Suit and Sportcoat Fit Pictures: Am I a 39L or what?

[itsstillmatt]

Originally Posted by bluemagic

Thanks. It's the option of last resort if I really cannot find anything else suitable.
This is my analysis, for what little it is worth. You have really good style in jeans and such, and it is sort of a preppy thing you do. That is good, perhaps better than good. It is also a style which morphs well into "adult" clothing, if you do it right. The Black Fleece stuff is good like that, and J Press can be good as well, though it is harder to retain any degree of style in their stuff unless you really try. With the HF suit, you just look like you are wearing your father's clothing, which isn't awful, because you are young, but you do care, so it isn't the best way to go. On the other hand, if you go with something like PS, in either line, I think you will end up with something that is too sophisticated for your own style, and I don't use sophisticated in a positive way. Better for you to continue the preppy, young look you have, and buy something that feels like you own it, rather than it wears you. There are few guys on this board who dress well the way I am talking. Vox does occasionally, so picking through his pics is not a bad idea. I think that if you follow the SF CW, you will end up with something slicker than you would choose for yourself, and you will regret it.

 

[sho'nuff]

Paul smith not paul stuart! Im sure the teen monkey brand name dont make suits, let alone you paying a 1000 dollars for one.

 

[lawyerdad]

Originally Posted by sho'nuff

Paul smith not paul stuart! Im sure the teen monkey brand name dont make suits, let alone you paying a 1000 dollars for one.
Sho'nuff, I love you man, but I don't even know what this means.

Bluemagic, I think matt's comments are worth taking to heart.

 

[bluemagic]

Originally Posted by iammatt

This is my analysis, for what little it is worth. You have really good style in jeans and such, and it is sort of a preppy thing you do. That is good, perhaps better than good. It is also a style which morphs well into "adult" clothing, if you do it right. The Black Fleece stuff is good like that, and J Press can be good as well, though it is harder to retain any degree of style in their stuff unless you really try.

With the HF suit, you just look like you are wearing your father's clothing, which isn't awful, because you are young, but you do care, so it isn't the best way to go. On the other hand, if you go with something like PS, in either line, I think you will end up with something that is too sophisticated for your own style, and I don't use sophisticated in a positive way. Better for you to continue the preppy, young look you have, and buy something that feels like you own it, rather than it wears you. There are few guys on this board who dress well the way I am talking. Vox does occasionally, so picking through his pics is not a bad idea. I think that if you follow the SF CW, you will end up with something slicker than you would choose for yourself, and you will regret it.

Spot-on analysis.

I bought the HF suit about 1.5 years ago, before I knew anything about fit or color; back then, my casual dress was awful as well.

I certainly do want my casual and suited looks to be stylistically coherent.

The other option for me that would fit this approach would be to get MTM by GetSmart, Thick as Thieves. The problem there is not being able to try it on and having to wait 4-6 weeks.

The more I think about it, actually, the more the BF seems like it might be an ok investment, especially since it would get used for every "wear a suit" event in my life, since it is my only suit. One excuse for the expense would be the old cost-per-wear argument; I don't think I would really need anything else at least until my 1L summer job in 2010...

 

[bluemagic]

The current sale price for the BF suit is $1395. How good a deal is that? It seems like a "good deal if you need", but not "obscene" price.

Hopefully by posting this I will not make it sell out in navy (as I may have done by posting the Hickey Style solid navy I had been considering buying).

 

[itsstillmatt]

It is OK, not great. You should really hit somebody up for a Brooks discount number if you buy it.

 

[bluemagic]

I have a Brooks corporate card, is that the same thing? I'm not sure if this counts as an "everyday value" (which the discount would stack with) or not. Hopefully, they'd give me the benefit of the doubt.

 

[greekonomist]

^^ I don't think it counts, but it never hurts to ask.

 

[rjmaiorano]

FAIK the corporate card is not stackable.

 

[emptym]

Looks to me like your shoulders are very square and one is slightly broader than the other. Could be the way you're standing (w/ shoulders pulled up and back). Or I could be wrong. The fact that the Matts haven't commented on it leads me to believe that I am.

Since you're near NYC, why not try Mr. Ned's or LS or L&S (I forget which of the last two people like)? Wouldn't they cost around $1,000? Among others, Chorse123 has had good results w/ Mr. Ned, iirc.

 

[SkinnyGoomba]

blue,

if you arent busy tomorrow i can meet you at RL and help you pick out something that will work very well, and actually fit, if you are in princeton. I should be free ethier in the afternoon depending on how my morning goes.

how tall are you?

 

[bluemagic]

It looks like I'm going to go straight up Thom Browne mainline.

I'm 5'11.

 

[polar-lemon]

You have an HF Ltd. suit, so it is half canvassed, to answer your question.

 

[bluemagic]

Originally Posted by polar-lemon

You have an HF Ltd. suit, so it is half canvassed, to answer your question.

Thanks!

 

[polar-lemon]

Originally Posted by bluemagic

Thanks!

Also, not sure how much my opinion would count, but I'd be wary of the Thom Browne/Black Fleece look. The suits are cool, preppy, and of nice quality, but the one potentially regrettable aspect would be the lapel size. I think a narrow-ish lapel like the BB Fitz will not ever really look dated, but when it gets as skinny as BF and TB, you might run into trouble in a few years. There could also be issues with your current tie collection, all of which may look out of proportion with the narrow BF lapel. The same will be true of hickeystyle suits. I admire the preppy aesthetic of both brands, but ultimately need to prioritize versatility above all (which it sounds like you need to do too).

I'd take SB up on his offer to see what's at RL. If you're NYC, you could also check out the Barney's house label suits- same price as your sale BF (around $1400) at retail, and might be on sale for less right now- fully canvassed, soft shoulders, made by Caruso, quite beautiful. They are basically a higher quality version of a Polo Blue Label suit; both the Polo and Barneys are cut shorter than usual, so you will need to try on both an R and L to see what you like.