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What do you do when your DP doesn't look great in a suit?

28 replies

YoniBottsBumgina · 22/05/2013 23:13

Blush Feel a bit mean for saying this, but I just don't think they suit him at all. He's quite small framed and they just hang off him and make him look like a lanky schoolboy in a grubby uniform.

Is it something that will be totally different once he's in a properly fitted one etc? Or do some blokes just not look good in suits? I'm probably being silly, but I want to have that swoon moment too!

OP posts:
YoniBottsBumgina · 22/05/2013 23:20

Okay ignore me. I have googled and found out that it's just a style thing.

OP posts:
Pandemoniaa · 23/05/2013 10:16

I will ignore you but would say that it's all about the style and shape. Avoid more traditional or overly-styled styles.

halestone · 23/05/2013 10:30

My DP looks awful in all suits, so he wears pants, shirt and tie and looks brilliant imo.

PigletJohn · 23/05/2013 10:46

"they just hang off him and make him look like a lanky schoolboy in a grubby uniform."

so he needs one that fits.

go to a place that sells better suits, and has an older salesman, and does alterations.

synthetic suits do not drape as well as wool.

CajaDeLaMemoria · 23/05/2013 10:49

My DP looks like James Bond in a suit.

I'm rather jealous of the women he works with. He looks gorgeous when he's just got dressed.

Try pants and a shirt? That suits some small framed men a lot better. Looks less school boy ish!

MortifiedAdams · 23/05/2013 10:50

Get him to.Topman or River Island and get a Skinny Fit suit.

Thats what lanky skinny DH did for our day.

MadamNoo · 23/05/2013 10:51

what's all this with the pants? has mumsnet gone all american, cos I'm imagining men with shirts tucked into their y-fronts.

TiggerWearsATriteSmile · 23/05/2013 10:53

Get a proper fitting suit, tailored to fit.
Shirts and ties with no jackets look terrible.

Open necked shirt and trousers is ok for a casual thing.
Never short sleeved shirt.

Onesleeptillwembley · 23/05/2013 10:56

Get one that fits. It sounds as though his don't.

hardbeingme · 23/05/2013 10:58

maybe a waist coat rather than suit jacket would look better?

StuckOnARollercoaster · 23/05/2013 11:21

Was just going to suggest the same as hardbeingme. We had a wedding but not close enough that it justified buying a new suit that would need to be made to measure or altered for it to fit DP's unusual frame. So he went in suit trousers that did fit, but with a smart shirt and fitted waistcoat and looked very smart.
(It was summer and he's always warm so felt fine without the jacket)

AltogetherAndrews · 23/05/2013 11:31

Kilts are the answer! (Admittedly in Scotland)

scrawny bloke in a kilt

Rootvegetables · 01/06/2013 22:01

Try a slim fit suit, we went to m&s purely because they have so many types to try before we went to the tailor as we didn't know where to start. About 3 suits in we found the perfect one, it was £100 and that's the one he will wear! Saved us a fortune!

YoniBottsBumgina · 02/06/2013 21:28

Brilliant Grin

He won't let me have any say because he wants it to be a surprise but his idea of the differences between two suits is whether they have a black shirt or a white one Hmm

Maybe I'll have a sneaky word with the best man Grin

OP posts:
PigletJohn · 03/06/2013 03:48

I don't know what your budget or taste is, but there's a good sale here

it sounds like he needs a slim fit or tailored suit, I strongly recommend wool, which will drape better than synthetic, and that he goes in on a quiet day and finds an older assistant willing to measure him for a proper fit, and advise on alterations for his odd length arms and legs. He should wear shoes and a shirt similar to what he will wear on the day, not trainers or riggers which will throw out the leg measurement.

Has he had his colours done? Grey will be easiest. In summer he can have a mid-grey (but not pale) if he prefers it to dark.

Not black unless he works as an undertaker or hotel manager. Not check or stripes (there are some interesting rules on width and contrast of stripes) or patterned. Not tweed unless he is a gamekeeper. Not brown ever. Sorry if you or he think this is too unadventurous.

PigletJohn · 03/06/2013 03:50

p.s.

he can wear check if he is a bookie.

YoniBottsBumgina · 03/06/2013 10:11

Where do all these rules come from? How mystifying. He did used to be a manager in a hotel, but he doesn't work in that industry now.

OP posts:
PigletJohn · 03/06/2013 11:40

In the world of Smart Men's Suits, variations from the norm stand out like the wrong brand of trainers in a flock of teens, or the wrong shade of tights at the school gate, or PJs in the supermart.

I have summarised for simplicity, and omitted variations for age and region.

YoniBottsBumgina · 03/06/2013 11:47

Confused well I probably don't need to worry then since I probably wouldn't notice any of those things, except perhaps the pyjamas.

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HairyPotter · 03/06/2013 11:50

I'd move to Scotland. Grin I don't think I've ever seen a man in a kilt that didn't look great.

