What’s In this Season? Dash’s answers the question…
November 30, 2009During the Fall 2009 season, with the economy still struggling, it will be particularly important to understand the overall effect our wardrobes can have on other people and the impressions we leave behind.
Fall is a much-anticipated time of the year in Washington for many reasons. Fall marks the end of hard-fought campaign seasons, the beginning of the Government’s fiscal year, and the return of cooler weather. And as the leaves turn and acorns fall, discerning Washington Area professionals take comfort and refuge in warm seasonal garments. Recognizing that how you dress can profoundly impact our attitude, the people around us, and the success of our endeavors; dressing intelligently is an absolute must this season.
For successful men, it will always be important to understand what attire is appropriate for every occasion and to recognize that what was acceptable to wear two years ago may no longer be. During the Fall 2009 season, with the economy still struggling, it will be particularly important to understand the overall effect our wardrobes can have on other people and the impressions we leave behind. Men looking to dress strategically and smartly will focus their attention on matching each piece of an outfit to achieve a total look that is in itself stunning with no single piece that stands out. This means instead of receiving a lot of “nice tie” complements, which usually means the tie stands out more than the shirt and suit, men should achieve entire looks that express thoughtfulness, discreteness, and class. Across the full range of formal, business formal, business casual, and sportswear, the four keys to success this season are:
- Wearing classic pieces that have a modern design;
- Working within a more subdued color palate;
- Wearing high quality fabrications; and
- Wearing clothing that truly fits your unique physique.
Classic Pieces with a Modern Design – The suit will always be a perfect complement to the male physique – clean lines, tailored sides, and saturated colors make men look slimmer and frame our more flattering attributes (face, arms and legs). But as timeless as the suit may be, subtle changes are always a foot staying right in-step with the Zeitgeist. For business casual and casual, detailed needlework, slim cuts, and functional attributes are all marks of quality goods and will be very popular. For trousers, pleats are anathema. Cuffs or no cuffs are really up to the guy, but flat front cuffed trousers are the rage in Italy right now and just coming on the scene in New York City (Matt Lauer on The Today Show just started wearing cuffed flat front trousers).
This Season’s Color Palate – This season is all about shades of gray. Charcoal, Prince of Whales, and tope will also be popular because they will help men blend in and not stand out like striking pinstripes or bold blacks do. Grey flannel suiting with brown cap-toe shoes will also be a winner this fall. Nail head or caviar will also be popular suit patterns. For casual and business casual, the same general color palate will apply, with lavender and white being a top combination to go with gray.
High Quality Fabrications – A 220 to 260 gram weighted suit is perfect for all year-round in the DC area and if the mill or manufacturer doesn’t have a recognizable reputation for quality, do some homework before buying a new suit. Or just trust your hand, which is usually the best indicator of a garment’s fiber quality. It’s also important to understand different wools used in business casual and sportswear because some wools can be just as soft as cashmere and they can even breath better.
For ties, the key to a high quality of tie is how much sink and how many cotton liners are used on the inside to provide for a full knot and optimal weight/drape.
Clothing that Truly Fits – What we’ve seen ourselves wear in the past is comfortable for us, but it doesn’t mean it is complimentary. Current trends in cars, furniture, and clothing are all similar in that streamlined contours are the dominant aesthetic. For 9 out of 10 men, the best way to get the most “bang” out of your wardrobe is to wear garments that truly hug your body with minimal bagginess. Clothing should rest on a man’s body, and not drape over it. Curtains drape, clothing should hug. The key things to look for in a suit fitting are the shoulders, the length of the jacket, and the trousers. The shoulders should have soft, minimal padding that is not overemphasized. The shoulders should be filled to the point that there are no dimples along the seam of the jacket from the arm hole to the bottom of the chest. The best way to make sure the length of the suit is correct is to drop your arm straight down and to bend your thumb back towards the palm of your hand and the jacket should fall right into the meat of your bent thumb. Trousers should be flat front, even for men with more weight, because it has an elongating affect on the male figure and it is more streamlined and closer to the body. Besides, try to find a woman that prefers their man to wear pleats over flat fronts.
The best way to make sure your clothes fit is to ask a professional that knows how to alter garments along every seam to customize them to your unique figure. Or go with custom clothing, which today can be found priced competitively with off-the-rack. But whether you alter off-the-rack garments or go with custom, it’s important to work with a clothier you can trust with how you present yourself to the public. We rely on specialists for medicine, financial advice, and automotive services, and every sartorially resplendent man should have an expert clothier he can go to for wardrobe advice. Ideally, an expert should have passion for the art of clothing, know your look, and know how to add modern pieces to your wardrobe in a way that complements and enhances what you already own.
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