Midnight Blue Dinner Suit

[Guest]

I am think of buying some midnight blue 30% mohair and 70% wool barathea (English, 300 grams).

My questions are:

1. Are midnight blue grosgrain or satin facings available;

2. Or are black facings acceptable;

3. What kind of bowtie should be bought? If the facings are midnight blue, then must the bow tie also be midnight blue, or can I use black?

4. Would the foregoing cloth be deemed a summer suit, or could I use it all year?

Thanks.

[Guest]

1. Yes (from Weldon, perhaps?).

2. They'd look odd.

3. You've more leeway, but midnight blue would be better.

4. The color more than the weight determines seasonal suitability. Such clothing would be year-round, if you find it comfortable.

RWS

[Guest]

I do not think there is a general answer to your questions: you need to take the proposed cloth and the different silks and examine them in daylight and under different artificial light sources. There is no avoiding this experimentation.

Silks come in different hues, and no black or blue is exactly like the other. If the midnight blue is really dark, a blue facing may look odder than a black one, especially under artificial light (the barathea will appear darker, whereas the silk will look lighter).

Good tailors will have numerous silks in stock to allow you to do this.

[Guest]

I'd second the above advice. I have a dinner jacket in midnight blue with midnight blue silk facings of a slightly lighter shade than the wool. Under low light conditions, it looks fine, but under brighter lights, the mismatch is obvious. I have also heard that black facings with a midnight blue dinner jacket are acceptable but I would personally prefer well-matched midnight blue facings.

[Guest]

FWIW, in the Sotheby's auction catalog, the Duke of Windsor's midnight blue formalwear has black facings.