Yes!! I know you can help. :) Best Suit for My FIANCEE???

[KimBrown]

Tan linen suit from Brooks Brothers if warm climate, tan gabardine if temperate.

Hi again roger C. What site is that? I think that's cool.

 

[KimBrown]

We need a price range, and also some more details. "Garden wedding" implies a certain informality, but does not demand it - how formal/informal will the event be? What kind of dress will you be wearing? Where is the wedding - hot climate or cold (you haven't even identified your hemisphere)?

Hmm. Yes Mcbrown, It's just a temperate one. Anything will do dear. Just site or name of shops.. thanks thanks. So that I can see the choices of designs...

 

[KimBrown]

A good suit cannot be had in that price range. Take him to Brooks Brothers or Ralph Lauren and spoil him with a made-to-measure suit in the fabric of his liking.

Oh Ok, If we do not have time. They have their websites right? hmm. So that we can check immediately

 

[KimBrown]

suit supply is only a little bit out of that range and would likely have something that works.

So what do you think is the best range of price??

 

[mcbrown]

I'm not sure what the Brooks Brothers website is. If only there were... some kind of... internetwork, of various computing machines from all over the world, connected by copper cables... by which information could be shared... And a... machine? An engine? Yes, an engine! For finding... yes, a "finding engine"... no, searching? Yes! A "searching engine", with which one could attempt to request information on the topic about which one wishes to learn...

Alas, I don't believe such a fanciful device exists.

 

[AbeFroeman]

What is his figure like, and age?

Its all about the fit. Not all brands work well on all men.

 

[AlexE]



Hi again roger C. What site is that? I think that's cool.

http://www.giyf.com/

 

[VinnyMac]

Hmm..Oh so sorry. $300 to $400.. HMMMM? Thanks

A good suit cannot be had in that price range. Take him to Brooks Brothers or Ralph Lauren and spoil him with a made-to-measure suit in the fabric of his liking.

So what do you think is the best range of price??

You can get a decent suit in that price range. He probably doesn't wear suits much, so he just needs to look good at the wedding and during the trip back to your home/hotel room. After that, all bets (and clothes) are off. If you feel comfortable taking measurements and sending them to a company to have a suit made, there are a lot of online suit companies. Based on your measurements and the customizations that you choose, they'll make a suit for you within about 4 weeks. They give you directions for the measurements on the website. As long as the measurements aren't WAAAAY off, you can have a few minor adjustments made at a local tailor. I like moderntailor.com I've ordered suits from them at most of the price ranges, and I think that they're better than the other online made to measure sites that I've used...one man's opinion. Take a look and decide for yourself.

If you don't like the online option, then I second Ralph Lauren. I've never bought anything there, but I like their clothes more than Brooks Brothers. The price will probably be higher than your range though, and you'll still need to have a few adjustments made at the tailor.

 

[jgeldner]

http://us.suitsupply.com/on/demandware.store/Sites-US-Site/en_US/Home-Show

They're mostly $469. If you're in a city where they have a store, it's definitely worth stopping in to try on. If you're not, it still might be worth buying (free shipping) to do the same.

 

[bellyhungry]

Kim,

It's probably better to take him to a local brick-and-mortar store to get fit properly rather than taking a flyer by ordering online. It generally takes a lot of research and trial and error for someone to master the art of ordering suits online.

What city do you live in and where is this 'garden wedding' taking place?

 

[JLibourel]

Agree with the foregoing. Are you in Australia or someplace else in the Southern Hemisphere? Otherwise, scheduling a garden wedding in December anywhere in the Temperate Zone of the Northern Hemisphere can be very chancy, even in the mild Southern California climate where I live.

As others have pointed out, you're not going to get much of a suit in the $300 to $400 range. If your fiance is a man of normal physique (without significant peculiarities), I think he will be better served by a ready-to-wear suit than by going to any of the online made-to-measure operations. Are there any high-end outlet stores (e.g., Saks Off-Fifth, Neiman-Marcus Last Call, Brooks Brothers, Nordstrom Rack) in your vicinity? You might find something reasonably presentable without going much over budget. Another option would be Joseph A. Bank's Signature Gold suits at 70% off, at which price they are offered with some frequency and then become pretty good values, I think. This is assuming you are in the USA.

