Trouser suit

[Mudgarden]

Can anyone find/recommend a “manly” looking trouser suit in women’s sizes? Niece is looking for one. She is fairly curvy and not tall.

DP just bought one from Toast. Lemme see if I can find the link…

What’s her budget, though?

It’s this one www.toa.st/collections/womens-coats-jackets/products/cotton-wool-herringbone-jacket-black

Reiss is good for this. Expensive.
https://www.next.co.uk/style/su687917/f96477#f96477

This is more reasonably priced but the blazer's less 'manly'. Next has a very wide selection, though!

https://www.next.co.uk/style/su177385/q99543

Thanks @Rainallnight and @GarlicLitre , these look great! Not sure of budget but she wants something good quality that will last.

But what’s ’manly’ about that Toast jacket?

Genuine question. The other two links are standard suit jacket shapes which are pretty androgynous - but the Toast garment seems to me definitively ‘feminine’. Look how it flares out at the back, for instance. (I have short hair and have always been hyper conscious of how my clothes ‘read’. In the past it didn’t matter a bit if I was mistaken for a boy, but these days being mistaken for a little old man might be tedious - so I feel well qualified to discern the difference between men’s’, women’s, and unisex tailoring.)

A pinstripe would give a masculine look. If in budget, she could look at Sumissura and get one made to measure. From experience it's hard to find good tailoring if you are short and curvy. https://www.sumissura.com/en-uk/women/women-suits/personalize

Thanks @NotMeNoNo and @GhastlyGoodTaste .

Chill. It’s S&B, not AIBU.

It was a purely S&B question!

I'm with @GhastlyGoodTaste . When someone says 'manly suit' I think of something cut to camouflage a female figure. I love suits, but I like them tailored to show off my figure, not disguise it.

I don’t think she wants to camouflage her figure. I think what’s meant is a suit in the style typical of men’s suits- fairly plain, not floppy and drapey, not with a deep v neck and big single button, that kind of thing. And decent quality, which most women’s clothes aren’t.

Definitely consider made to measure in that case, mens suits look smart because they fit properly but women's figures are more complex to fit. And some wool content in the fabric. I don't wear trousers suits for work since it went casual, but when I did I had to shorten everything or search out petite brands.

Also she might get lucky with Vinted and approx 20 year old Hobbs, Jigsaw, Austin Reed etc, even M&S did great suits once.

Also she could look at Brook Taverner who supply smart corporate workwear. So it's quite plainly styled but good quality and loads of sizes.

Thanks @NotMeNoNo

Ah, I just looked at their website and it's all mens.

They definitely do women's too. It's a brand you need to get through a workwear stockist. Random example
https://www.workwearexpress.com/brook-taverner-sophisticated-collection-novara-tailored-fit-jacket

Huh. Interesting. That sounds a lot like what I look for! I’d probably just say that my taste in suits is conservative, for classic tailoring that swerves very fashiony style elements. I’ve never thought of that as manly, because the tailoring at the waist is so distinctive. I suppose dodging the low-cut jackets (which I also do) could be considered a move towards a more male style, but I avoid low-cut tops so routinely that it doesn't strike me that way.

I would second using somewhere that will tailor a standard design to your niece's personal measurements, particularly as you say she's curvy - nothing like as expensive or intimidating as full-on bespoke and probably the easiest way to dodge the nightmare of trying find an off-the-peg jacket that fits nicely. Possibly cheaper too: it's very easy to find yourself looking at jackets costing upwards of 200 quid in the quest for something that looks smart. Part of the problem is that fabric is crucial to avoiding the limp look. (I think the term to put into a search might be “custom made”).

I confess that when I was looking for a business suit I landed up abandoning the attempt and getting a jacket and non-matching trousers so that I could get a jacket I considered an acceptable fit (and I'm fairly tall with very modest cleavage, which I think helps). If I'd had the time I would definitely have gone the custom-made route. I am picky about suits though.

@Molinia Yes I agree, classic tailoring is a better way of putting it.

@NotMeNoNo Thanks for the link - I could see nothing at all for women on their own website, very odd.