ils thread for general menswear and men's clothing ish

i'm guessing/hoping these have been a series of soliloquies rather than any genuine suggestion that man alive heads to cos based on what he's tried to tell you

im responding to ronan/you although cos wld probably be fine for man alive probably? idk i only look at like the last few posts in any thread

as to yr previous post i mean my point is that a majority of contemp mens fashion is like 'dudes with tattoos from old ultima online promo material cosplaying as the guy from salem', obv even apc isnt immune to matrix reloaded references and visible ribcages. im just here in a tank top with a girl surfer silhouette like kids 2day

yeah right right right. just seems a p vaguely applicable strawman in this instance tho, like i would like to think most of the jp stuff there is clownable in its own partic way

i think of cos as being much more capsular and niche in aesthetic than just pared-down scando smart cazh or w/e. i've never got along with it tbh, quite constricting, inexpressive, don't find it much plays well with mix n match

i hate a lot of what they do. their shirts are vile, tiny tiny collars, but with a bit of pick and choose there are some nice things. loads of cos i suppose looks awful imo, but you can kinda migrate some of the stuff away from their terrible model shots and into real life. the jeans are surprisingly good,

Fav brands to wear at the moment are whatever AMI and Acne pieces I've picked up at 50% off sale price

i love acne - the quality varies hugely between materials but their jeans fit me really well, people keep asking what brand they are, quality and fit and colour all suit my freakishly skinny legs. i p much only wear cos or acne jeans. i love acne generally too, jackets or shirts or knitwear, but for the prices they're a bit hit and miss quality-wise, particularly the knits. they look great but bobble really quickly.

alert alert I am having a MENSWEAR EMERGENCY

I need to buy a suit jacket (for a wedding) by Friday. Everything I have tried on that fits great in the shoulders bunches around the waist bcz I have a tiny lil belly. Everything that fits great around my midsection has too-wide shoulders that just look sad and ill-fitting. I don't have time to get anything tailored and I've found a bunch of great stuff that I can wear unbuttoned but it seems insane to spend $200 on a jacket that I can't wear buttoned. WHAT DO I DO HELP ME PLEASE

places I have gone so far incl Express, J Crew, H&M, Uniqlo, Club Monaco, Banana Republic, Urban Outfitters, Forever 21, and Jos A Bank (which was horrible and stuffy and I left after like 30 seconds)

I mean I thought tailoring fine-tuned a suit and made it look extra spiffy; I didn't realize you needed to buy something that simply doesn't fit and then tailor it to make it just passable???

1) Call a few tailors in your area today and ask if they could do a rush job on taking in a jacket, I'll bet one of them would be able to turn it around in 24 - 48 hrs for the right price.

2) Alternatively, buy the great $200 jacket, wear it to the wedding unbuttoned and then get it let out a little after?

So you can get jackets let out? I know you can't really fuck w/ the shoulders and that you should always make sure those fit great, but everything else I have no idea

Also maybe try Nordstrom Rack or C21 and see if you can find an extra trim fit jacket?

xp you can let out a jacket. If you can close the button but it's too tight, this is an option. I probably wouldn't risk it if you can't even close the button.

I mean I thought tailoring fine-tuned a suit and made it look extra spiffy; I didn't realize you needed to buy something that simply doesn't fit and then tailor it to make it just passable???

― laraaji p. henson (Stevie D(eux)), Tuesday, September 6, 2016 10:26 AM (nine minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

unless you have a very proportional body type you're falling into the second option most of the time.

agree w/hurting, get something that fits in the shoulders and is snug in the midsection but can be buttoned. hang on to the receipt until you confirm with a tailor that there's enough material to let out, even if you wait to do the work until after your event. especially w/cheaper stuff one of the shortcuts they'll take is not leaving enough material to let out.

ya p much everything I tried on can button fine and looks great when I suck my gut in but just pulls a little bit around the waist. I have both a C21 and a Nord Rack in my city and will hit them this week.

Yeah I think those have a decent chance of having a skinny-guy blazer in stock.

writing down all the suit tips

the last time I bought a nice suit jacket and pants I went to a nice local place's remainders store and they also did all the measurements, sending to tailor, etc

really could use a nice formal suit but I'm guessing the next time I'd need it is an actual funeral, which depresses me. imagine buying a suit in anticipation of the approaching death of family. this is probably why so much tailor work is rush work.

when the shoulders fit, how far off is the waist stevie? like 4 inches? or 1?

i generally get jackets let out at the back via big arse. it's not a huge job but it might be too late for friday. if it's only out by an inch then you may get enough room by simply having the middle button moved, which is a very quick job (and doesn't necessarily need a fancy tailor) and gives you at least half an inch, maybe a full inch.

one last retail store to try in case they fit you off the rack is suit supply. there's one in philly.

you'll pay more like $400 for a jacket in suit supply though, but they can tailor things very quickly

^^^ yeah we looked at Suit Supply (which i've been to a few times) but I nixed it for that v reason. The waist is prob only an inch or two off (most button w/o difficulty and look OK when I suck my belly in)

maybe a reasonable tactic is to get one you think is worth tailoring, have the button moved out at like a dry cleaner this week, then get it let our properly when you have more time.

or buy it from somewhere with a good return policy and leave the tags in

i did that for my phd defense. marks and spencers life.

this list would be 100x better if they left in grunge

woops wrong thread sorry

or... is it?

