Buying a Suit
Out of context: Reply #43
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- JSK0
Buying a bespoke or semi bespoke suits are great but costly. And also takes about 2-3 months with 3-4 fittings.
Best thing to do is buy a suit off the rack and find a good tailor who can alter it well.
Know what you want and find one who understands the modern trends. There are many tailors out there who does things by traditional rules of what a suit should be like. Think about what you want done. The link that Scarabin posted is a good start on standard rules.
A good tailor will tell you how the suit should be altered depending on your body and the look that you want to achieve. Also be ready to spend 300-600 on altering a suit.
Basic rules of alterations:
- Sleeve length is always adjusted from the shoulders
- Back of the suit should not be wrinkly
- Forget about the "buttoned jacket and your chest should fit a fist" rule
- Never look at GQ for how a suit should fit, they are used on a photoshoot. They are fit tighter and unrealistic in actually wearing it.
- Think or pick a shirt when you pick out a suit, not after.
- A $300 suit can look amazing with a good tailor.
- Tell the tailor what you want exactly, a good one will tell you why it wont work. eg the fabric will pull and you will get wrinkly or you wont be able to move.
- Dont be shy about going back to them after your alteration for more alteration on the same suit. You wont know how it fits until you actually wear it and use it for few days.
- A good tailor wont charge you again when you come back after an alteration.