<p>This topic came up a while back and I made the following comments:</p>
<p>A suit for a college student:</p>
<p>In theory you should have two suits: one medium or dark (think charcoal) grey and one blue (or black). If you can’t afford two, go for the grey. A point no one has mentioned is shoes. With a grey suit, get a pair of brown lace up dress shoes (in a medium brown color…not dark brown). It’s very British. A wing tip or cap toe oxford will work well. Buy shoes with a leather sole. Do not buy dress shoes with composite (plastic) or rubberized soles. Typically, non leather soles will make your feet sweat. As long as they are properly shined, men don’t seem to care much about shoes, but women will definitely notice a good pair of shoes. I like Allan Edmonds, but they’re expensive ($250+). With care, they will last a life-time and can be sent back to the factory and re-finished. </p>
<p>Depending on your height and weight, two or three button suits are your choices. If you have a thick body, you’d be better off in a two button suit. With a thick mid section, you need to have more dress shirt showing to draw your eyes away from your waistline. Depending on the cut, a three button suit may make you look bigger than you are… And no David Letterman double breasted suits. Pinstripe suits are great, but not if you only have one suit to your name. </p>
<p>Material: 100% Wool or a mix of wool and cashmere. Steer clear of wool and polyester blends. They feel cheap. If you feel the material, it will feel stiff and plastic-icky. </p>
<p>Fit: Suits typically come in short, regular and long sizes. Go to a good men’s store and ask the salesman or tailor what your size is. Once you know your size, try a suit on to see what it looks like on you in the mirror. A suit coat should cover your butt and no more. Using your hands as a guide, cup them at your sides and the bottom the suit jacket should match your cupped hand. This is a rough measure. If your jacket looks too long or short, ask to try on the same suit size in the remaining lengths. </p>
<p>Sleeve length: A suit jacket should show a quarter inch or so cuff. When shopping for a suit, always wear a long sleeve dress shirt that has your correct sleeve length. While in front of the mirror, bend your arm in a 90 degree angle to see how much extra material your sleeve has. Too much material just looks bad.</p>
<p>While being fitted, check in the mirror to see if the back of the jacket is puckered below the collar. If it is, it means that the collar needs to be adjusted by having the tailor pull up the material. A lot of tailors and stores don’t like doing this because it’s time consuming and costly. The tailor needs to disassemble the collar to make the adjustment. That costs money. You can spend a lot of money on an off the rack suit, but if it doesn’t fit smoothly across your back, it will look like a cheap suit. And a cheap suit can look like a really expensive suit if you get it fitted properly. Your call… If you need to pay extra for this service, it is worth it.</p>
<p>Trousers: Full or half break? If you’re tall, a full break may work. Trousers (cuffed or not) are finished at an angle from front to back. Wear a decent pair of shoes when being fitted so the tailor has an idea of where to make the break. A full break starts at the front covering your laces and angles back to your shoe’s heel (almost dragging on the ground). This tends to bunch up a lot of material at the base of your feet. Great if you’re tall, but for the rest of us, a half break will do. Both start at the front, but the half break rises higher than your heel by about an inch. </p>
<p>Side vents, center vent or no vents: Most two button suits have a center vent; three button suits will have no vents or side vents. If you have a big butt, go for a center vent or side vents. No vents work with a slender build. The big problem with a no vent suit is when you have your hand or hands in your pockets. The suit coat will bunch up over your butt. If you have a no vent suit, practice your Prince Charles hands behind your back moves. </p>
<p>Pleats or no pleats: If your waist size is no more than 32” and you have no tummy bulge, a plain front trouser will work for you. For the vast majority of men, a single or double pleated pair of trouser will be more flattering (and comfortable).</p>
<p>Dress shirts: White, blue or pink work best. Guys think that a pink dress shirt is less than manly. Trust me; women love a good pink dress shirt. No button down collared dress shirts. All cotton medium spread point collars works for most men. Avoid a wide spread collar shirt. These shirts were designed for double breasted suits and Windsor knotted ties. Cuff links? Way too dressy and fussy at your age. A simple barrel cuff will do. Stay away from stripes and multi colored strip shirts. Very hard to match up color wise with a tie and suit…</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>