DewDr0p · 03/06/2013 11:54

I agree it's all about the fit. The absolutely key bit is across the shoulders I think - check sleeve length as well. M&S does a shorter jacket which is much better proportioned for a shorter man.

SneakyBiscuitEater · 03/06/2013 11:59

I assume he is the groom? My DH wore a Nehru collar suit with a t-shirt underneath for our wedding. My Nan almost fainted at the horror of it all but he looked great and comfortable.

I understand it won't be to everyone's taste though. I had an unusual dress and my older DBro said we looked like Bond villians which I considered a compliment from him.

SneakyBiscuitEater · 03/06/2013 12:01

If he's a guest you won't want him to stand out, but if he is supposed to be centre if attention then why not go fir something that suits him rather than what he is expected to wear?

ArbitraryUsername · 03/06/2013 12:03

DH looks horrible in a tuxedo. But he looks very lovely in his actual suit.

inneedofrain · 03/06/2013 12:25

Ok, I have a tendancy to date "odd" men they have all be very tall (DH is actually the shortest)

Suits are like anything other item to clothing different styles work for different shapes and they all made "standardised" in one way or anyother.

So you have a few options avoid them all together which would be a shame or learn some suit buying skills and then get alterations done (they can be done cheaply etc)

Trousers waist band should sit on or just below the belly button
Tourser cuffs should break (end) on the shoe mid way between the top of the shoe and the toe

Trouser cuff, should not in a good quality suit be cut striaght as the back of the cuff should rest just above the top of the sole of the shoe. This can make a cheaper suit look massively more expensive

A good tailour should charge in the region of 10gbp to alter a set of trousers cuffs

Jackets, you have high break and low break to start with
ok high break, the lapel should have a point on the outer edge above the nipple line and be quite narrow if your DP is small to athetic build this style would work well as there is not a lot of space between his shoulders. higher brakes look better on a lot of body shapes.

Ok, shoulder, you want the shoulder of the suit to be a LITTLE bigger than the actual shoulder line of the body but not a lot. In a s / build maybe the width a a finger no more. in a guy with build arms you want the shoulder width to so the the suit does not tuck back in and then buldge for the bicep.

Double breasted / single breasted. Most man will get more use and look better in single breasted.

Ok jacket lenght, this is very subjected, but in shorted men you want a jacket the is no longer then the hip line the last button should fall on / around the belly button (note the last button not the end of the suit). Taller men can carry edwadian styles and longer line jackets much easier (shorter men can do it but it more difficult to pull off.)

The jacket cuff, again very subjective, the most common look, will be to show in the region of 1inch of shirt cuff, again the break (end) should be just above the wrist. In S/A men you are going to want to show less cuff maybe 1/2 inch. HOWEVER, always make sure that a men raises his arms up to his shoulders to make a T shape, as we don´t want the cuff to rid up high on the arm. Now also look at the sleeves we don´t want any bunching in the sleeve of the jacket again a good tailour you are look at 10gbp to alter the sleeve lenght

Now the fit of the Jacket on the torso. You want the jacket to nip in at the back, this is more important in s/a men, as otherwise they look overwelmend. So look at the back from the side, does the jacket hang straight down? It should curve in from the shoulder to the small the back and back out again. NOT drastically

On the front you want to see a line that again goes in from the shoulder towards the waist and back out again (think very very very mild hour glass) BUT this the not common to all jacket shapes some jackets will be straight sided.

Last bit, the front of the jacket, when buttoned! There should not be massive amounts of lose fabric, the jacket should hold a staight line over the stomach and not bludge or gap.

Three piece suits are more tricky to wear but they are a nice alternative if you DH feels very uncomfortable in a jacket as he can take the jacket off and leave the waist coat on. I will happily explain about waist coats if you would like

SHOES, all men MUST take there shoes with them to try on a suit / for a tailoring, as this can effect the lenght of the break in the trousers etc

White shirts are tricky, but coloured tone on tone shirts and ties work really well, so a a tie and shirt in the same colour but in a different tone. This is an easy to wear look and will look ok if the man wants to take his jacket off.

Ties need to be in a good not, half windsor is a classic and honesly easy to do, it will make a cheaper tie look much more expensive. The tie should also end around the waist band on the trousers. This is so much easier in a shorter man, the tie should NOT stick out from the bottom of the jacket

Shirts, there are numerous styles of collar, but broading speaking S/A men will look better in a smaller style of collar possibly even cut away. Make sure the neck size is right, its really important to the over all look. So shirt collar should NOT gape, there should be a little space between neck and collar, the wrong collar size is the same as wearing the wrong bra size in women. A collar size to big will swamp both the man and the suit and a collar size to small will a be very uncomfortable an will leave men looking like their necks are bulging.

I hope that all makes sense? IF there is anything else you would like me to try and answer I will if I can