If your fiance is not a "suit" guy, I would counsel against the suggestion of a tan suit. I like them, I've got one, but they are of limited utility for a guy who is only going to own one or two suits at a time.

 

[KimBrown]

A good suit cannot be had in that price range. Take him to Brooks Brothers or Ralph Lauren and spoil him with a made-to-measure suit in the fabric of his liking.

Thanks Grenadier.

I'll try to talk to him later about your suggestion. Hmmm... do you still know other options aside from this?

 

[JLibourel]

^That option is probably going to cost you somewhere in the vicinity of $1,500, so it might be somewhat over budget if you were thinking of something in the $300-$400 range.

 

[Liquidus]



Thanks Grenadier.

I'll try to talk to him later about your suggestion. Hmmm... do you still know other options aside from this?

Don't get made to measure. For $300-400, get a suit from Jcrew when they have their sales.

 

[yufu22]

Well, I think first of all it all depends on what kind of build your husband is, but finding a nice suit for $300-400 (even on sale might be difficult). I used to work at Barneys New York and the best deal I ever got was a Shipley Halmos Wool blend navy suit I bought and that was still (with my discount $300). With that being said... if we stretched the budget a couple of hundred dollars... say to $600, you might have a few options - although I dont' know how your husband is built, but I'm just going to assume that he is in shape and doesn't have ridiculously long arms or any other attributes that may make him difficult to fit without going bespoke.

1. J Crew - I think someone suggested this before, but J Crew is making some nice stuff nowadays, especially their Ludlow stuff. Most of their suits are Italian fabrics, and I have friends that work high-end retail like at LANVIN that alter it a little bit and they pull it off. The fit is relatively nice (on the slimmer side compared to say a $300-$500 suit you might find at Macy's or whatever) and made for the "average" american guy. I think you can get a nice suit for $600 or so and cheaper on sale.

2. Theory - If you have a Theory outlet near you, they have some great deals and you might be able to get a suit for under $500. I've even seen the classic black Theory suits on sale like additional 35% off at the outlet for around $500. It's a great fit (probably won't need a whole lot of alterations) and although it's made overseas, a good bang for the bug. It's a nice slim, modern fitting suit without having to empty the bank account. A lot of younger people especially like this suit, and it's definatley a nice entry-level suit that's worth a look. Excellent fit for the price IMO.

3. Barneys Co-Op - a little bit on the boxier side for me (but I also am very skinny and like my things fitted - sometimes I think Theory is even a little bit boxy and it's made pretty slim), but decent quality suits. Decent fabric, decent contrustion. Trust me it's not a Brioni, but it'll probably do the job. Last time I remember they were doing the double pockets kind of like Paul Smith does and the suits were relatively short and decent fit. Spend 10 bucks on a hem, maybe 10 on the sleeves and you're all set to go. They retail around $395 for the jacket and $190 for the trousers, but Barneys should be doing their sale soon so you can probably get it within your budget on sale.

4. WARNING: I'm just throwing it out there... H&M... OK... so the only thing I buy from H&M are t-shirts, but worst case scenario, H&M doesn't make horrible fitting suits. IMO, the quality definately is far below average, but with the right tailor and the right alterations, you can make a $200 suit from H&M look pretty damn good (granted the fabric sucks but in terms of FIT which is the #1 thing when it comes to a suit, you can make it work). This is a long time ago, but I bought a cheap-o suit from H&M for like less than $200 bucks, altereted the LIFE out of it, and it looked good. The lining like ripped the second time I wore it but people were asking me if it was Dior because I had the lapels brought in, etc. etc. - - I did spend close to $200 on alterations though, and that was with a discount and pretty much had the suit taken apart and relined, and alterted every inch of it. Regardless, I couldn't afford a Dior back then so what was I supposed to do??

Well, I hope that bit of information helps, I didn't have too much to go on, but the sales are right around the corner and you should be able to get something nice in the $400-$600 range. Hopefully you can find something that fits nice, looks nice and that he can wear for the future.

Cheers and if you have any more questions feel free to ask.