A man should wear a suit, but he should never be in a suit. The goal of these two articles is precisely to make your suit work for you , and not the other way around.
A suit tailored to the man
A suit serves to magnify the silhouette, to highlight the man's body. This is only possible if the size of the suit fits your proportions exactly .
A brand = a costume standard
In the field of ready-to-wear, what distinguishes two suits from different brands is the silhouette. Each designer sizes for a different average customer. However, remember to regularly update your benchmarks, as a brand can change its standards from season to season.
The shoulder is the keystone of your suit
When choosing a suit, the build is the fundamental element. This is true on the shoulders which must be perfectly adapted - this criterion being explained in detail a little further on.
Well-defined suit shoulders
A jacket that is too long makes its wearer smaller
It's a fact: men who wear jackets that are too big are legion. For your part, make sure that the sides do not fall lower than the palms of the hands, nor lower than the buttocks .
Check: This Bellagio suit jacket respects the previous two rules perfectly.
Regarding the sleeves, the ideal is for the shirt sleeve to protrude slightly from the jacket (when the arm is relaxed along the body).
This allows for an appreciable color recall.
The evolution of the costume in humans
The modern suit
Originally, the modern suit was not the outfit of the working professional. On the contrary, it is an informal dressy outfit, for entertaining or traveling. In short, it's the loungewear of a gentleman at rest.
Above, men wear tailcoats, before modern costume became widespread.
From the end of the twenties, the suit became the universal outfit of the urban man. He wears it to work and keeps it on in the evening, unless he has the opportunity to put on a tuxedo, the height of elegance. The suit cut from a single piece of fabric becomes the perfect outfit.
At that time, the first element that allowed us to distinguish one costume from another was the color:
- Black : for religious ceremonies
- Anthracite gray : for all occasions, particularly the most formal
- Navy blue : the same, but a little less dressy
- Slate gray : for work and outings, more casual
- Olive green : for daring temperaments
- Brown : for the countryside
The colors of contemporary costume
Today, even if there are environments where these codes survive, they have largely crumbled, and are only respected by conservative individuals, the
In the professional world, charcoal gray or navy blue suits are still the most common, at least if you avoid black! On the other hand, nowadays, it is not uncommon to see brown, light gray, or even olive green suits.
But other colors are making a comeback. White, beige, or cream are perfect colors for a summer suit. Bright or very flashy colors are also possible but be careful, they are difficult to combine. We can quickly fall into caricature. To avoid any misunderstandings, here are our tips for correctly matching your costume color to your event.
- Black : for religious ceremonies (and now waiters): stop with black,
- Anthracite gray : for all occasions, particularly the most formal,
- Navy blue : the same, but a little less dressy,
- Slate gray : for work and outings, more casual,
- Steel blue : casual and modern,
- Beige : summery, to try,
- Light blue : same,
- Olive green : today perceived as quite austere, to be reserved for the most experienced,
- Brown : which can be very pretty but quickly ages the wearer: also experienced public,
- And lots of other shades for the most daring ones which appear most regularly in summer
When the good weather arrives, we also witness the flowering of light costumes, with colorful shades. For this, the material must obviously be breathable. The solution ? Taking seersucker suits is a real marvel. The fabric is made of one taut cotton thread and the other looser to give an embossed appearance to the piece . Light and comfortable, its wavy side allows air to circulate more easily - a pleasure when it's hot.
What are the recommended patterns for a suit?
Originally, colorful tartan prints, tweed, Prince of Wales and large checks suited certain social categories, instead of sports or country suits.
Likewise, it was the gangsters of the 1920s who wore pinstriped suits; hence the nickname "mackerel", because this fish also has attractive stripes.
As for scratches, take the finest possible
Today, the lines are blurred : any pattern can be worn in almost any professional circle, as long as it has reasonable dimensions (reread our advice on how to match suit patterns ).
As for outfits based on the most daring patterns (like paisley), they are generally found in more creative circles.
This is what a paisley print looks like
What material to choose for a suit?
