Buying my first suit

[R D K]

Hello gentlemen,

First a little background information, I'm a 24 year old student, nearly have my masters in finance, and soon I'm looking to buy my first (real) suit. I have to admit I don't know that much about fashion (let alone suits), which is why I thought it would be a good idea to ask for some help, this is also how I found this forum.
At first I thought I would just buy a regular (non tailored) suit, but since meeting a few people in tailored suits and seeing how great they looked, I've made up my mind and decided to spend some more cash and also get a tailored one.

After some research and hearing alot of good things about them I've decided to get my suit at suit supply, what I'm not realy sure about is what kind of fit I should go for.
I'm 5'11 (180 cm's) and I weigh about 150 lbs (68 kgs), I have a very slim waist line and slightly build shoulders from working out. I have a shaved head (few mm's) since balding runs in the family and blue eyes.
I've added the picture below to give you an idea of my build.



I've looked at the suits suit supply has and I narrowed my choices down to the a dark blue Napoli, London or Washington fit.
What I'm looking for is a slim fit that suits my bodytype well, I have no idea which one I should pick for this.
My budget to spend on my suit is around 500 euro's, which is excluding the shoes.

So basicaly what I'm looking for is tips on what fit I should go for and any other general tips you might have for a first time suit buyer, like tips on shoes or a tie etc.

Thanks in advance

 

[GBR]

This must be the third thread on this subject in the last 24 hours. Seems a little odd that so many cannot take their own decisions.

I regret that you cannot fit clothes on the Internet. A photograph of part of you in a tee shirt (nothing wrong with tee shirts) and two style names does not give any basis to start.

You need to take yourself to a bricks and mortar shop and see what fits: If it does no feel right it will not be right. Ask locally who you can trust.

Dark blue is fine for a first suit assuming it is plain.

You mights also try:
http://www.styleforum.net/t/302593/styleforum-101

 

[dethfire]

Any decent suit shop will have a tailor that can mold the suit to your body. For 500 euros you can get a nice one! Especially for being your first!

 

[R D K]

This must be the third thread on this subject in the last 24 hours. Seems a little odd that so many cannot take their own decisions.

I regret that you cannot fit clothes on the Internet. A photograph of part of you in a tee shirt (nothing wrong with tee shirts) and two style names does not give any basis to start.

You need to take yourself to a bricks and mortar shop and see what fits: If it does no feel right it will not be right. Ask locally who you can trust.

Dark blue is fine for a first suit assuming it is plain.

You mights also try:
http://www.styleforum.net/t/302593/styleforum-101

I'm all about making my own decisions but as I mentioned this is my first suit and my fashion sense isn't that great, I'd rather make an informed decision, with a little help of people who have more knowledge on this subject.

I was planning on going for a plain dark blue yes, thanks for the link that definately looks helpful.
Btw these are the suits I mentioned in my original post.

 

[GBR]



I'm all about making my own decisions but as I mentioned this is my first suit and my fashion sense isn't that great, I'd rather make an informed decision, with a little help of people who have more knowledge on this subject. I was planning on going for a plain dark blue yes, thanks for the link that definately looks helpful. Btw these are the suits I mentioned in my original post.

Go to a shop and take your advice there. There is no substitute for your body and the garment being in the same place.

 

[Loathing]

There are no instant solutions. It can take years to really find out what what's best, so bear that in mind.
However, if you're low on money then Suit Supply will probably serve you as well as anywhere else. I would go for the Napoli.
As for shirts & ties: I would suggest a pale blue shirt and a wine coloured tie (solid, or with a discreet pattern).
Shoes: they depend on which country you're going to be working in -- I'm guessing Central Europe, in which case my preference would be black punch-cap oxfords.

 

[VinnyMac]

There are no instant solutions. It can take years to really find out what what's best, so bear that in mind.
However, if you're low on money then Suit Supply will probably serve you as well as anywhere else. I would go for the Napoli.
As for shirts & ties: I would suggest a pale blue shirt and a wine coloured tie (solid, or with a discreet pattern).
Shoes: they depend on which country you're going to be working in -- I'm guessing Central Europe, in which case my preference would be black punch-cap oxfords.

The instant solution is money + investigation. If you're willing to look around to find out what a good fit looks like and you're willing to throw money around for custom-fitted clothing, then you'll be good to go. For those who aren't willing to do a little searching and investigating or can't/won't buy mtm/bespoke clothes, I'd suggest your advice.

