steer it in the direction of being a tuxedo, even if you don't actually get a tuxedo. For instance, don't cuff the pants.

 

[dereksmagic]

Perfect info. Especially on the stores. Ill check it H&M and other stores rther then a traditional "suit shop". I won't be hiding anything up my sleeve. And no top hat haha. I'm a sleight of hand close up artist. Not your stereo typical stage magician wearing a tux, and hiding doves upy arms haha.

The suit doesn't need to be expensive or name brand, I just want it to look good. As in trendy and fitted. Anyone have any experience with suits from like Kohls? The brands are like Mark Anthony, Apt 9, etc.. cheap suits. I dunno if that's too cheap though.

One thing is fabric. I get hot under the lights, Really hot and sweat, so what type of material should o be looking at that's breathable? From the little I have read, 100% wool is king?

Lastly, I have some pics saved to my phone. And I can't seem to find anything like these clothes in US stores. Its always an Chinese site that has the stuff I like called alliexpress dot coom I believe.

Ill post up a few pics when I can get to my laptop, but I really appreciate the replies and information so far. Thank you very much and I hope people will continue to provide input on this thread. I won't be a noob and post a hundred different threads.

 

[dereksmagic]

this post is written from my cell phone using voice to text so please excuse any grammatical errors first off I'd like to say that thank you for the information regarding the other stores I think that would be better than a typical suit store also I don't need to hide anything up my sleeves I'm not a stereotypical stage magician I am a close up sleight of hand artist. Has anyone been to Kohl's and seeing the suits by apt 9 or Mark Anthony suits. Penis that too cheap? In not worried about brand name or expense, because yes it is technically a work suit and it will get lots of wear and tear. One of the things that I do need to take into consideration is that it gets very hot under the stage lights so I would like a material that stays cool and is breathable from the a little amount of research I've done so far I hear that 100 percent wool is the king of material?

lastly I have a few other questions about style and blazers I've looked up a few pics online and they all seem to be Chinese style close the only come from China websites and I can't find them in US stores maybe someone can chime in and possibly name a few stores that might carry the style that I like. I'll post up a couple pics when I can get to my laptop.

I really appreciate the information that has been given so far and I'll try to keep this more of a running thread instead of posting up a bunch of different threads thank you for the replies again and the information to come.

 

[unbelragazzo]



Penis that too cheap?

What kind of performer are you again?

 

[Wayward]

If you're considering a showy suit that's light and breathable, have you considered summer suits such as blends of silk, linen, and/or wool? I wouldn't recommend cotton or seersuckers though. As well, if you look carefully at the back of summer suits, they do come half-lined or unlined, so as there's no lining or only the top half. Those may also help with breathability. A silk blend has the additional bonus of being shiny, if that's the look you're going for.

EDIT: No, not Nehru jackets as I thought you meant, but rather clothing companies from Asia.

 

[dereksmagic]

 

[dereksmagic]

Most of this stuff is from a website called alliexpress

I also found a lot of cool vintage field jackets from a British site called.

http://www.surplus-shop.de/

Their M65 field jackets are cool. Fitted, stylish.. Mmmm. Where are the stores in the US. To find styles like all this? Kohls, tillys, Macy's, Nordstrom, all don't have anything good.

 

[mensimageconsultant]

Nordstrom might have something slim-fit, in a well-ventilated fabric, such as tropical wool (a slim-fit linen-wool-silk suit likely would be hard to find anywhere). Surely yoox.com has something, but trying on before buying is essential re an unfamiliar brand and new size. Budget, size, and location within the USA would help.

 

[robbersarb]

I recently had to wear a fitted suit on stage for a role in a play, I'm not sure if you'll have the same problem as me but under those stage lights I cooked!
I would strong recommend getting something in linen because when worn close to the skin wool tends to trap air and heat you up and I can assure you it's very unpleasant