spending rule?

[GBR]



i spend more on a piece of clothing if it is SF approved

Wrong: SF "approval" is not mark of quality or taste. It is merely an opinion of some of those engaged in a thread.

 

[GBR]



Is there some rule that dictates how much to spend on each item in relation to another?

For example,

$500-600 suit
$200 shoes
$100 shirt
$75 belt
$50 tie
$500 watch

Now if I replace the suit with a $200 mens warehouse suit, would that be very wrong (aside from the fact that it's mens warehouse)?

Or the other end, if I replace the suit with a $2000 one, would it be necessary to up everything else?

No, there is no rule whatever, expenditure is a mark of what you can afford versus what you want to spend on any aspect of your life.

 

[newyorknoir]

The only spending rule is to get as much quality as possible for as little as possible and make sure that:
1) it fits
2) if it doesn't can be sold for a profit.

I second that.. Don't go all out if you're only going to be able to afford 1 suit, 2 pairs of shoes, 3 shirts, and 4 ties.. If you're working 5 days a week in a suit you'll need 3 or 4 suits, 8 versatile ties, and 12 shirts.. For a starter, you don't need those exact numbers, but that's more along the lines of what you should have. Of course, after years of working and shopping here and there you'll build your wardrobe—which takes time. The general rule of thumb, at least in my opinion, is that if you're going to get a high-end suit, the rest of your clothes should be from similar designers.. we'll call this, say, the "Bergdorf Goodman" price range.. An accurate price estimate would be more like in the three thousands for a suit, $200 for a tie, $300-$400 for a shirt, and at least $500 for a pair of shoes.. Since you can't afford something along those lines, go with the next level down for a more moderate priced suit around $2000, shirts for around $200, etc.. If you can't afford that, go with the next level down, and the list goes on until you can buy around the numbers that I previously stated. The man makes the suit, not the other way around.

I guess the best way to put it in perspective is to put it in proportion with the rest of the things you own.. If you are spending $3,000 on a suit and living in a $1,000/month apartment, or driving a $6,000 car, something's out of picture..

 

[msulinski]

I second that.. Don't go all out if you're only going to be able to afford 1 suit, 2 pairs of shoes, 3 shirts, and 4 ties.. If you're working 5 days a week in a suit you'll need 3 or 4 suits, 8 versatile ties, and 12 shirts.. Obviously, for a starter, you don't need those exact numbers, but that's more along the lines of what you should have. Of course, after years of working and shopping here and there you'll build your wardrobe—which takes time. The general rule of thumb, at least in my opinion, is that if you're going to get a Zegna or Canali suit, the rest of your clothes should be from similar designers.. we'll call this, say, the "Bergdorf Goodman" price range.. An accurate price estimate would be more like in the two thousands for a suit, $200 for a tie (after tax), $300-$400 for a shirt, $300 for a belt, and at least $500 for a pair of shoes.. Since you can't afford something along those lines, go with the next level down for a more moderate priced suit around $1400, shirts for around $200, etc.. an example would be Paul Stuart... You can find something like that in what we'll call the "Saks 5th Avenue" range.. if you can't afford that, go with the next level down, say.. something like Hugo Boss.. $900 for a suit, $100 for shirts, and the list goes on until you can buy around the numbers that I previously stated. Try Calvin Klein or Kenneth Cole.. You can probably find something even cheaper than what I mentioned while still being better than Men's Warehouse, though if you have to resort to that—don't worry about it.. The man makes the suit, not the other way around. Most people don't start at what I called the "Bergdorf Goodman" price range.

I guess the best way to put it in perspective is to put it in proportion with the rest of the things you own.. If you are spending $3,000 on a suit and living in a $1,000/month apartment, or driving a $6,000 car, something's out of picture.. The guys who are wearing $3,000 suits will most likely be living in a $4,000/month apartment, or driving an $80,000 car, or wearing a $10,000 watch, because they'll be making that kind of salary.

Maybe I am way off, but some of those proportions seem a bit off to me. A $300 belt seems a bit high, even to wear with a $2k suit. Some items you can skimp on, and no one will notice. A belt is one of those. Also a $300-400 shirt seems a bit steep, because you are going to need roughly 5 shirts for every suit you own in order to get a nice variety going.

OP, since you have already lost a lot of weight, and plan on losing a lot more, I agree on spending a disproportionately larger amount on shoes. Allen Edmonds at the Nortstrom Anniversary Sale is a good option. Since you are on a limited budget, go cheap on the belt. You can get something in the $10-20 range at TJ Maxx or Marshalls. You can probably get away with 1 shirt for now, since you are interviewing and don't need to wear it every day. I would also go low on the suit ($300 range). A suit this cheap will not wear well, but you may not need it to.

