LL Club Tweed - What goes well?

[iammatt]

A few years ago I had a suit made up in a cloth very similar to the new LL tweed. I love the suit, but have always had a little trouble wearing it with anything other than a white shirt and a black knit tie. What do some of you foresee yourselves wearing with your new POW suits?

[smoothjazzone]

Matt:

White shirt and black knit tie is indeed my preferred approach with this suit as well. There are however a few alternatives that may be acceptable:

Very light pink or blue shirt with a black knit tie

Ivory, pearl grey or even a light brown shirt (I have seen a voile in this color) with a tie with a dark brown base and deep burgundy pattern or even a repp stripe with the same colors (could also include a dull yellow)

The shirts could either be solids or have very small check patterns. Cashmere, wool and knit ties may look a lot better than printed silk.

What do you think?

[Concordia]

The LL tie from Charvet holds promise, although it might be a bit too urban to make the leap convincingly. Not having seen either at this point, I can't really comment.

David at Mulberrywood is tantalizing with tales of madder silk. Something in dark burgundy or even bottle green might be a nice complement.

Still and all, I might have to locate a black grenadine.

[iammatt]

Matt:

White shirt and black knit tie is indeed my preferred approach with this suit as well. There are however a few alternatives that may be acceptable:

Very light pink or blue shirt with a black knit tie

Ivory, pearl grey or even a light brown shirt (I have seen a voile in this color) with a tie with a dark brown base and deep burgundy pattern or even a repp stripe with the same colors (could also include a dull yellow)

The shirts could either be solids or have very small check patterns. Cashmere, wool and knit ties may look a lot better than printed silk.

What do you think?

I agree that cashmeres look great, but I am a bit biased in their favor. I will try out a brown based tie as I think it could be really great.

Stripes are nice. The best match I have seen is with a stripe in this scale

I will definitely report back on my impressions. WHat do you think about shoes? Are black shoes a must with the black knit tie, or do you think brown would work as well. It is my favorite suit, and I hope to be able to use it in a lot of ways that I have not yet considered.

[ryan]

Given the LL tweed was based on the login page image (I believe), and the LL tie was based on same, I'd expect the two should compliment each other nicely.

[Concordia]

WHat do you think about shoes? Are black shoes a must with the black knit tie, or do you think brown would work as well. It is my favorite suit, and I hope to be able to use it in a lot of ways that I have not yet considered.

There was a thread that veered onto this topic in the Featured Articles forum-- the "Shoes from AA/Esky" discussion. My own feeling is that for a real black-and-white suit, black is probably the way to go. But a slightly rusticated black. Maybe an RG Monmouth or the equivalent in black willow calf. I've also got a quarter-brogue in process made from "stout box calf" and with a sole that is 1/16 inch thicker than normal.

If there is a colored overcheck, or you're using it to set off a colored shirt/'tie, a very dark brown could be justified and there were excellent suggestions in that direction.

[Will]

Block stripe neckties might work well with the check.

No battle plan survives contact with the enemy, or in this case the completed suit, but I currently I intend to wear dark brown grained brogues and dark brown reversed calf semi-brogues.

[iammatt]

The conclusion that I reached while dressing this morning is that with a thin blue striped shirt, nearly every tie look fabulous. It is truly a much more versatile pattern than I had thought. Today I wore a brown and yellow striped tie, but there were five others that looked just as promising, inluding navies (which surprised me). Thanks for all of the help.

[smoothjazzone]

WHat do you think about shoes? Are black shoes a must with the black knit tie, or do you think brown would work as well. It is my favorite suit, and I hope to be able to use it in a lot of ways that I have not yet considered.

In my opinion -- depends on the shirt and tie and also on the occassion. There are three primary colors for men's dress (except for shirts) -- grey, navy blue and brown -- these colors can ALWAYS be combined indiscriminately (THATS A RULE!!!). Dark brown shoes or a light brownish tone shirt (note -- darker shades rarely (not always) look good on shirts) or a navy blue knit tie will all work with grey, brown and blue suits. However, if you have indeed decided on a black knit tie, you are better off with black shoes.