Man clothes: where do you buy them?

hi-vis vests

hi-vis vets sounds like James Herriott joined the Blue Man Group.

i bought two pairs of speedos for the beach.

I think I mentioned this on another thread but I had good luck recently with Marine Layer short sleeve button shirts (one hemp and one sort of lineny cotton). They are targeted to my demographic (exurban dads who don't want to completely let go of pathetic attempts to be "cool" but also get that it's a bit pathetic and don't want to try too hard), they fit well, they're well made.

dads of instagram

A sixteen year old has asked for "a cool t-shirt" for Xmas. I know it's subjective and what they think of as cool is going to change the answer but ... any hints?

they're kind of dumb, but I like these:

https://i.pinimg.com/474x/1c/18/2c/1c182c80c8b51fedbd46f706dde02b66.jpg

I got an ad for some goodlooking band and music tshirts on FB, but I haven't seen what teh actual shirts look like or if tehy are actually more real than images on a web[age. But god, they have some nice ones if they are legit.
https://www.cuptees.com/collections/3d-full-print-msd-collection/products/msd-bitches-brew-all-over-shirt
https://www.cuptees.com/collections/3d-full-print-trc-collection/products/trc-mr-fantasy-all-over-shirt
https://www.cuptees.com/collections/3d-full-print-rch-collection/products/rch-hallellujah-i-love-her-so-all-over-shirt
https://www.cuptees.com/collections/3d-full-print-tas-collection/products/tas-animalism-all-over-shirt
https://www.cuptees.com/collections/3d-full-print-xds-collection/products/xds-the-slider-all-over-shirt
https://www.cuptees.com/collections/3d-full-print-jea-collection/products/jea-after-bathing-at-baxter-s-all-over-shirt
are a few of them, each band represented there has possibly another 5 or 10 designs on the site. & if they're not real would be a good idea to duplicate what the image suggests as a real shirt.

https://image.uniqlo.com/UQ/ST3/us/imagesgoods/428166/item/usgoods_00_428166.jpg

Where would you buy a suit that wasn't for a wedding/christening/funeral? (UK)

Also, strangely panicked that Old Town is closing.

Isn't a suit that you'd wear to a wedding/christening/funeral just the same as any other suit?

Funny, I just saw some recommendations somewhere else. Something called Suitsupply, something called Indochino, something called Nicholas Joseph, and something called Balani. Dunno what the prices are, or where these places are located. I saw other people suggest (dunno how seriously) that if you want a nice suit, it could weirdly be cheaper to fly to Vietnam or Thailand and get something custom there.

You don't need to do that. There are tailors based in Singapore and Hong Kong who travel around the West for business. You meet them, they show you their samples & take your measurements. They go home, make you your suit and mail it to you. You get a made-to-measure suit for the price of an off-the-peg one.

Where do you find these
Nomadic tailors

There's lots of them, search Hong Kong trunk shows.

Also, strangely panicked that Old Town is closing.

so it looks like they’re closing their shop and just taking orders from existing customers? (and reducing their range).

There's currently a waiting list to *place an order*, distinct from the wait for the clothes to be made.

My understanding was that they're retiring at the end of the year though that may have changed?

no, i think you’re right on further googling :(

They have been saying for a while that they've struggled to find staff locally.

Oh, I'd missed that bit. I'd had a weird hope that someone might be able to throw some money that way to keep *local staff* employed still. Well, when I say someone, I was thinking Celebrity Old Town Wearer Monty Don.

Reframed question: where would be your second favourite place for buying a suit in the UK be after Old Town?

Drakes, if I could afford it.

That's a good shout.

Caveat - I am out of the game - it's 8 years since I thought hard about suits and casual investigation lately has made me feel like prices at off-row tailors like Chris Kerr have got a bit too much for my cost-of-living and deterred me from digging deeper.

That said

At Drake's prices for coat and trousers I'd think about a travelling tailor as mentioned earlier, one of the MTM tweed companies that cut overseas like tweed addict or stepping up to sort-of-bespoke at Cad and the Dandy or made to measure at Gieves or another row tailor. Choosing your cloth does make the suit feel yours.

Off the peg, something like Paul Smith & take it to an alteration tailor.

For that agricultural old town feeling… I dunno, it feels like putting together matching separates - could you do that with Vetra or someone?

tho can you say a bit more - what's it for, what kind of cloth/cut are you picturing & what's your budget?

