Why do you wear suits? . . .

[Matt Crunk]

When purchasing my latest suit find (a nice wool, single breasted, two button, three piece number in medium brown) for $15 at a local thrift store, the lady at the checkout looked me over and commented that the suit just "wasn't me". I can only guess that remark as prompted by my appearance that day. As a tattoo artist by trade, with full sleeves of tattoos and stretched ear piercings, standing there as I was in my usual daily uniform of shop t-shirt, Dickies work pants, and black Converse Chucks, I probably didn't look much like the suit wearing type to anyone.

But then it occurred to me - the very reason I love suits so much is probably directly related to the fact that I don't HAVE to wear one for a living. If it was required dress for my job, day in and day out, I'd probably HATE to wear suits. In fact I'd probably hate any job that required me to wear one. But as it is, I wear suits strictly for fun and style.

So, how many of you guys (and dolls) wear suits because you have to? How many just for kicks, style, and the love of dressing up? Or both?

-MC

 

[Jay]

I love them cause they look stylish and draw attention, thus sparking conversations and making me look cool. Also, they hide my skinny appearance and make me look more...balanced.

 

[scotrace]

.

I often think of something Tony in Tarzana said "I dress like a grownup."

 

[Maj.Nick Danger]

I hear what you're saying. I used to have to wear a suit everyday. After about a month or two, the allure of suit wearing did wear off. :eusa_doh:

So now it's more of a treat as I am not compelled to wear a suit.
I wish work was like this.
Maybe if we had "Formal Friday" instead of "Casual Friday",...

 

[moustache]

Because it is FUn to wear nice clothes!!

I hear what you're saying. I used to have to wear a suit everyday. After about a month or two, the allure of suit wearing did wear off. :eusa_doh:

So now it's more of a treat as I am not compelled to wear a suit.
I wish work was like this.
Maybe if we had "Formal Friday" instead of "Casual Friday",...

I started dressing Formal Friday a couple of years ago at work.Everyone else dressed in hawaiian and i dressed with a tie and sportcoat.I have suits for church and other activities as well.
Now i find myself enjoying it so much,i have started to do this three days a week.
And i work in a LUMBERYARD!!!!Granted,not on a forklift or in the mud.But still:when one can dress nice,why not??Beats what i see many wearing out on the street!! Pajamas out and about??Sweats at the symphony??PLEASE!!!!
Thats one reason i will NOT go to Wal-Mart!!!Can't stand seeing half the people there dressed in pajamas and other "comfortable"(?) outfits.Yuk!!
(No offense to Walmart people out there-Just my own opinion)

it is said that good manners cost nothing.I say that clean and decent attire should be the same.


And Matt,i understand the thrift shop scenario.I have aquired most of my tweed and nice trousers at Goodwill.Harris tweed jackets for $5?? Splendid!!
Thank goodness they exist!!!


JD Ross
Vancouver,Wa

 

[BegintheBeguine]

No-brainer

A suit is very easy to wear. Just pick out a blouse, shell or turtleneck, foundation garments and hosiery, neat shoes and I'm done. No slip needed, a suit is always lined. I had a job that was untidy and I had to dress down every day if I wanted to get any work done. So when I would go out shopping, on the town, to a movie or on vacation, I would pull out all the stops and dress to the nines and [any other cliches you care to insert here]. Just like Doris Day as Jo McKenna in London in The Man Who Knew Too Much, a suit fits in anywhere.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

I wear suits because I don't want suits to wear me.


.

 

[Sefton]

I have a similar situation to what Moustache wrote. My job is dirty and I have to wear basic work clothes;Dickies work shirt and Bills Khakis,work boots. I often wear "office attire" to the job and then change into my "uniform" for the work day. I wouldn't mind a job that required that I wear a suit as long as they didn't mind that it was a vintage suit. I like the "I dress like a grown-up" answer too. Somedays I'm just about the only one you'll see...

 

[Stuttjukken]

I don´t wear suits often, and only for events, restaurants, show, usw. At work I wear an uniform, shirt and tie, vest, pilotjacket and woolblend trouser. The shirt is white, but everything else are navy. I´m a busdriver in Bergen, Norway. I have not any hat yet, but I want to pick up som ideas here. I´m interested in that.

 

[MB5]

I mostly just wear it to the occasional required semi-formal event. I know semi-formal is technically black tie, but I don't have a black tie outfit that fits and they are more contemporary requirements, so a suit is fine.

