'There's no such thing as a designer of menswear', writes Hardy Amies, 'it's only history.
The suit around the world is based on the English suit, which began in about 1670.
Any man, whether he's American, Japanese, French or whatever, who wants to be seriously well dressed, looks to the Englishman's suit for how to achieve it.'
Suits
The Western civilized world - and much of the Eastern - has adopted English national dress.
In 1649 King Charles I was executed and with him went doublet and hose.
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DRENCH Fashion & LifeStyle HOME » The history of the suit &ndash in its earliest form a knee-length coat, waistcoat and breeches &ndash begins with the Restoration. Unlike in France, where the aristocracy was concentrated at court, the English nobility was scattered about the countryside. Sport played a decisive role in shaping fashion, and by the late 18th century the frock coat was cut away for riding. A hundred years later the tails were removed altogether and the suit in its modern form appeared.
The suit is foremost a masculine garment,
both in its simplicity of decoration and emphasis of the male form.
Its matching fabric in muted colours forms the backdrop against
which the colour and finery of women's clothes are displayed.
The V shape rising from the tapered trousers to the jacket's
padded shoulders sets man distinctly apart from woman.
The suit jacket comes in two varieties: single- and double-breasted.
Single-breasted jackets have notched lapels and usually two or three or
four buttons,
two being dated and four showbiz.
Only the top, middle and middle two buttons are done up,
respectively, these being level with the natural waist and the
jacket's narrowest point.
Double-breasted jackets have peaked lapels and the jacket fronts overlap,
with only the top working buttons done up.
The number of vents is largely a matter of taste,
although single-breasted jackets tend to have none or one;
double, none or two.
There is less scope for variation in trousers.
Turn-ups (called cuffs in America), while perfectly acceptable,
are presently not la mode.
If present, they are ½ inches deep.
Belts, appropriate with separate jacket and trousers,
interrupt the matching fabric of the suit;
in their place side fasteners or braces are preferable.
Vertical front pockets, and one back pocket, are correct.
Waistcoats are made of the same fabric as the suit, apart from with morning coats.
Like the jacket it should have (notched) lapels.
By tradition the lowest waistcoat button is not fastened.
The single most important aspect of a good suit is fit. Always begin with the shoulders.
Here the suit should be close-fitting, with little space for the cloth to indent against the arms.
The collar must not gape at the back.
The arm holes should be high and the sleeves narrow.
The jacket should be just long enough to cover the seat entirely.
A close-fitting garment around the legs has always
been important in defining the masculine figure, first in the form of hose, then breeches, then trousers.
Accordingly, trousers should be cut narrow through the seat and thigh and
have one or no front pleats &ndash not two.
Buying a Suit
Like architecture and typography, a suit is built up out of minor variations on inherited wisdom.
Small deviations speak loudly.
'Never in your dress altogether desert that taste which is general,'
advises Bulwer-Lytton.
'The world considers eccentricity in great things genius, in small things folly.'
Your first couple of suits should be dark blue or dark grey.
Black suits, apart from evening clothes and at funerals (and even here navy is perfectly correct), look cheap.
First learn to wear with ease a plain navy suit, white shirt and solid navy tie,
which is not as easy as it sounds.
Once you have developed an eye for the basics, you can turn to other
cloths &ndash chalk stripes, checks, Prince of Wales, tweeds,
corduroy, even velvet.
Price does not guarantee that a suit will look good, and indeed
the most expensive suits, selected without a practised eye,
are often unattractive and ill-fitting.
There are a number of details that signify a well-made suit:
pocket flaps;
sewn rather than fused canvas lining;
a button as opposed to zip fly;
side adjusters instead of belt loops;
working cuff buttons;
matching lining inside the pocket flaps and jacket;
a thread behind the buttonhole on the left lapel to hold stems.
Whilst most men's suits are ready-made, having a suit tailored brings with it the possibility of
improved fit and the choice of cloth, lining, vents, pockets and button placement.
There are two kinds of tailoring: made-to-measure and bespoke.
A made-to-measure suit costs half again the price of a suit off-the-peg.
The suit is made to a fixed pattern, but adapted to one's basic measurements: chest, waist, arms, legs and back.
These details are sent away and made into a suit.
When the finished product is returned, only small further changes can be made, like waist size or trouser length.
A bespoke suit, on the other hand, is stagewise assembled on site over the course of a number of fittings
(and costs twice as much as made-to-measure).
Attention to detail is paramount, and much effort will be made to ensure a perfect fit.
But beware of the tailor's eye for human defects: few men are constructed in the image of Ideal Man,
and the tailor will spot and adjust for any peculiarities ruthlessly.
Keep in mind that a tailor is only as demanding as his client, so it is important to be a stickler for details.
When having clothes made one learns by mistakes, and your first suit will not be your favourite,
so it is wise to begin with an inexpensive tailor.
The principal signs that a suit has been tailored is the absence of a label and the choice of lining,
which is customarily bolder than ready-made linings.
Burgundy is traditional, with crimson, salmon pink and bottle green also smart.
Light and royal blue tend to conflict with blue shirts.
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