I am having a hard time figuring out where and if they are appropriate. Personally I like the look(it helps hide my beer gut), but I wonder if in the work environment if it is a little too much, or smacks of faddish hipsterism to older professionals. It seems they were mostly out of style like 15 years ago, but it appears to me that has changed a little in the last couple years.
Depends on where you live. Vests - or rather, waistcoats - are increasingly worn in London (albeit starting from a base of near-zero). However, they are still decidedly on the young/hip/quirky edge of fashion and would be unusual in a conservative office environment.
I’m in D.C. D.C. tends to be conservative, but I have found that men pay way more attention to style here than some other places in the U.S. I really like the Suitsupply stuff you linked, my SO told me about them about a month ago.
Blech. A lot of the photos from Example 2 look like the suits are about 2 sizes too small. And what’s with the no socks?!
Personally, I like a vest and hope they do come back in style. When I was about 6 I had a 3-piece corduroy suit for school. I was styling!
When I was young man in the paleolithic era a 3 piece business suit was the norm as a symbol of status or style, but seemed to rapidly on the way out. I began to find them uncomfortable as my bulging abdominal muscles increased in size to my workout routine involving mainly my hands and my mouth. It wasn’t long before any suit was rarely necessary for me, but it seemed like changing styles in suits moved from exagerrated features to more carefully tailored looks. Lapels seemed to be either narrow or wide as a distinctive feature beforehand, and then became a less independent feature of suits and crafted to match the overall appearance of the suit. The rise of the athletic cut may have made the vest undesireable.
Example 2 definitely swings toward young and hip; but I think some of the more conservative peices(where the models are wearing socks) could work in a conservative office. I think the stuff in example 1 might be a little too bland for me.
Neither example looks like what I’m seeing on guys, but that’s because I’m mostly seeing older guys in suits. The pictures look like what I expect the hipsters to go for when they aren’t wearing my old clothes.
God, I hope so!
Senior college administrator/ lawyer at a small campus, so I will not claim fashion is even reconized here. When I dress, I go 3-piece.
Then again, we are a small enough campus that I have ‘claimed’ that style. I get vests, another guys gets bow-ties, another gets suspenders, etc. No, I am not joking.
If I worked at a college I’d get a leather jacket with tweed elbow patches.
I like to see them on men, but my tastes are old-fashioned. Maybe the steampunk trend will spark the comeback of fancy waistcoats. Rowr.
And I find old-fashioned clothes (like vests) on young men to be incredibly hot.
They’re somewhat popular with hipster types, yes.
I definitely see people wearing them. I don’t know that I’d want to try to use one to hide a gut, though; I think that could pretty easily be counterproductive if you weren’t careful about it.
I do think it’s a little bit much for everyday office attire, though.
Oh man. I want that job!
How do you end up as a senior college administrator / lawyer?
No joke. Ever time I go a little (okay, a lot) over my target weight, my wife tells me I look like a Hobbit. Back to the treadmill…
As for the sidebar, first thing you do is reconcile yourself to to not making a whole lot of money for a good long while, if ever. Then you start work in higher ed doing something useful, but not too strenuous, so you can attend law school at the same time. Then you wait for your moment, and seize it…and then re-affirm your conviction to not make much money for a good long while, if ever.
I have enjoyed it. And there are few lawyers active in higher ed. Usual resting place for one is as a senior compliance officer (me, currently), HR, in-house counsel, Dean, VP or President. All pretty comfy spots, especially at a small school.
I knew, just based on the thread title, that there would be a picture of him in here somewhere. And I agree with you 100%. It is a trend I can completely support. See also this guy.
I really like the slim cut and good tailoring that are coming back. I think it looks great. Baggy clothes make you look baggy. That’s fine if that is what you are going for. Good tailoring looks sharp.
I think I have a little bit of a weird gut; it kid of sticks out, but I’m still slim in the sides. I think I have a very naturally skinny frame, but my years of dedication to the Tripolar exersize regiment have added interesting proportions to the frame. It was a pain shopping for shirts last weekend, I had to find something slim fit that also had ample enough room in the midsection - a 2 hour trip turned into a 5 hour trip.
Love three piece suits! So hot! Love them
Please let them come back.
They’ve been back for a couple years. Initially it was with the hipster set, but now they can be seen on plenty of people who are a little on the fashion-forward side.
And not a watch chain nor fob in sight. Come now, gentlemen, accessorize.
We had a visiting senior judge once at the courthouse where I worked and he wore a three-piece with an actual fob. He actually in real life checked his pocket watch to see if it was lunchtime yet. It’s very powerful and I can’t wait to be an old man.
It sounds like it. Thanks for this! Way ahead of schedule on the law school & resignation bits, so I’ll just have to see about the rest.