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Alright guys, and girls, we need your help and feedback. We are in the market for a slim fitting, decent suit. When we graduated from college our grandfather took us suit shopping. The best/worst salesperson helped up pick out a suit that to this day is way too large. But, everyone seemed to say the same thing, you'll need some suits you can grow in to. The salesperson seemed to think this, grandpa seemed to agree, the seamstress we asked, "please make them fit better" seemed to feel leaving room for growth was best. Years later, the suits are no where near the right size. Essentially what they were saying is; "inevitably if you will be wearing a suit, you will get larger. Why not plan for the future?"
Well, when it came time for us to put on the suit, we looked in the mirror and one of those cute kids in giant clothing looked back at us. So off we went to find a nice, slim fitting suit. We ended up finding an inexpensive black suit at H&M. Well, now the time has come to add additional suits to the collection.
This month's GQ lists the top 10 suits for under $500 and there are some sharp ones. Don't get us wrong, 90% of the time you will catch us in rolled up jeans and a faded thrift store t-shirt, but there is something appealing about occasionally pulling out a suit, and wearing it well. For wool, we like the Nautica suit in navy. We have no problem with wool suits, but they aren't the be all end all anymore. Unless you are off to the country club. Whether it is cold or hot out, a cotton suit is usually enough and tends to fit and feel better. For cotton, we like the Calvin Klein suit, $276. We like our cotton H&M suit, but every time we put the jacket on we have to cut another loose thread. We aren't really sure what's holding it together anymore, shear force perhaps?
So what about you gentleman, and ladies with bad suits on boyfriend experience? Where in Chicago do you get suits? Boutiques or Department Stores?
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Salvation Army on Clybourn. Pretty good stuff there. So cheap you can go to a tailor and get alterations. Bring your tape measure with you. Also, if you are not a Beatle, go with looser pants.
Apparently, the world's best bespoke ("custom fitted") suits are made (or perhaps were until recently) by Oxxford Clothes right here in Chicago. Of course, since they are the best, they will set you back upwards of $2000...
My husband has bought most of his suits at Banana Republic and they look nice on him. They fit. He has purchased suits at Macy's (before they bought Marshall Field's) and he looked like a boy playing dress up. The BR ones are recommended.
Rochester Big & Tall for me, I'm afraid. Great store, though, if you need sizes like mine. The major labels in most stores stop just before my size, so I have to go online or to Rochester B&T.
H&M for durability? That's a laugh. You get what you pay for at that store, which isn't much. That's the first store in which sells what I consider "disposable clothing." It's practically meant to be worn once and then it's basically trash.
The clothes have more loose threads than a Danielle Steel novel. A friend of mine purchased a collared shirt there several years ago and it ripped the first day he wore it.
This isn't to give H&M a bad name worldwide. Their clothes seem to possess better durability abroad. It's just that their stores here in the States have terrible workmanship.
Majestic Menswear, Broadway and Leland.
I concur with the H&M review... stay away. Stuff looks good and the prices are too good to be true.
My dress shirt tore Hulk-style at the shoulders after the first wash (could be my fault for improper sizing) but the frayed threads in my slacks say maybe not.
I have a wedding to go to in a little over two weeks. I'm hoping to get out of it because of my fear of cicadas :-)
I know this may be lame, but I'm totally a quality over quantity shopper, and would rather have one or two nice things than a bunch of stuff that's falling apart. I bought a suit at the Armani outlet in Aurora last summer, and I like wearing it *almost* as much as a t-shirt and jeans (my only other suit is a black cotton BR suit, and it's nice for less formal occasions). Even the "sale" suits at the Armani outlet store will set you back $500-$600, but I really do think they're worth it. Again, I'm the kind of person that spends my entire clothing budget on one nice pair of jeans and wear them every day until they literally fall apart, so I know this isn't for everyone. BUT-- you should check out the outlets if you're at all interested.
Kohl's for inexpensive suits. I bought a Chaps Ralph Lauren suit there. THe shoulders are slightly snug, but overall, I look really good in the suit and it has not had any problems yet. The suit I bought from Jos A Banks is ok. I bought a suit during one of their numerous sales.
Finally, Filene's basement is quality stuff at better than department store prices. Bought an Izod suit there for inexpensive.
Field's was the best place to get suits, and they had terrific suit sales. Now that they are gone, I would suggest purchasing suits at Carson's or Lord & Taylor, but the time to buy is during a sale. It's silly to pay full price for a suit unless you need one ASAP for a job interview. A cotton suit???? I think wool is the way to go. I well made wool suit is not hot and is very long lasting.
As for Macy's, if you like Donald Trump and want his suits go for it! Personally, I think H&M has more class than The Donald!
I've always been a big fan of Men's Wearhouse for fancy suits, but I bought a $40 jacket from Kohl's last summer that's totally shocked me with its durability. My problem with suits is that I've always been terrified of ruining 'em: I've learned that the beauty of a cheap jacket is that you can wear it fearlessly to the smokiest bar or skankiest club.
I got my latest suit, a sharp Kenneth Cole dealie, at Macy's at Water Tower. The salesman was very helpful and not pressuring at all, and I'm very satisfied. I plan on going there again the next time I get one.