 

[newyorknoir]

Maybe I am way off, but some of those proportions seem a bit off to me. A $300 belt seems a bit high, even to wear with a $2k suit. Some items you can skimp on, and no one will notice. A belt is one of those. Also a $300-400 shirt seems a bit steep, because you are going to need roughly 5 shirts for every suit you own in order to get a nice variety going.

OP, since you have already lost a lot of weight, and plan on losing a lot more, I agree on spending a disproportionately larger amount on shoes. Allen Edmonds at the Nortstrom Anniversary Sale is a good option. Since you are on a limited budget, go cheap on the belt. You can get something in the $10-20 range at TJ Maxx or Marshalls. You can probably get away with 1 shirt for now, since you are interviewing and don't need to wear it every day. I would also go low on the suit ($300 range). A suit this cheap will not wear well, but you may not need it to.

Yeah, I guess the point that I was driving at is that if you have the money then you have the money, and if you don't, then you don't.. If you're making the salary then in fact it's not that much considering a belt is an investment that will last you for some time. Generally, if someone is buying $2-3000 suits, then it might seem a bit funny if they are wearing a $40 belt. That was geared more toward the OP's question: "if I replace the suit with a $2000 one, would it be necessary to up everything else?" Not a necessity to buy the most expensive wardrobe. In fact, it's perfectly fine to wear a $400 suit and a $60 shirt, and that's why I gave other options with the different price ranges all the way down, but kept the pricing in general proportion.

 

[Sanguis Mortuum]



It is also worth considering that to a "layman" if you are wearing a $1000 suit, you can get away with a polyester tie and basic shirt because of a "halo" effect. True clothing nerds will notice but they make up a very small section of the populace. Cheap shoes on the other hand, always look like cheap shoes.

Polyester ties always look like polyester ties, and considering how cheap some silk ties are (albeit very low quality silk) there really is no excuse to ever wear one.

 

[dufferin1]

It comes down to what YOU'RE comfortable with spending. I don't know your salary, bank records and tax receipts so really its what you want to spend. I'm a college student but work full time. I'm about to buy $400 dollar Sutor's because I know that they will last me and I take care of my things. I rather have a smaller number of good quality/more expensive items then a large amount of cheap terrible quality stuff. That being said, as a second year college student I would not buy a Canali or Zegna suit because at this point in time there are better options for less money. You can find many many deals on here that are worthwhile. I mean look at shopthefinest, with excellent shoes, shirts, ties you name it for a very good price. I used to buy Hugo Boss shirts for $175 because I didn't know of other options. Now I buy on here for the same if not less money and I get a better product. Where can you find a NWOT full canvas suit for $400 dollars shipped? SF of cource!

 

[minervau]



Is there some rule that dictates how much to spend on each item in relation to another?

For example,

$500-600 suit
$200 shoes
$100 shirt
$75 belt
$50 tie
$500 watch

Now if I replace the suit with a $200 mens warehouse suit, would that be very wrong (aside from the fact that it's mens warehouse)?

Or the other end, if I replace the suit with a $2000 one, would it be necessary to up everything else?

Some items don't correspond much. Shirts you can always pick up for cheaper than $100 (e.g., Brooks Brothers shirts for $88, but always at $220 for 3, or at any one of their many sales for more like $55-60 a pop). And I think you could keep wearing those shirts even if you upped the rest of the wardrobe.

Ties can actually run you much more for a nice one, more like in the $100 range, and $250's probably the minimum for goodyear welted shoes that will actually last a while.

$500-600 can definitely get you a quality suit as long as you're not looking for a big name (e.g., Zegna).

As for watch, I'd actually argue that watch should be worth more than the rest of your outfit put together, if you can afford it. While your suit, shirt, tie, etc., change every day, your watch is one of the few constants. A high-quality mechanical watch, though, runs you a minimum of $1,800 (from a small independent manufacture like Nomos) and of course can go much higher. If you want to rock an Omega, you have to set aside more like $4,000.

 

[RDiaz]

Right now I spend as low as I can without making things look awfully cheap cause I'm losing weight too. That's about €250-300 for suits, €150 for sport coats, €60 for shirts and €70 for pants max. My salary isn't great either so when I settle down and start getting nicer stuff I'll have to save up a lot. Guess €150 for shirts and ties, €200 for pants, €1000 for suits, or around €700 for sport coats would be my limit.

Shoes are out of the weight loss issue because my size hasn't changed and it doesn't look like it's gonna change (it's likely that yours isn't changing either), so right now I spend a disproportionately large amount on them. Around €400 is my limit, but I usually don't go that high. I'm also starting to spend bigger bucks on ties.

 

[KObalto]



Polyester ties always look like polyester ties, and considering how cheap some silk ties are (albeit very low quality silk) there really is no excuse to ever wear one.

You can get a nice mechanical watch from Seiko for $500-600. As others have stated, stay away from polyester ties, and spend money on good shoes. A suit from Mens Wearhouse won't last you long, but if you are still losing weight, you don't need it to.Make sure you get something 100% wool and not a poly/wool blend.
HermesMan, you are the king of the bling.

