Menswear sale at O'Connors

[DownhillGoat]

Originally Posted by Muta

You really notice it when you travel. I felt like a total hobo in Europe cause I was rocking a hoody, ballcap, jeans and Nike Airs which is pretty standard attire here.

I felt like a hobo in Europe even when I dressed up.

[peter12]

Originally Posted by rubecube

Also wool > cotton.

Can't go wrong with a few pairs of flat front chinos. I buy the Bowery and 1040 cuts at JCrew when they have their occasional sales. I just picked up 3 pairs for 90 bucks or something crazy.

[Muta]

Originally Posted by kunkstyle

I felt like a hobo in Europe even when I dressed up.

I said what??

[prarieboy]

I've been buying cheap clothes all my life, until last year. I went into Henry Singer one day looking for a Winter Jacket and left with 4 shirts, three pairs of pants, shoes, belt and a sport coat. I no longer have to decide what to wear as anything I select goes with everything else. The difference in how I am percived is remarkable.

[Mass_nerder]

Originally Posted by Muta

Mass, you and I both know our industry doesn't require it.

Just need black turtlenecks...

[Looch City]

Anybody know where I can find this outfit?

[Kjesse]

My O'Connor's story: Recently graduated, being called to the bar, need new suits, need barrister robes, need long winter overcoat. Its 1998. I figure I'm on an upward trend and I need to look the part, so I can afford O'Conners, and they at the time were the only place I knew where you could get robes. Get fitted, choose some suits, choose a nice winter overcoat, shirts and ties. Price comes to around $4500. Ouch, that means I'm maxing out my credit card, but to me these were needs not wants (25 years old, not street smart yet). At the end of all the fittings and selections I picked out a scarf I wanted to go with the wool overcoat. It was $80 which was expensive, but I really thought it complimented the overcoat. Asked the sales guy if he would give me a deal on the scarf. He said no. I hadn't even bargained on any of the other pieces, just paid the ask price. So I completed my purchase (I spent too much time selecting to cancel), and haven't bought there since. I figure the sales guy made a great commission off me, but only once. He could have thrown in the scarf and had a repeat client, or hell even half off. He would have been earning more money than I was that year, why not a small break? I haven't stepped in O'Connor's since unless to buy barrister shirts, which they stock, and steer the young'uns who ask my advice elsewhere.

In terms of looking the part, I've learned a lot since then. I know executives making well into 7 figures annually who wear Moore's suits and freely state so when asked. They look fine. Not great, but its interesting how the position of the person makes you think their suit is nice just because of how they carry themselves, and its really their smarts and personal attributes that got them to where they are... and because they know how to get a good fit. I've also seen disastrous looking Moores suits on others. Get a good fitting, that is the most important part, followed by cut and stitching.

Off the rack is a no-no if you wear a suit everyday unless your body measurements are truly off the rack, and few are.

Myself, for a while I was using a custom tailor who came to the office and brought samples and did custom measurements, included style advice, it was a turn-key experience and a a little less than O'Conners or Harry Rosen for a great product that got lots of compliments. I was happy but it was still pretty pricey. The quality of the cloth was the same as the local stores, but the lining was sublime... thick with custom piping and colours.

Since then, a colleague of mine was overseas and ran into a custom tailor who offered to do direct sales, cutting out the middle sales person. This was not a sweat shop, he makes the suits. He sends a form and you go to a bridal shop for measurements, and he sends you fabric samples and options. I'm now paying a great price for a great looking daily wear suit, where before the custom tailor was $1100ish to $1900ish... and less than $500 in most cases. Slightly inferior lining, but still better than most. Fabric which is comparable quality to the best, and great workmanship.

TLDR: You can save a lot of money in the global economy. If a local store had been good to me in my time of need, they'd probably still have a customer.

[squiggs96]

Originally Posted by Iggy City

What kind of shirt is worth $200+? Alligator/snake skin hybrid infused with silk diamonds?

A good one? When I started out wearing dress clothes I went to Tip Top. Then as I earned more I went to Holt Renfrew, Harry Rosen, and other similar stores. I bought a lot of Hugo Boss from the States and many shirts were in the $100 range. Now I buy mostly Eton shirts. I think the cut and quality is far superior to the Boss shirts I used to buy. Most of them retail around $265-285 for a shirt, but I usually buy them when they go on sale, which is around $200. I think the extra $50-100 is worth it. I think a poorly made shirts looks terrible.

[username]

Originally Posted by heep223

O'Connors is expensive, but has the best customer service and quality in town. I wear my clothes pretty hard and they mend/tailor everything that I've gotten there for free, even years later.

Ed Williams is pretty good too.......

[CorsiHockeyLeague]

Squiggs, Boss is garbage. Eton seems better because it's actually a well-made shirt. But you don't have to pay $200 a pop for good shirts. You can get them made to measure for less quite easily and pick your own fabric and buttons.

Originally Posted by Delgar

Off the rack is a no-no if you wear a suit everyday unless your body measurements are truly off the rack, and few are.

This is incredibly misleading. "Off the rack" means literally any suit that is not custom made for you from scratch. In other words, anything not made to measure or bespoke. This would include all Moores suits you just referenced. Off the rack suits still need to be tailored to fit you through finishing and alterations.

Nearly everyone wears OTR suits. The key there is finding a cut that works and getting the suit finished by a competent tailor. Jaafar's downtown has done a couple for me, and I have no complaints.

