thumper1

SRW....check out second hand and consignment store...and even tux rental places which often sell gently used items. DS's Perry Ellis tails were $25 at Goodwill, as was a Joseph A. Bank tux. Also, Syms (and I don't own stock in the company) is the place to go for formal wear...great prices, and great selection. I got that tip from the symphony members here and that is where DS's white dinner jacket ($79 with the 20% off coupon) came from.

Treetopleaf

My sister send her son off to college without a suit, where he made the symphonic band and needed one. I ended up buying him slacks and jacket that were both deep gray at some warehouse type place that had lovely quality suits for relatively little. Shipped the things to him and, believe it or not, they fit. He's small and it was hard finding his size, but this giant concrete sales floor had it. Miracle! But they're gone now...

07DAD

Washdad your original post really brought back great memories. I too went with my S to get him dress clothes in secondary school. It was a super great bonding experience.

I know for a fact that he was very pleased that what we purchased looked "really good." French cuffs. His mom got him some really nice cuff links. Very good dress shoes that fit. One time there was a special dance coming up and I took him to get a new tie and shirt. This was his senior year. I suggested a very dark shirt and bold tie. It was amazing to see his expression of "cool."

I have to admit, when he went off to college this year, he did not take dress clothes but we'll see.

CountingDown

Both my kids needed suits for the Bar Mitzvahs. DS1 was a size 20 slim, and needed the waist taken and pants.sleeves lengthened. DS2 wore a 44 R. Both have since outgrown the suits...we are holding down the fort with blazers and nice slacks until they stop growing.

We debated getting DS1 a suit for college interviews this year, but it hasn't been necessary. That may change as the year progresses, if it seems appropriate for other events.

Neither one can tie their ties -- DH keeps going over it with them, and the guys take the tied ones and put them in their drawers to pull over their heads another day. I expect this is a skill they will learn in college when they have no other choice!

PackMom

I bought S1 a dark gray suit in his junior year of high school. He wore it quite a few times ( a wedding, NHS induction, a funeral, an interview, a scholarship dinner). Alas, he is now a junior in college and and spends half his life in the gym. Due to temendous muscle expansion, the suit is too small. He told me recently he really needs a new one so I guess we'll be doing that over Christmas break.

Momneedsadvice

When DS was 16, his great-grandmother was dying. DH decided DS was mostly finished growing, and bought him a navy blue suit at Gentlemen's Wearhouse. They will do alterations free/cheap for the life of the suit, and he had them leave the sleeves and pants with long cuffs. DS wore the suit for the funeral and Senior Banquet, and has worn the jacket with khaki pants several times. He brought the suit with him to college. His roommate had to borrow the jacket for a team photo. We thought that was funny - roommate went to prep school, and has 3 times as many clothes at school as DS, but didn't have a suit jacket with him.

srw

Thumper, thanks, I'll check it out.

momof3sons

All 3 boys got beautiful suits for Bar Mitzvahs. Oldest had a tux in high school because of Glee Club requirement. Younger ones are in high school now and we also have the opposite problem from WashDad. Diminutive children, who are basically done growing and are too small/slim for the smallest men's sizes. We just bought them new suits in the upper ranges (sizes 18 & 20?) of boys sizes. Dad ties their ties and they leave them on hangars and slip them over the head. Someday, that will have to stop.

paying3tuitions

SRW, these days, doesn't a suit bought off-the-rack need tailoring anyway? If so, then I recommend my H's solution:

1. Buy very expensive suits (I'm talking in the thousands per suit!) second-hand off of Ebay in his size, or possibly a size larger than he wears from the store if unsure.

2. Take it to a tailor.

For the same $50 the tailor puts into a $300 suit, he charges the same to adjust a $3,000 suit. Then your son will look unbelievably good when it's all done!

It's easier to find a beautiful sportscoat than a whole suit on Ebay, but he couples that with a pair of pants that works well enough. He's bought sportscoats worth $2K and $3K for $50 and they are almost new, in superb condition. Beautiful fabrics and detailing. ALso, someone who pays $2K for a sportscoat doesn't just throw it crumpled in a heap on the living room floor; they get hung up and "babied" in their first home.

That's a market where people are buying and ridding themselves of top quality suits quickly, like the latest automobile. Weight change also plays a role, I'm sure. Anyway look under Ebay for Mens Clothing, and organize your search by price. H can order from the "left side of the menu," so to speak.

His tailor is from the Middle East, and learned his trade from his father who was trained by the British. Tailoring doesn't get any better than that. Only thing is, when he goes to visit the tailor it's a 3-hour event, complete with tea and hospitality.

shawbridge

I bought my son his first suit for his Bar Mitzvah. Worn a couple of times. He went to a private school from grades 4-8 that required blazers for special events and shirts with collars, tucked into pants which are actually worn with no boxers showing. When he got to high school with no meaningfull dress code, he exhibits his freedom by wearing pants that exhbiit boxers and avoiding collars. But, he decided to compete in Moot Court as junior last year and borrowed one of my old suits. I'm 6'1" and he's 6'2" and they actually fit, though one or two need to be taken out a bit for him. If he doesn't grow too much, he can have several suits I bought while working on Wall Street. He did very well and was wearing high quality, very expensive Italian suits from Barney's. The remarkable thing was that in those outfits, the shirts I'd had made for me in Hong Kong, and the shoes I wore at my wedding (that also fit), he looked like he more like an associate at a law firm than a high school kid dressing up. A little scary as he was 5'4" when he entered HS not that long ago. [Even scarier would be him as a lawyer. Not a good career choice for him even though he was very good in Moot Court].

Incidentally, I like paying3tuitions suggestion. Every suit needs to be tailored a little bit so why not be a high quality suit used and get it tailored.

paying3tuitions

Don't buy a Bar Mitzvah suit too many weeks in advance, though, even if you plan everything else way in advance of the event!

They're 13 and some of them outgrow the suit bought 6 weeks earlier! Suddenly those sleeves are hitting closer to the elbow than at the wrist!

Voices changing, too... oh my. What an age.

shawbridge

We did as you suggested. His growth spurt started a few weeks after the Bar Mitzvah and he's close to a foot taller. [Above I said he was 5'4" but I think it was more like 5'3" and now he's between 6'2" and 6'3"]. His Bar Mitzvah suit has been given to either a cousin or a family friend.