The London Lounge

At the current count, my plain suits outnumber the patterned by 2 to 1.

I suspect there's some deep inference to be drawn by psychiatrists from that ratio : but maybe that I just find plain suits quietly satisfying when well executed.

Work attire is, to my mind, best when kept plain and simple; and mostly those suits are indeed for work.

Another charcoal grey 2BSB is just nearing completion which prompted me to ask 2 questions:

1 - For what other item or combination of clothing (shirt, shoes or anything else) is the sterility of a dark suit the ideal backdrop?

2 - By contrast, secondly, what would you consider a sartorial solecism when paired with a very plain suit?

My thoughts as to (1) include a tattersall flannel shirt. I recall from some while ago an elderly gentleman at a racecourse in a beautifully maintained dark grey suit (albeit it looked like he'd had it a few decades) wearing an equally antiquated tattersall shirt - plus suede boots and a trilby. Not a unique combination, but in his case it broke the 'rules' with such eclat, it was to my mind quite exceptional. Everyone else in WP checks and patterns seemed to blend to the background a little too much by comparison.

As to (2), again a shirt, but this time slightly straining to stay well within expectations : a white shirt with a very narrow self-stripe / herringbone pattern. For me there was something that just jarred - I suspect it was something about the pattern's effect that was close to a poorly tuned TV on the eyes - the dark plain suit gave you nothing else to dwell on thus emphasising the blasted shirt. (- Should add that the guy wearing it was trying my patience beyond endurance. This may have swayed my view...)

Your views?

For 2, I'm with you on the white-on-white shirt. In the '70s I thought they were the height of elegance, probably because they were understated compared to the ruffles on white evening shirts and the garish patterns we were all vulnerable to for daytime wear. Now it usually looks forced to me, and vaguely mafioso.

Otherwise, the plain suit, or navy jacket, seems to offer the perfect foil for pattern in shirt and/or tie, depending on color and formality of the suit cloth, and the occasion. I seem to be losing my taste for solid herringbone shirts, generally, though I like twills, pinpoints, and royal oxfords, and—again depending on color, texture, and occasion for the suit—stripes, graph or small gingham checks, or variations on glen checks. Specifics are too dependent on the multiple variables involved to generalize much about, other than to say that while I've always been fond of Bengal, pencil, or awning stripes and similar symmetrical color-on-white stripes, I can't bring myself to wear asymmetrical, double-track, or multi-width stripes.

I do find that on the right occasions in the spring, when the tweeds begin to see less wear, I take some solace in the opportunity to wear some of the dressier but brighter stripes and glen checks with the sold Oxford gray or navy jackets of the season. In these cases, of course, the choice of tie will be make-or-break for the overall effect.

Off-white and other light-colored solid linen and cotton suits and jackets are a world unto themselves, of course.

Melcombe wrote: For what other item or combination of clothing (shirt, shoes or anything else) is the sterility of a dark suit the ideal backdrop?

More out of necessity than as style statement, on my recent trip to NY, I found myself wearing my business charcoal suit with the long sleeved medium gray knitted polo and the dark brown Ferragamo suede chukka boots that I had taken for the casual weekend outfit. A purple écharpe that I picked up at a Desigual store completed everything. I´m not sure I would call it an ideal backdrop but the plain suit worked very well "disappearing" from scene.

I think that a plain-plain-plain combination of suit-shirt-tie can indeed look a little jaded. By plain I mean both a solid colour and minimal texture. However, if the colours are well matched and the cut is sharp, it can also look very professional and slick.

Perhaps due to living in London all these years – the land of the whimsical shirt stripe, etc. – I find that a rather dull, ill-fitting suit is not really lifted by a ‘picturesque’ tie and/or shirt.

Once again, ‘rules’ are perhaps less useful than judgement. Personally I prefer to have the textural / pattern and colour interest in the suit / jacket, more than the shirt and then pick a moderately colourful tie to go along. Obviously that is a more expensive choice; difficult for someone just starting out.

Alden's advice is that the coat should form the frame, with the focus of interest being the shirt and tie. Certainly a dull, if perfectly cut, suit, and brighter shirt and tie is a very English way of dressing. (The fit of the shirt collar is also exceptionally important and often rather difficult to get spot-on.) But plain does not have to be utterly plain to work; bird's eye, nail head, etc, even the texture of flannel, will bring a little extra something to the frame without complicating the equation. It's interesting how one's taste in these things changes over the years. I find myself increasingly fond of the subtly checked shirt, for which a plain frame is usually necessary - and a not overly-fussy tie.

For me the ratio is closer to 4 to 1, plain to patterned. My plains are proportioned against a few POW checks and one chalk stripe. However, most of my winter suits and a few of my summer ones are DB, as I prefer this style. The plain suits I often wear with a checked shirt and solid or simply striped tie, i.e. gaurd's, or a solid shirt and patterned tie.