[dubc80]

Also, what's up with the downtown suit-types wearing pants which are too short?

I know its the style and they like to show off their fancy colorful socks but sometimes on certain people it just looks odd.

[Kjesse]

Originally Posted by CorsiHockeyLeague

This is incredibly misleading. "Off the rack" means literally any suit that is not custom made for you from scratch. In other words, anything not made to measure or bespoke. This would include all Moores suits you just referenced. Off the rack suits still need to be tailored to fit you through finishing and alterations.

Yes and no. With small alterations off-the-rack can look custom tailored. If you need more than that, and most do, you are better off having the cloth cut and stitched for you.

[rubecube]

Originally Posted by peter12

Can't go wrong with a few pairs of flat front chinos. I buy the Bowery and 1040 cuts at JCrew when they have their occasional sales. I just picked up 3 pairs for 90 bucks or something crazy.

I meant the blazer but good to know.

[peter12]

OTR is for most people because rightly so, most people don't care that they have a slight dip between their right and left shoulders, and that this throws off the pitch of the sleeve and causes a slight shoulder divot. That is why you go M2M.

However, yes, budgeting for a tailor to take in your suit through the body, take in the sleeves, and hemming pants is totally the right thing to do.

[peter12]

Originally Posted by rubecube

I meant the blazer but good to know.

Cotton jackets are wonderful for casual, cool days, but I never wear them to the office.

[squiggs96]

Originally Posted by CorsiHockeyLeague

Squiggs, Boss is garbage. Eton seems better because it's actually a well-made shirt. But you don't have to pay $200 a pop for good shirts. You can get them made to measure for less quite easily and pick your own fabric and buttons.

Boss's quality has gone downhill, but it's not garbage. I still enjoy their suits, as they fit me very well. The Huge/Genius one is almost perfect.

I've had made to measure shirts before, and I haven't found one that compares to an Eton shirt that I only need to have the arms shortened. I don't think $200 is that much for a shirt that I will wear for 12 hours, couple times per month.

[I-Hate-Hulse]

Even McJesus rocks a Samuelsohn.



No reason not to be smiling on draft day! Also love my new @samuelsohn suit! Thanks for setting me up! #whataday

[CorsiHockeyLeague]

Originally Posted by dubc80

Also, what's up with the downtown suit-types wearing pants which are too short?

I know its the style and they like to show off their fancy colorful socks but sometimes on certain people it just looks odd.

Most people wear their pants too long and end up with a puddle of fabric on their shoe. Unfortunately, the pendulum has swung back the other way. Although if done properly, the Thom Browne thing is legit enough; before I put on a bunch of weight I wore a lot of Raphaelle Caruso / Brooks Brothers Black Fleece and you don't want much of a break on those trousers.

Originally Posted by Delgar

Yes and no. With small alterations off-the-rack can look custom tailored. If you need more than that, and most do, you are better off having the cloth cut and stitched for you.

If you need more than normal alterations, you have picked the wrong OTR suit. I grant that it can take a bit of leg work to find a make and cut that fits, but there's one for the vast majority of people out there if you look for it. In my case, Corneliani has several cuts that are reliably perfect.

Originally Posted by squiggs96

Boss's quality has gone downhill, but it's not garbage. I still enjoy their suits, as they fit me very well. The Huge/Genius one is almost perfect.

I've had made to measure shirts before, and I haven't found one that compares to an Eton shirt that I only need to have the arms shortened. I don't think $200 is that much for a shirt that I will wear for 12 hours, couple times per month.

Boss suits are heavily fused faux fashionista stuff; most of what you're paying for there is the label which people still thinks connotes fanciness. There is nothing that really justifies them; be it cut, material or quality of construction. You can go on Yoox right now and find dozens of similarly cut offerings for 1/3 the price that are better made, except that you've never heard of the label.

And if you like the Eton shirts then I agree they are worth $200; that may not be necessary for everyone but I agree with your reasoning.

[Kjesse]

Originally Posted by CorsiHockeyLeague

Boss is garbage.

I snipped your post. Let me add to this. My prior post and this post was mostly an effort to give advice to younger workers who need to wear suits and think they need to "look the part", but because they think they will be judged based on their suit or clothes, make poor decisions they can't afford (like I did).

Even before my O'Connor's experience, I bought a suit for articling interviews. I went to Harry Rosen and was presented with the idea of buying a Hugo Boss suit. I did it, I had a friend with me and I could not afford it at all, but as he said, and I agreed, "You're buying a suit to launch your career". It was $800 and I had to eat less for a long time, just to afford it.

It turned out to be the worst suit I've ever bought. It wore out quickly. It was not quality by any standard.

Were I to give advice to any young person looking for a job and they need to present in a suit, I'd say, buy inexpensive, don't splurge, but make sure it fits well. Make sure the salesperson knows how to fit you. And if it becomes such that you need a suit every day, there are a lot of great options out there.

[peter12]

Most people wear their pants too long and end up with a puddle of fabric on their shoe. Unfortunately, the pendulum has swung back the other way. Although if done properly, the Thom Browne thing is legit enough; before I put on a bunch of weight I wore a lot of Raphaelle Caruso / Brooks Brothers Black Fleece and you don't want much of a break on those trousers.

I have owned BB Black Fleece before. Pound for pound, the Samuelsohn is a better suit. Just sayin'. You want to talk about brand name flashiness...