Help be burn my blazer and buy some new duds

August 25, 2011 9:14 PM

Where can I find clothes suitable for business that are not the usual blazer or suit?

I have some decent suits. I like wearing them. However, it bothers me that all my suits, in fact all my clothes, are riffs on the same theme. They all have lapels, cuffs with buttons, etc.
What can I wear that is
A.) Unusual. Mandarin collars, for instance.
B.) Suitable for where I live, in hot, swampy south Louisiana.
C.) Still recognized as well-dressed in a business setting.

posted by atchafalaya to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (12 answers total)

There is nothing that will be recognized as 'proper' business attire except for a relatively standard suit or jacket. If you want to add a little bit more variety, depending on your industry's formality level and conservative-ness, you could try things like brightly colored shirts, or turtlenecks (though not until it gets colder.) But anything truly "Unusual" is going to be automatically disqualified as acceptable/proper/well-dressed for business purposes, because that's just how men's businesswear works. I own a Mandarin-collar jacket, and I look damn good in it, but I'd never, ever show up to a business function wearing it.
posted by Tomorrowful at 9:20 PM on August 25, 2011 [4 favorites]

Perhaps linen and silk versions?
posted by MidSouthern Mouth at 9:20 PM on August 25, 2011

This is what ties are for.
posted by holgate at 9:33 PM on August 25, 2011

Louisianian here.

1. Keep the cuts traditional. Maybe a slim-fit if you can do that, but no funky collars.
2. Seersucker and linen could be okay depending on what your business is. If nothing else, they're great Sunday suits.
3. Light tan, khaki, even an olive green are also good colors in the summer.
4. Go for the bow tie. You'll gain hipster cred if that's what you're after, and the older folks will like it if that's the crowd you're around.
5. In the afternoons, you might be able to get away with no tie if you have a good, starched collar. It certainly can take some of the heat and pressure off your neck/upper chest.
posted by chrisfromthelc at 9:41 PM on August 25, 2011

Less bluntly: the best way to approach 'unusual' is by borrowing either from relatively recent history or a close cultural relative in terms of summer/hot-climate business dress. I've linked to this photo of Cary Grant in LA before; there's this kind of summer suit. Seersucker and linen fit the climate, but have to be handled with care if you don't want to end up looking like Boss Hogg: cream, biscuit, olive, not stark white.
posted by holgate at 9:52 PM on August 25, 2011

Tropical weight wool, too, is way better than dark blazer/khakis, and less susceptible to wrinklage.
posted by holgate at 9:56 PM on August 25, 2011

This is what ties are for.

And tie clips and belts and watches and pocket squares and cuff links and shoes and socks and rings.
posted by wutangclan at 11:08 PM on August 25, 2011

In Florida and Texas some men (not limited to Hispanics and Cubans) wear linen Guayabaras in business settings over linen pants or khakis. I've seen it in the southwest and CA too. They have a certain retro chic but only you can say if you could pull this look off in LA.
posted by carmicha at 5:55 AM on August 26, 2011

Sheath dresses. Doesn't get you out of the blazer [well, sometimes I pair a sheath with a blazer and sometimes with a cardigan], but it's NOT a suit and it still falls solidly in the "professional" category. I also like 'em because it takes 4 seconds to get dressed in them and less decisions have to be made when choosing what to wear. I always get lots of compliments when wearing sheath dresses with either a blazer or cardigan instead of my daily suit-and the compliments are always about how "put together" and "polished" I look.
posted by atomicstone at 7:42 AM on August 26, 2011 [3 favorites]

And I'm a moron. Because you're a man.
posted by atomicstone at 7:48 AM on August 26, 2011 [1 favorite]

bolo tie. yee haw.
posted by mullacc at 7:58 AM on August 26, 2011

Bolo tie?
Never!
posted by fivesavagepalms at 8:09 AM on August 26, 2011