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Taupe suit?

medwards

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Originally Posted by Manton
Now, there is a solid chance that this is just irrational prejudice, so take it with a grain of salt.I despise that color in wool. If you want that color (and let's call it "cream" or "fawn"), please, get it in linen or silk. Those are elegant classics. In wool, it just looks borrowed from the (queen-sized) ladies department.


Hmmmm. I happen to have two summer suits in these shades (Minnis 8ounce super 100s and cashmere from the Finesse book). They seem quite satisfactory to me. Somehow I doubt you'll find anything too similar in the queen-sized ladies department, but I am not terribly familiar with such emporia.
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Manton

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A normal tan wool is a nice choice, gabardine even better. The tan should be on the dark side (for tan). It's not really a year round suit, IMO, but it's an elegant choice.

Gab is sweet but the weave is tight and the suit will be too hot for the dead of summer.
 

medwards

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How would you differentiate the shadings between taupe, beige, tan, fawn, et al? I suspect some of us may have somewhat different colors (or at least tones) in mind about this range.
 

A Harris

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I think the only thing I dislike more than the color taupe is the word taupe. I agree with Manton, lets call it fawn or something.
 

Manton

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"Taupe" in my mind is the color of a doctor's office waiting room wall, or else a ladies wool suit from a place like Talbot's. It's "whiter" and creamier -- maybe grayer -- than a true man's tan.

The color qua color is not awful on a man, I just hate it in wool. I would wear the very lightest light grays in wool, but not the lightest tans. The three shades of tan in Lesser Tropical, for instance, are all A-OK with me -- none too light -- but I got the middle one because I thought it was the richest.
 

Dewey

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Originally Posted by A Harris
I think the only thing I dislike more than the color taupe is the word taupe. I agree with Manton, lets call it fawn or something.

+1

Here is a decent "name that color" resource. Some of the names are nutty, but the site provides a way to talk about specific colors.

The problem with the word "taupe" is that it means gray-brown, and browns vary a lot. Brown is "any of a group of colors between red and yellow in hue, of medium to low lightness, and of moderate to low saturation." There are nearly as many browns as there are highly-saturated colors. A light yellow-brown is pretty different from a light red-brown. Adding gray to them does not change this much.
 

rssmsvc

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If there is another "Burn notice" fan, I really like the suit and especially in the setting of the show it looks right.

bn1.jpg
 

CodeRed

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It's funny but I didn't know that the word "taupe" would solicit such a strong reaction from some people. Maybe there is more to this under the surface...
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lithium180

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I bought a second-hand tan/taupe/olive/whatever suit made by Polo (corneliani line) today. What sorts of social occasions are right to wear this suit and what kinds of tie colors and shirts do you find interesting under it? It strikes me as the kind of suit that might allow for an avenue towards more colorful shirts...

It certainly doesn't feel like something I could wear to the office though.
 

Concordia

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I hate taupe for no other reason than you have to be a decorator to pronounce it without flinching. Tan, putty, fawn or khaki are much nicer colors.
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If I read Manton correctly, he would be OK with 0850 or 0851, but not 0849 or paler.

Medwards, is this http://www.hfw-huddersfield.co.uk/ha...seco=M?cate=E? the bracket you're choosing from?
 

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