The London Lounge

How to decide if the fabric pattern is suitable for a jacket or a suit

How does one decide if the fabric pattern is better suited for a suit or a jacket?

How many of use would have used a pattern like this for a suit:


It is the third suit here



or the first jacket featured here:
http://thelondonlounge.net/gl/forum/vie ... ht=windsor


I recently had made a linen plaid (black, navy and dark blue) into a suit and while the jacket works well on its own, the suit is a little too much.

Considering its summer time and I have time to visit tailors, I have a few fabrics that I am
interested in getting suits made. I have posted pics of a few of these here:

http://thelondonlounge.net/gl/forum/vie ... highlight=


However, I have recently found this nice black houndstooth with a green overplaid that looks interesting (they also have an orange overplaid) like this:


Seek your guidance before I put these on a suit and am told by my better half (actually 90%) that I look clownish.

Thank you

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The pattern that you show is really a classic sportcoat pattern. I do not think that it would work well as a suit.

I do like some large scale suit patterns. In my experience, most fabrics announce themselves as suit or sportcoat the first time that I see them. It is not a function as much of their scale as of there overall presence.

I'm going to agree with iammatt on his advice. However, the first picture, I believe, would work well as a suit. Patterned suits are a very grey area. I don't like the look of loud patterned pants. The same goes for most tartan fabrics. However, your choice may end up looking great. The houndstooth fabric with the green overcheck I'm unsure of only due to the fact that I don't know what the scale is.

James

The houndstooth would work as a either a sportscoat or sports suit.

I do not think that it would work as business suit unless you are in a field whose members dress with a certain flair, such as interior decorating, architecture, advertising, , etc.

Here's a chap who would disagree:

If that chap is the owner of Lord Willy, then I rest my case.

Great "sports suit" for less structured, less business environments. It's a shame that we Americans have abandoned the idea of the sports suit for the weekend and leisure acitivities, such as resorts and cruises. Unfortunately, it's either a business suit or cut-off shorts, T-shirt, and flip flops.

I think that the houndstooth would look lovely for a weekend lunch at Le Cirque and a trip to the Metropolitan Museum. But, I think that you would have problems with it if you were the assistant branch manager of the local bank where your superiors and customers expect you to wear a more sober business suit..

nick wrote:Here's a chap who would disagree:
.....
{Pics removed to save bandwidth}

If you change the green into a dark blue, so that the colours are navy blue, dark blue and black, it is what I have. Guess it takes a certain panache to wear something like that.

JamesT1 wrote:I'm going to agree with iammatt on his advice. However, the first picture, I believe, would work well as a suit. Patterned suits are a very grey area. I don't like the look of loud patterned pants. The same goes for most tartan fabrics. However, your choice may end up looking great. The houndstooth fabric with the green overcheck I'm unsure of only due to the fact that I don't know what the scale is.

James

Sorry, should have posted this too. The overcheck is approx 4 cm x 5 cm or 1-9/16 x 1-15/16".

Its just that once in a while, you stumble upon a suit that looks stunning made from a fabric that most would use only for a jacket. Guess there are few, if any general rules about this and each application is on its own.

I have a pair of mid tan tweed trousers (somewhat heathery) with a red overcheck that I love. That is a fabric I would make into a suit in a second if I could find it.


Thanks

oscarsfan wrote: Sorry, should have posted this too. The overcheck is approx 4 cm x 5 cm or 1-9/16 x 1-15/16".

Its just that once in a while, you stumble upon a suit that looks stunning made from a fabric that most would use only for a jacket. Guess there are few, if any general rules about this and each application is on its own.

I have a pair of mid tan tweed trousers (somewhat heathery) with a red overcheck that I love. That is a fabric I would make into a suit in a second if I could find it.

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That tan tweed sounds like something that I am also looking for at the moment. I suppose that the check might work, it seems small enough that it would not be overwhelming.

James

Nick, the two pictures you posted remind me of the practical joke of sitting in the front row at a flute concert and biting from a juicy lemon in the middle of the most difficult part

nick wrote:Here's a chap who would disagree

Quite horrible. Nothing that one would seek to emulate here.

oscarfan

I agree with JamesT1. The first, worn by the Duke of Windsor, would make a suit I'd be delighted with. The houndstooth looks more like sportscoat fabric, although the green is a touch louche for my taste.

If you look at the gentleman on the left, I would not have (at least initially) thought of such a pattern being suitable for suits. (pic taken from posting on another forum)



I think most of us would have thought it too bold.

Paul Smith and Etro feature some fabrics like this at times.

I should mine the AA postings again. Amazing how much good ideas are captured there.

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Just to clarify my comments about the houndstooth with overcheck fabric...

I do not think that it is too bold for a suit, I just do not think it would be a very good looking suit. It is simply not the kind of fabric that I would like to see from head to toe. The others that you show are lovely for suits. They do not have the combination of being both frenetic and bold that the check/pane fabric does.

I personally like large scale patterns. However, I do not think that boldness is a good end goal. You would not want something that would threaten to take away from your personality by exerting its own too strongly.

The Lord Willy suit is not my cup of tea.

nick wrote:Here's a chap who would disagree:
picture

picture

Extremely unpleasant.

JamesT1 wrote:

oscarsfan wrote: ...

I have a pair of mid tan tweed trousers (somewhat heathery) with a red overcheck that I love. That is a fabric I would make into a suit in a second if I could find it.

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That tan tweed sounds like something that I am also looking for at the moment. I suppose that the check might work, it seems small enough that it would not be overwhelming.

James

This tan with red overcheck is very similar to this:



I was attempting to explore a variant of this with black-white houndtooth w/green (or orange) overplaid. Maybe the overplaid need to be similar family of colour.

Anyone know where such a fabric can be found today or this one. I have not seen too many reds/tans with such prominent blue overplaids. Here the overplaid is from a different colour family.