Marcos otm

I would def ask the tailor to leave in the grunge for the wedding, it can always come out later

have had good experiences getting suits at theory

I went thrifting on the upper east side today and got nice kiton, brooks brothers, and paul stuart ties, a pendleton sweater, a steven alan casual shirt (some odd camp collar thing), a brooks brothers shirt (non-buttondown tab collar), and two beautiful paul stuart suits in more or less my size (I'm tall)! the suits are a thicker wool navy pinstripe (on the cusp of being a chalkstripe?) and a proper gray flannel chalkstripe. they go to my tailor on monday.

I guess it's sort of common wisdom, but for people in new york, I really recommend upper east side thrift stores. especially the housing works locations, the sloan kettering store, and the arthritis fund store.

the UES feels like mars though. so dreary.

all i can say is be grateful bruh, still no chance of such scores in ldn to my knowledge. forbade myself even looking at thrift blogs and styleforum threads such was my nauseated envy

i still do okay on ebay tbf. though i did do a lot of soul-searching this week about my caution in the £40-£80 corridor of uncertainty

why DOES thrifting in london suck so much? people say holloway road but i only ever found one great thing there, a black Ally Capellino mac (for ladies) (fits me like a glove)

i have never had any luck buying second hand clothing anywhere in the UK

idk i'm kinda more stumped at why thrifting elsewhere seems so good? someone buys something, someone lets it go, they tend to recall its value. someone dies and stuff gets dumped, the shops know how to google. charity hospices etc sell tons on ebay too. so how is it in the us someone is letting a kiton go like nothing and then someone else is pricing it up for 10 bucks?

if i stalked highgate, sloane square charity shops all week i wouldn't fancy my chances. outside of london is much better but still nothing like stuff u see online. real england real gravedigger shit is what you really want i guess, house clearances in kettering etc, little word with the old widow

i keep musing to copy sl0cki and do a sad ebay thread btw. so many little vignettes in those item descrips

Just ordered this peacoat @ $29.99 (from $149) from Land's End. Apply the codes listed ("FORME" and "7425"). I like the zipper details, lining, color. LE clothes have generally been good imo.
http://www.landsend.com/products/mens-squall-peacoat/id_288542_59

got this from cos this week and i like it so much i might buy the other colour: http://www.cosstores.com/de/Men/Sweatshirts_Tops/High-neck_drop_shoulder_sweatshirt/10603263-57900309.1#c-24480

it's a nice blue, i prefer it

yeah it is nice - going through a bit of a black addiction at the moment tho.

ooh, love that neck, think I'm going to nab one

it's incredibly comfortable and quite fleecey and warm for a sweat.

anyone here own a camel coat perchance

blithely picked a nice vint one up late last year at a price rude to decline, only gave it a spin a couple of times before putting it away but now i'm seeing them around again i am reminded of how unexpectedly demanding i found it, or in other words how intrinsically douchey they are or have latterly low-key become

like either you can embrace it on its dominant classical terms - if successful, total business dick (which tbf is most enjoyable occasionally, but still an unchill batman vibe for everyday) if not, used car dealer spiv - or you can try dressing it down with jeans sweats mnml sneaks etc and find yourself in the iconic costume of the topman-asos-mr porter geezer twerp

so really you're kinda left with the interesting proposition of trying to undercut/otherize these masc avatars by like, boyfriending it? eking out a measure of insouciance by boho androgynizing it and wearing it like a girl would, double-beiging, drapey/high waist trouser with a tucked sweater, slouchy shirt etc

idk yeah i guess i'll sell it

the colour is actually p garish - i am tempted by them now and again. not exactly the same but i had a beige mac a few years back and never wore it, it always looked too much like an effort to be "dapper". a smart coat and jeans looks weird enough too, especially blue jeans. my winter wool coat is black and i mostly wear black or v dark navy close to black jeans.

rei kawakubo over here

do you sell on ebay? my flatmate put me on to depop recently which looks like a better way of getting a decent price for stuff.

not heard of it! will have a look, ta

i know what you mean though about garish, i suppose the ~dapperness~ pertains mostly to the super masculine shouldery silhouette of topcoats in general (and your classic mac will be similarly structured) but the camel does have a particular cliche

in vaguely related news how about the checks and tartan comeback going from dead to near-played out in record time this autumn, or so it seems to me. bit of a shame really cos i quite enjoy it tbh

yeah - i mean i saw an apc one recently and was tempted, nice thick wool, could imagine it looking well, but also in a british winter it'll prob be covered in stains and stuff after a while of wet days and dragging it around.

the check thing is one of those many "trends" that men's fashion journalists claim to have "returned" every single year, despite the fact that if i look around my office now there will be check shirts everywhere and the same would be true anytime in the last... 10 years? longer? uniqlo kind of murdered the plaid shirt a bit but i still like it.

i got a nonnative band collar sort of vintage-looking wool black/white/grey one with a loose fit and a slightly longer line at the back - that's me for shirts this winter.

it's more like big statementy checks tho, agree shirts will always be there but full trousers and coats is def a slight shift i think - 70s minimal softness bringing in the indulgent chintz

yeah i was going to say checks that aren't on shirts does feel like a bigger thing, or patches of check or whatever. i think they're nice but most examples i've seen are like £3000 coats.

prob goes in a general fashion/global economy thread but
https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/intelligence/the-13-billion-zipper-wars

To a certain extent, SBS has started to imitate YKK’s strategies, assembling an in-house research and development team and amassing more than 380 patents — a number second only to their Japanese rival.

the mind boggles