 

[Master-Classter]

wow, wow, I come back and look at what happened. Not to knock most of y'all but OP, you've gotten some really warped responses here. Some of them are "correct" but very skewed... so I say take all the above with a bathtub of salt. half the above posts are either trolling or way out of line for your purposes.

Basically, to answer your question, it's a maybe, but mostly 'no'. There are certain pieces that you should spend more on up front like shoes and maybe the suit (although being well educated and hunting around means you can find good ones for less), whereas other pieces are much more interchangeable.

my personal budget advice:
Suits - $600-750, which should be a $1200-2000 suit on sale
Shirts - $50-100, I find around the $75-100 gets you decent shirts
Ties - (silk only please or wool, etc) - depends how many you need but my limit's about $100
Shoes - $150 minimum, $200-300 is the sweet spot IMO. Find $300-400 shoes for $150-200 and you're good
Watch - really up to you, but most watches under $1000 IMO are all basically the same. For now, go with a basic plain face (see poor man's watch forum) for like $150-300, later upgrade for $1000-1500



as you can see, everyone has different values, and salaries to support them. I even recognize my own biases above.

 

[New Shoes1]

wow, wow, I come back and look at what happened. Not to knock most of y'all but OP, you've gotten some really warped responses here. Some of them are "correct" but very skewed... so I say take all the above with a bathtub of salt. half the above posts are either trolling or way out of line for your purposes.
Basically, to answer your question, it's a maybe, but mostly 'no'. There are certain pieces that you should spend more on up front like shoes and maybe the suit (although being well educated and hunting around means you can find good ones for less), whereas other pieces are much more interchangeable.
my personal budget advice:
Suits - $600-750, which should be a $1200-2000 suit on sale
Shirts - $50-100, I find around the $75-100 gets you decent shirts
Ties - (silk only please or wool, etc) - depends how many you need but my limit's about $100
Shoes - $150 minimum, $200-300 is the sweet spot IMO. Find $300-400 shoes for $150-200 and you're good
Watch - really up to you, but most watches under $1000 IMO are all basically the same. For now, go with a basic plain face (see poor man's watch forum) for like $150-300, later upgrade for $1000-1500
as you can see, everyone has different values, and salaries to support them. I even recognize my own biases above.

+1. On suits, I would also advise to look at Suit Supply (gets good reviews on SF for its $500 suit) and try to catch Brooks Brothers on sale (you can get two 1818 suits for $1120 if you buy them during a corporate incentive sale - next one is likely in September or October)

I would also add that you should start with the minimum to get you through the first month and add suits/shirts/ties/shoes as you start getting paychecks and see what is appropriate in your office. How a new lawyer thinks his/her law firm will be and how it actually is are not always the same. Plus, most law firms understand that new lawyers need time to build their professional wardrobes.

 

[RDiaz]

He said he's losing weight. I believe $500-600 is a bit too much for a suit that is only going to last a few months at best... unless he's well paid of course

 

[pnutpug]

This is a rather silly question, I think. Everyone who said, or implied, that you're better off in a JAB suit that fits than a pick-a-brand that does not is absolutely right. I find that I tend to spend more for ties than anything else because I can find most everything else on eBay or in thrift stores (I understand that might not work for everyone, but it does for me). I can generally find suits, and certainly sport coats, in the styles I favor--Pressidential, BBGF in 3/2 roll--for south of $100. Ditto for shoes, although I occasionally splurge and buy new AE when they go on sale. Shirts for $50 or less. But ties are different. The right Hermes or other high-end tie really adds pop, but they are tough to find for cheap. And so I'm more apt to splurge on ties than any other article of clothing.

 

[LA Guy]



Maybe I am way off, but some of those proportions seem a bit off to me. A $300 belt seems a bit high, even to wear with a $2k suit. Some items you can skimp on, and no one will notice. A belt is one of those. Also a $300-400 shirt seems a bit steep, because you are going to need roughly 5 shirts for every suit you own in order to get a nice variety going.

OP, since you have already lost a lot of weight, and plan on losing a lot more, I agree on spending a disproportionately larger amount on shoes. Allen Edmonds at the Nortstrom Anniversary Sale is a good option. Since you are on a limited budget, go cheap on the belt. You can get something in the $10-20 range at TJ Maxx or Marshalls. You can probably get away with 1 shirt for now, since you are interviewing and don't need to wear it every day. I would also go low on the suit ($300 range). A suit this cheap will not wear well, but you may not need it to.

Worst line of argument is bolded. Most people, the vast majority of people, will not notice whether you are wearing a $400 Kenneth Cole suit or a bespoke suit from Rubinacci. If you are interested in clothing and accessories, you (hopefuilly) derive more pleasure from owning something beautiful than because it is noticed by someone else.