HOLIDAY MENSWEAR HOW-TO

With the holiday season well in-swing there’s no better time for a man to make the jump into some new suiting. Whether that means a nice non-business style three-piece suit (think: slim, peak labels, unique color) or a modern tuxedo as featured in this post - this time of year brings lots of events which make the time and investment in a great suit worthwhile.

With many black-tie events on the agenda over the next few months (from theater nights to New Years celebrations, fundraising gatherings to professional galas) we decided to fit my favorite model in a modern tuxedo. To master suiting & tuxedos there’s a few key things that every man needs to know:

First -  grooming is groundwork.  If you’re planning on attending an event wearing a three-piece suit or tuxedo be sure to visit your favourite barber a week or so before the event. Nothing can ruin a great look worse than unkempt hair, whether that be on the face or on the head.

Secondly -  accessories are axial. If you’re planning on wearing a tuxedo (or a suit) you want to make sure you have the right accessories.  If you’ve read my last past you’ll know that for menswear accessories the devils are in the details.  For shoes, most guys know that if you’re wearing a suit you’ll want to make sure you match your belt (although some exceptions apply). However, if you’re wearing a tuxedo there’s some pretty hard and fast rules: you’ll want to swap out the belt for suspenders, and leather/suede shoes for patent leather shoes. As men tend to wear only one or two accessories you’ll also want to make sure that any other accessories not only match the look but are also of quality. For example, we paired a stainless steel watch with our tuxedo rather than a leather or rubber banded one which would better pair with a three-piece suit or the gym (respectively). Also, something which may seem simple at first like a handkerchief can really help the features or color of your suit, shirt, or tuxedo pop.

Lastly - fit is king.  If you’re buying a suit off the rack you need to plan time to get alterations done (unless of course you are tall/athletic like my model, and even then you’ll need some small adjustments). On our tuxedo we had the pants and jacket-sleeve hemmed which are the quickest alterations that can be made, but if you require slimming of the jacket/pants, rotating of sleeves, etc. plan to build in a week or so as well as some cushion into your budget. I highly advise a visit to a tailor even if you think your suit fits great off the shelf. Simply put, a tailor is the difference between a great fit and a perfect fit and as I said - fit is KING.

Items featured in this blog post include the following:

Jacket ($195) - c/o Le Chateau
Pants ($90) - c/o Le Chateau
Shirt ($90) - c/o Le Chateau
Handkerchief ($30) - Indochino
Bowtie ($40) - Indochino
Shoes ($130) - Aldo 
Watch  ($4,500) - Omega

I hope you all get a chance to get out and celebrate the holidays with your loved ones while looking dapper & gorgeous! If you need any help with the styling you always know where to find me :)

xx
Short Presents