Over the years, the nature of suit fabrics has evolved depending on the level of comfort. With the rise of heating and air conditioning, people are exposed to the same temperature all year round, whether in buildings or vehicles.
Wool, the perfect suit material
It's impossible not to talk about wool when we present the men's suit.
Above, merino wool in its raw state
This natural fiber has multiple mechanical properties : it is elastic, alive, resilient, shock-resistant, breathable, flexible, insulating, and very dirt-repellent.
But that's not all ! Wool has a high moisture content , which gives it other advantages:
- it generates very little static electricity, so it does not retain dust,
- it allows itself to be deeply impregnated by all the dyes,
- it flames with difficulty and burns poorly, what's more, without generating toxic gases.
It is for all these reasons that it is the queen material for costumes. We find it everywhere, we wear it all the time , whatever the seasons. It must be said that wool fabrics are twice as light as they were fifty years ago, given the increase in temperature.
Here is a photo of the Cerruti spinning mill, brought back by Geoffrey during his trip to Italy (see the article on the wool cycle).
That said, although you can wear the same outfit all year round (from a thermal comfort point of view), be sure to reserve your suits for particular seasons : flannel in winter, lighter wool for mid-season, etc. .
What about the other costume materials?
Cotton is pleasant in summer but wrinkles quickly. For linen, it's even worse. However, a wool-cotton or wool-linen blend allows you to keep the best of both worlds: a material hold with good breathability and comfort in summer. This is what we recommend!
The case of the suit vest
The suit vest, which has always been part of the costume, has also suffered from the development of central heating.
In the 80s, we hardly saw them anymore. However, as fashion abhors a vacuum, vests have fortunately ended up reappearing.
Apart from exceptional occasions such as a wedding, it is fashionable to take a vest to match the suit.
Concerning this third piece of the costume, the rule consists of choosing a vest as close to the body as possible . Generally, we have a bending tab which allows the fabric to be adjusted at the back.
Once you have found a jacket in your size, it is possible that the associated pants will not fit (bad drop). Fortunately, this is the easiest part to touch up.
The size of the suit pants
A good way to check that the pants are not too small for you is to observe the opening of their pockets: whether in front or behind, the pockets must not gape, but remain perfectly flat .
Concerning the length of the pants, it is the position of the hem which is decisive: the leg must fall straight, and form a single fold (called a break pleat), at the bottom of the pants.
Not respecting this rule exposes you to the risk of compressing your leg by accumulating creases on the shoes (trousers too long), or of showing off your socks in a suspicious manner (trousers too short).
On these suit pants, the hem is at the perfect height.
By the way, if you want to improve your sewing skills, you can learn how to make your invisible hem by rereading the article I wrote on this subject.
Otherwise, all you have to do is run off to your retoucher.
The crotch and seat of the pants
Pay attention to this when purchasing, you will notice that the pants sometimes tend to be a little loose at the crotch and under the buttocks.
In such a case, it is necessary to carry out a touch-up in order to avoid the parachute effect - an unfortunate effect, since it does not even slow down an accidental fall.
Make sure that the retoucher does not shorten excessively, otherwise the crotch of your pants will wear out and crack prematurely.
It's all a question of measurement for the narrowness of the pants: if you tend to quickly wear out the crotch of your pants, then opt for a little more material at this level.
Are you curious to learn more about altering pants? Here is an article that details all the possible adjustments.
The fuselage of the legs
Slightly fitted trousers tend to highlight the silhouette . If your pants do not naturally tend to slim down towards the shoe, once is not customary: your retoucher will be able to taper the legs.
Here, as always, it's all about subtlety. Don't look for skinny legs worthy of slim jeans.
In the second part of this article on how to choose a men's suit , we will present the jacket in every detail, as well as a selection of brands sorted according to budget.
How to choose your suit pants?
The costume drop
The drop is an element that characterizes the size difference between the pants and the jacket . For example, some brands offer a drop of 6 (pants in 36 and jacket in 42), while others offer a drop of 8.