Mix and match at carrier company?

They do suits

https://www.carriercompany.co.uk/products/boiler-suit

This might be obvious but I also would not fuck around with things that look great online, not with a suit.

Well, I've only worn Old Town trousers for about half a decade, maybe longer.

Quite often wear one of their jackets, too.

I'd always meant to save up and get a suit from there in something other than Stout Twill but the moment has gone (I've put weight on and would need to go in to the shop rather than buying the same as).

Not exactly sure what I'm after which doesn't help. Possibly something for sitting drinking red wine and listening to Tindersticks.

Did try trousers from Yarmourth Oilskins but they didn't feel right. Carrier Company might be a decent shout.

I got some North Coast black jeans very cheap/new-with-label off e-bay, had never heard of the brand before and found out they are a Marks & Spencer own brand. The fabric is so comfortable and a hard wearing kind of stretchy relaxed fit which is ideal for a lanky fat bastard like myself for both lounging about in and walking through mud.

M&S always used to have an unusually good rep for suits - like best high street option, know what they're doing - & these things change but I'd look round at least. Probably a bit work tho.

Cos's current cuts and fabrics might work.

Tindersticks being fitted at Timothy Everest's on the 2nd album cover. God, if only.

My wedding/funeral suit is actually from the "Timothy Everest at Marks & Spencer's" collection!

i am still fond of Slaters which is probably because i'm the basicest

At Drake's prices for coat and trousers I'd think about a travelling tailor as mentioned earlier, one of the MTM tweed companies that cut overseas like tweed addict or stepping up to sort-of-bespoke at Cad and the Dandy or made to measure at Gieves or another row tailor. Choosing your cloth does make the suit feel yours.

tbh agree on Drake's - despite thinking various things look great and haunting sales I've never actually bought anything except a tie (for my wedding so an important tie tbf)

Cannot help on the other points so useless paras coming up

For alterations used to like London Fashion Workrooms in Holborn, but they've closed apparently. I'm just googling too but if I throw styleforum or askandy into the search then maybe K.S. Tailoring Services, Hidalgo Brothers or Pinnas and Needles look legit (but potentially steep prices). Someone is saying 'fake reviews' about alterations boutique, so idk investigate.

Trousers, always an issue.

Now in the same boat as the rest of ILX UK menswear - Old Town had lured me into thinking this was at base a solved problem, that I had a default, but no, I have to start thinking.

I haven't really needed new work/nice trousers since the pandemic - I've mostly been in workwear because I'm still fully WFH and walking a dog 2+ hours a day, so I'm in Stan Ray 80s painter pants or Saucezhan fatigues or Carhartt twill most of the time.

I always have my Old Towns to fall back on, but I don't know what I'd do for something in that bracket now. My other good trousers are a mess of random buys picked up on sale - Ede and Ravenscroft baggy tweed, Mr P. grey flannel - so finding something right just feels like it's with the gods.

I do recommend the Stan Rays as a trouser that's decently made and more versatile than it looks - depends on the material but the khaki duck is excellent ime.

'a trouser' lol look who's writing for Vogue.

thx for tailoring info. on tweed i went into stewart christie in edinburgh over christmas and it was a delight. beautiful pieces all being made for v wealthy people in texas who only get to wear them when they come over to scotland for their “gathering of the clan” etc. also a gorgeous woman’s riding coat being made for someone in california.

it wasn’t outrageously expensive tho for anyone who a) fancies a visit to edinburgh and b) would like a well made tweed garment.

useful on alterations boutique. something about it smelled off to me. partly why i was asking.

“something” = intensely dodgy “high end vibes in a web UI” lol.

Ordered two different trousers and a three button jacket from Carrier Company and they just don't work for me. Shame.

went to pinnas and needles for my alterations. long waitlist but the experience of going to an anonymous door in soho, ringing the buzzer, going up the classic soho interior stairs to the clutter of the studio is great. as was whichever brother it was that i met. they were more expensive than some other services but not overly much. queuing for my trousers on the stairs and chatting with a bunch of other people with various clothing concerns and considerations.

plus and most importantly:

https://imgur.com/a/eJMgn6V

ugh the ios imgur shortcut no longer works and i can’t remember how to link images from imgur so they embed here. please. it’s v important.

https://i.imgur.com/kHAH4vU.jpg

get in.