 

[R D K]

There are no instant solutions. It can take years to really find out what what's best, so bear that in mind.
However, if you're low on money then Suit Supply will probably serve you as well as anywhere else. I would go for the Napoli.
As for shirts & ties: I would suggest a pale blue shirt and a wine coloured tie (solid, or with a discreet pattern).
Shoes: they depend on which country you're going to be working in -- I'm guessing Central Europe, in which case my preference would be black punch-cap oxfords.

That sounds a bit discouraging, however I'm just starting out , I'm not looking for the absolute best, I'm looking for a suit that looks good and professional on me.
Thanks for the tips on the tie and the shoes!

The instant solution is money + investigation. If you're willing to look around to find out what a good fit looks like and you're willing to throw money around for custom-fitted clothing, then you'll be good to go. For those who aren't willing to do a little searching and investigating or can't/won't buy mtm/bespoke clothes, I'd suggest your advice.

I'm trying to do some investigation, this post is part of it, eventualy I will go to the stores and try on different suits.
I have however, no idea what to look for to see if a suit is a good fit for me, are there certain tricks , like areas in a suit that need to fit a certain way to know the suit is good for me?

 

[Loathing]

Well, look: everyone has different standards when it comes to fit. There are some basics, but they can easily be found here. Beyond the basics, you'll do well to take a look at some of the threads in the forum dedicated to fit. For example, the "Ask A Tailor" thread. Take a look around, have a read, see what you like: learn.

Explaining a lot of things to do with fit requires pictures -- hence why I'm not being very forthcoming with written information.

 

[Loathing]

If you're buying Suit Supply off the peg, then I would recommend buying the Long size, i.e. 40L rather than 40R, because, from what I've seen, their suits come up very short. However, that may depend on the model. I suppose they may have more classic fitting styles alongside the fashion-forward skimpy crap.

 

[R D K]

Well, look: everyone has different standards when it comes to fit. There are some basics, but they can easily be found here. Beyond the basics, you'll do well to take a look at some of the threads in the forum dedicated to fit. For example, the "Ask A Tailor" thread. Take a look around, have a read, see what you like: learn.

Explaining a lot of things to do with fit requires pictures -- hence why I'm not being very forthcoming with written information.

If you're buying Suit Supply off the peg, then I would recommend buying the Long size, i.e. 40L rather than 40R, because, from what I've seen, their suits come up very short. However, that may depend on the model. I suppose they may have more classic fitting styles alongside the fashion-forward skimpy crap.

I see, thanks alot for the info, I appreciate it!

 

[mensimageconsultant]

That sort of muscular build + slim-fit suit + shaved head in the finance industry most likely would look inappropriate. The three suits pictured fit inappropriately for most suit environments.

Location would be a start, for guidance to a better option.

 

[R D K]

That sort of muscular build + slim-fit suit + shaved head in the finance industry most likely would look inappropriate. The three suits pictured fit inappropriately for most suit environments.

Location would be a start, for guidance to a better option.

Thanks for your post, I can't really help the fact that I'm bald, I shave my head because it looks better than a haircut with bald spots (in my opinion).
As for the muscular build, I'm quite slim, more of an athletic build (slightly bigger shoulders and chest, small waist) than really big or muscular, it might look that way from the picture because it is taken from the side, but as my weight suggests, I'm not that big. I've read many comments on this forum that suit supply suits fit an athletic build very nicely.

As for my location, I live in the Netherlands,

Also, could you explain what you mean by "The Three suits pictured fit inappropriately for most suit environments"?

 

[mensimageconsultant]

They're too short and tight (above and below the waist). The shaved head only matters because of the athletic/shaved head hooligan thing, which is a perception the suit styling shouldn't reinforce.

If you still want to try SuitSupply, go to one of its Netherlands stores and see if anything fits like, for example, a recent Justin Timberlake suit does.

 

[R D K]

They're too short and tight (above and below the waist). The shaved head only matters because of the athletic/shaved head hooligan thing, which is a perception the suit styling shouldn't reinforce.

If you still want to try SuitSupply, go to one of its Netherlands stores and see if anything fits like, for example, a recent Justin Timberlake suit does.

Thanks for the advice