At one point, every man shopped for their first dress suit, and frankly it can be pretty overwhelming if it’s your first time.
Whether you just need one great suit, or a collection of suits you can rotate throughout the week, we’ve come up with a guide to help you find the right suit. The brand, pattern, fit, and price point, are all going to be key elements we suggest focusing on when searching for a suit. Let us explain.
Suit Brands
Since Blaine’s is first and foremost known for their suiting, they don’t compromise on brand selection.
They carry the best of the best brands from all over America and Europe. The suit selection includes but isn’t limited to: Canali, Pal Zileri, Coppley, Latorre, and last but not least Corneliani.
You may say, I didn’t think a brand was that important when it comes to a suit, because unlike other men’s clothing items, suits don’t show off their labels. And when it comes to buying a suit, the brand isn’t about the label, it’s about the fit, quality and price point you’re going for.
Majority of brands, have a signature fit to their suits. For example, Peter Millar has more of a classic fit, it would work well for the traditional man, or the one with a bit more meat on his bones. Whereas, a Ted Baker suit, is designed for the trim man, who is super lean and majority of suits seem to be too baggy on him.
It’s good to know what brands are going to be suitable for your body type, before wasting your time trying on every suit in the building and getting worn out from the beginning. Start with asking a sales associate for help. They can take one glance at you and immediately know what brands would work for your stature.
After you have a couple brands you can work with for your body type, you can look through their collections and see which pattern or style stands out to you.
Suit Patterns
If this is your first suit, there are a few things to keep in mind. For a first suit, we would recommend a classic navy blue, or charcoal gray. These two colors give you the most variety when it comes to menswear. They are a bit more on the conservative side, but this allows for you to have some fun with your dress shirts, ties, and shoes.
If this isn’t your first rodeo when it comes to a suit, you may want to try one of our bolder prints. We have prints ranging from all over the spectrum.
Suit Fit
As we previously mentioned, brand can determine fit in a sense. But, fit goes much deeper than the brand and if it’s a classic fit or a trim fit. The fit of a suit is the most important fit to get right when it comes to any men’s fashion garment. The suit in comparison to the men’s sport coat needs to be a lot more tailored. The sport coat is a bit more casual, and doesn’t need to fit like a glove, where the suit should.
When finding the right fit of a suit, you have to keep in mind what alterations and a tailor can or cannot do. It is extremely rare for a suit to fit perfectly, and not have to get any tailoring done.
Majority of pants, that come with a suit, aren’t even finished at the bottom, because that way they can get tailored to the appropriate length.
The most important fit category of a men’s suit is the shoulder. The shoulder is the hardest area for a tailor to alter. So when you are looking to see if a sport coat fits right, first and foremost look at the shoulder. You don’t want it puckering up from too much fabric or pulling from it being too tight.
From there, the tailor can take in or let out room in the body, lengthen, or shorten the sleeves (shorten and taking in is always easier than lengthening and letting out).
Suit Price Point
Last, but not least, before falling in love with your dream suit, it’s important to understand price points when it comes to a suit purchase. If this is your first time purchasing a suit, it may seem like a lot of money, but if you spend time learning about the suit, and the process it takes to make them, you will immediately understand why.
Due to technology, and inexpensive labor, you can now find a suit for about $300. If you’re a teenage or if you are a parent of a teenage looking to buy them their first suit for choir practice, or prom, sticking to this price point would be a good idea. Men don’t hit their growth spurt till their teen years and you don’t want to splurge on a suit when they will just grow out of it a year later.
At Blaine’s Fine Men’s Apparel, and yes it is only the finest of finest apparel. Our most affordable suit will be upwards of $995. Depending on how luxurious you are looking for, our Pal Zileri and Calani suits could range anywhere from $2,000 to $3,000.
When you pay this price, you are getting the best of the best when it comes to brand, quality, fit and style. We even offer the option of a made to order suit. Made to order suits, allow you to essentially design your own garments. If you’ve have this dream suit in mind, but can’t find it anywhere, allow us to help you bring it to life. We have hundred of pattern swatches in store, allowing you to create exactly what you want.
Stop by our store, in Cincinnati, and we would love to help you get started on your suit journey.