I too started doing the Formal Friday, though I don't wear the suit as I would probably kill it after a couple of days. A button up shirt and tie really throws people for a loop though.

 

[herringbonekid]

i don't love all suits. i love a very specific style and era of suit. there are mountains of bad suits. finding the quality suits has become something of an obsession. as to the suits i like...... they're just beautifully designed and beautiful design makes me feel good.

 

[nightandthecity]

pretty much what HBK just said.

I dislike most modern suits. I like a lot of 1930s and 40s suits. But that's how I feel about clothes generally, not just suits.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Another in concurrence with HBK.

It's also nice to look different. And safe in the knowledge that if i'm ever forced to wear a suit, it'll be THE BEST suit in the room (unless one of the venerable members of FLounge is present).

bk

 

[Archie Goodwin]

My dress code at work requires a shirt and tie. I wear suits, because I think the shirt and tie combo looks incomplete without a jacket. I do make a concession to the oppressive New Orleans heat, and give up the jackets in the summer, but I do not stoop to the fast-food manager look of a short sleeved shirt with a tie.

P.S. I also concur with the quote Scott attributed to Tony in Tarzana: "I dress like a grownup."

 

[Orgetorix]

My most common response when I'm asked this question is similar to Scott's. When I dress like a gentleman, I'm usually treated like a gentleman. When I dress like a slob, I'm usually treated like a slob.

For about eight months now I've been in a job where I'm required to wear coat and tie (suits preferred) five days a week. I love it. I'm delighted that I get to dress nicely and look my best on a daily basis, rather than having to wait for church services and the occasional important meeting.

This brings up other problems, of course. Some of my suits fit better than others, and I don't enjoy wearing the ill-fitting ones--at least not as much as I do the ones that fit properly. Nor can I afford, on my meagre salary, to acquire a wardrobe of properly tailored, well-constructed suits and shirts and shoes. But I'll take these problems any day rather than switch to a job where I couldn't dress like a gentleman on a daily basis.

 

[Benny Holiday]

I'm obssessed with Golden Era music, cars, clothes etc. Maybe I'm just a big kid who loves playing dress-ups, who knows? But as Tony via Scotrace pointed out, at least I'm a big kid who dresses like a grown man! (There's a weird irony there someplace :eusa_doh: lol )

I love the way I feel dressed in those sharp-looking, beautifully-tailored vintage suits of the mid and late 30's and 40's. You look not just a cut above the slobs around you in their trackpants and T-shirts, you look like you own the place (wherever it is you may be!).

 

[The Duke]

suits are stylish and I get compliments when I wear one.

 

[Tony in Tarzana]

As a big guy, I think we look better in suits. There's such a fine line between "Fat" and "Fat Slob" and a casual look that works for a fitter fellow just looks sloppy on a guy like myself.

I do dress casually most of the time, but even my "casual" look includes a collared shirt, tucked-in, and chinos that come up to my navel, and shoes and socks.

Oh, and of course a Fedora (or a Homburg).

 

[moustache]

Hear,hear!!!

I'm obssessed with Golden Era music, cars, clothes etc. Maybe I'm just a big kid who loves playing dress-ups, who knows? But as Tony via Scotrace pointed out, at least I'm a big kid who dresses like a grown man! (There's a weird irony there someplace :eusa_doh: lol )

I love the way I feel dressed in those sharp-looking, beautifully-tailored vintage suits of the mid and late 30's and 40's. You look not just a cut above the slobs around you in their trackpants and T-shirts, you look like you own the place (wherever it is you may be!).

Agreed!! So well put .A big kid that dresses like a grown man says quite a bit to me.Remember how when we were kids(or at least i was)we wanted to dress like adults.That meant putting on the nice clothes.Not a pair of jeans and sweatshirt.As adults,we have the PRIVILEGE of wearing nice clothes and dressing as adults should.There are exceptions of course.Working out,digging ditches,yard work and weddings.I only wear my tux to the black tie dinners a few times a year and the symphony or opera.Not to work.So dressing nice can be overdone as well.
Imagine wearing this to work at the lumberyard!!lol

I don't think so.

JD

 

[farnham54]

The Tux, the Bowler, and the 'Stache all compliment each other wonderfully. A SHARP look there, mate. Very sharp.

I find there are times when one needs to wear a suit, and times when one needs to wear somethign else (Casual clothes, tux, whathave you) And having the wherewithal to tell what situation is what is a mark of pride.

Cheers
Craig