BB Fitzgerald -- Trendy or classic?

tw1928 · Jun 27, 2009

With the Brooks Brothers sale, I'm thinking of buying another Fitzgerald suit. The one I currently have fits great without looking too skinny, modern, etc., especially given my more athletic built, i.e. hate the giant pleated pants that come with my jacket size. But I'm concerned that I'm investing in a short lived trend that will leave me with two outdated suits in a couple of years. I'm assuming trimmer flat fronts trousers are here to stay but what about the Fitzgerald's narrower lapels. Thoughts?

Dewey · Jun 27, 2009

Suit cuts are rarely so dated as more flamboyant fads. If you look around you find men in 10-15 year old blazers and suits all the time, blissfully unaware that a tiny portion of the population can date their old clothes by the gorge height and button stance. In the grand scheme of things, few suit are "trendy" the way that truly trendy things are trendy. Loud fabrics will make a suit look more trendy than a certain lapel width.

That said, yeah some people will be able to spot a Fitz across the room and date it to this time, ten-fifteen years from now. The Regent will also look dated eventually. The Madison is probably the least distinctive of their cuts.

gomestar · Jun 27, 2009

I believe that it is absolutely not "trendy", even if it can be identified from across the room. I actually think more people should be wearing the Fitz suits, the sheer amount of oversized crap I see on the streets is a shame. I agree to keep the colors and patterns simple, no need for a black stripe "power suit". As to your thread title, I'm not sure I'd put it as "classic" either: classic to the 50's, 60's, and even today - yes. Classic to the days of the 70's and the table-sized lapels, not so much.

In the end, a suit that fits your body just right with the ideal amount of tailoring will never go out of style. I think you'll have many good years in the Fitz.

ruben · Jun 27, 2009

Could I add on to the OPs question?....

What elements will make it look dated in the future?
I'd guess the lapel size, highorge an button stance, but would like to hear what othes think.

JohnnyCrockett · Jun 27, 2009

The narrow lapels date it. I think it might be over already?

Look -- it is not all that trendy. It is still from BB, after all. But of all the BB suit styles, it will sure look dated the fastest. By contrast, I think the Madison will look essentially alright in perpetuity, assuming you've got the wide build for it!

SkinnyGoomba · Jun 27, 2009

RL's going to wide lapels for this winter season, He will start the opposite trend.

I like the skinny lapels personally, i would wear skinny, medium or large regardless of whats in fashion. Most guys are oblivious of it, and it takes turns coming into and going out of fashion.

What really dates a suit is the gorge, but still i see low gorge 80's and early 90's looking jackets all the time, the thing with mens wear is that its suppose to be worn for many years, so buy it if you like it and forget about whats 'in'.

If you are skinny, it'll be a long time before skinny lapels look bad on you, if ever, but if you're more like a 42+ then i might reconsider.

Bird's One View · Jun 27, 2009

Originally Posted by SkinnyGoomba

RL's going to wide lapels for this winter season, He will start the opposite trend.

Oh good. I can finally get an RLBL suit and ask the foraz what goes with it.

SkinnyGoomba · Jun 27, 2009

lol, so far only in the polo 'fashion' cuts, not sure about BL.

soupcxan · Jun 27, 2009

I wear the fitz because I'm a skinny guy and it fits me the best of any OTR suit I've found. So on me, I don't think it will look dated - the labels are proportional to my features. However, if you're large and you're wearing a fitz in a huge size, then yeah it's going to look dated. It probably never looked that good to begin with because the lapels are out of proportion to the rest of you.

However, I think the lapels on this black fleece already look too skinny, and will continue to look more wrong as time goes on:

http://www.styleforum.net/showthread.php?t=123330

JayJay · Jun 27, 2009

Fitz and similar slimmer-fit suits won't look dated as long as they fit the wearer well, even with slimmer lapels, IMO.

porcelain monkey · Jun 27, 2009

It'll be fine.

stant62 · Jun 27, 2009

I think they'll be a classic. The lapels are not too skinny in that they'll be outdated in a couple of years.

furo · Jun 27, 2009

Originally Posted by soupcxan

I wear the fitz because I'm a skinny guy and it fits me the best of any OTR suit I've found. So on me, I don't think it will look dated - the labels are proportional to my features. However, if you're large and you're wearing a fitz in a huge size, then yeah it's going to look dated. It probably never looked that good to begin with because the lapels are out of proportion to the rest of you.

However, I think the lapels on this black fleece already look too skinny, and will continue to look more wrong as time goes on:

http://www.styleforum.net/showthread.php?t=123330

I'm pretty sure that Thom Browne black fleece has about a narrow lapel as there is...

And after some convincing from my wife, I'm not going to buy that BF suit either.

Wes Bourne · Jun 27, 2009

Since we're talking about the Fitz, I'll take this opprotunity to ask you guys which is trimmest between the Fitz and Regent. Hard to tell by their description. I know that the Regent has a 7'' drop, while the Fitz is the more standard 6'' drop. Also, most/all Regent jackets apparently side vents, whereas the Fitz seems to come in center vent only.

I'd be interested in measurements for a 36S and 38S jacket in both models if someone has them.

soupcxan · Jun 28, 2009

Originally Posted by Wes Bourne

I'll take this opprotunity to ask you guys which is trimmest between the Fitz and Regent.

I recently tried on a 38R fitz and regent. No question the fitz was slimmer in the jacket (especially shoulders) and the pants. However, the regent had a tighter fit in the waist, because it was a 31, but below that the pants seemed baggy like you would expect from traditional BB. I didn't find the regent to be "slim" at all - but I guess it is slimmer than the Madison.

BB Fitzgerald -- Trendy or classic?

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