I've gotten suits from Irvs Menswear since I was in grad school. The price is much better than the boutiques and the quality is higher than the chains. Check them out. I get compliments.
are we limiting ourselves to city places? if not, a huge thumbs up to von maur out in lombard and glenview. if you keep your eyes peeled for suits, they have incredible sales. i got a few joesph abboud suits for less than $300/each. these are suits that retail over $700.
Nordstrom's Rack has great suits for around 300-400. The suits are about half of what they cost when they were retail.
I recently stood up in my sister's wedding and knew I wanted to buy a nice suit rather than an H&M special for smoky bar nights. After shopping around, I found the sales staff at Macy's to be incredibly helpful with the selection as well as tailoring (though a friend swears by a shop in the Gold Coast for that).
I purchased a black Hugo Boss suit that, while a touch over the $500 specials listed in GQ was absolutely worth the price of admission. Like a previous poster I prefer quality over quantity, and a simple black suit is worth its weight in gold for how often it will get used. Highly recommended.
My boyfriend bought a gorgeous suit at Express a couple of weeks ago - around $600 got him a jacket, pants, 3 ties, 3 shirts, and a belt. My boyfriend has broad shoulders and an athletic build, and so was delighted to be able to buy a suit off the rack - no big deal!
I agree that H&M is total crap. You clearly get what you pay for. I think Hugo Boss suits are beautiful and Macy's State Street and Watertower both carry them. I bought my last boss suit there when it was Field's, but I bought a nice Kenneth Cole recently at the State Street store and had phenominal service.
The idea of spending more than $200 on a suit cracks me up.
Sears for Struture suits work for me and I've never paid more than $150. I get nothing but compliments.
I bought a grey pin stripe from Target for about $100. I'm very happy with that. You have to look hard at Target, it is not all created equal.
And I ALWAYS buy my shirts and ties at Village Thrift. I got many stylin' oxfords for a buck or 2 and so many amazing ties for 25 cents (silk Armanis included).
Shoe wise- Sears (Structure again) or DSW. Never paid more than $50.
Buy a suit wherever you like, but don't have it tailored at the store. Pay the xtra money to have an honest to god tailor fit the suit to you. The guy I go to costs 90 for the coat and the slacks. They suits fit like a glove once he's finished.
I have to disagree with all the H&M-bashing ... I've been buying their dress shirts for years, and have only gotten rid of the ones that have been stained beyond repair, or whose style I no longer like. I can't speak for their suits, but a friend of mine who has to wear one every day swears by them.
My favorite suit, though, is my Banana Republic "Modern" suit, the jacket of which I had altered at the Golden Needle on State, above Chicago, for under $70. I get compliments from total stangers when I wear it ... It's not too skinny to be considered trendy, nor too boxy to make me look like, well, a box.
I looked at all the suits they GQ had pictured.
I know that tight jackets are all the rage but some of the guys loooked outright uncomfortable.
We'll look back on the 80s and say 'jackets too big' and look back at today and say 'jackets too tight.'
Wow, what a coincidence this thread is. I've been suit shopping for the past few weeks and went with a great charcoal grey/dark blue/black (it's kind of all of those colors) from Banana Republic. They sold out of this particular style very quickly.
But in the process I learned a few things about what makes it so daunting. Maybe this advice will help some of you in the same situation:
1) If you're a young guy and you're looking for a suit that's a mix of professional and cool, large department stores are going to frighten you.
When you walk into Macy's with much optimism, you're instantly turned off by a sea of things you don't want to be: some old businessman, or your dad, or the kinds of workaholics you never want to be.
I'm not putting down people with great jobs by any means. It's just that for me, most of the the suits at Macys - the older looking textures and colors and patterns - were just plain awful. It's difficult to find exactly what you had in mind in the first place if you know what you're looking for. There are far too many men walking around in poorly tailored suits that fit them like a tent - and the untailored jackets at a department store only remind you of how terrible people look in clothes that don't fit right.
2) You can browse the pages of GQ, Details, Esquire, and other men's magazines all you want and lust for the great suits in ads and photo spreads, but you won't find them easily, or if you do, you should be prepared to spend a ton of $$$.
3) You will barely find anything on the web related to exactly what you're looking for. There are so many smaller labels making great clothing, and you see their clothing featured in magazines. You see the perfect suit and will do anything to find it, but guess what? The label doesn't have a web site, or you can't find the clothes you're looking for on one if they do. It sucks and it's frustrating.
4) Men's Wearhouse will not understand you at all.
--
The GQ 10 Best Suits Under $500 article was very helpful. Chicagoist didn't include the link, but there's a great video on the GQ site showing everything that's important about buying the perfect suit. The link is below:
video.men.style.com/?fr_story=d193285f00e3beffdbe5aec9a86fbd0bab1586a9&rf=bm
One more thing.
If you are are in your 20s or 30s, around 6 feet tall give or take and weigh anywhere from 170 - 195, DO NOT ever let a suit salesman put you in a suit with pleated pants and/or cuffs.
The second they do, you should turn and run. Run fast, far, far from wherever you are. Don't even tell them you want flat front pants with no cuff instead. Just go.
Pleats are ridiculious, cuffs are awful, if you want to look like a modern man of the 21st century you will avoid those two things at all costs.
Too many department store tailors are stuck in a different era.