Where's my pants?

March 6, 2006 8:43 PM

If you lose part of a suit (like, say, my girlfriend lost her skirt) are there places you can go to get just a replacement piece?

I remember reading about either websites or companies that sell this sort of thing but a google search is turning up nothing useful. Does this sort of thing exist? I know that there are places that'll match your China when you break a plate, so why not a suit skirt?

posted by swerdloff to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (10 answers total)

A tailor? That's pretty much what they do.
posted by kcm at 8:48 PM on March 6, 2006

Wool is notoriously hard to match. That's why you never dry clean the jacket separate from the bottom. The process fades them and if one gets more faded than the other, look out. Having said that, my tailor says that the decent chains (don't know for women) match pretty well.

It depends on whether or not they were sold as separates. Then you'll be ok.
posted by Ironmouth at 8:59 PM on March 6, 2006

Yeah, custom tailor.

If there's a large and vibrant Chinatown close to you, tailors there may be more accomodating and willing to try to match something (and possibly a little less expensive).
posted by PurplePorpoise at 9:39 PM on March 6, 2006

It depends where you bought it from. The biggest UK retailers of suits -- Next, M&S, etc -- tend to be good for replacements, as long as they're in the main lines, and I suspect that their US counterparts aren't too dissimilar.

Otherwise, an old-fashioned tailor's your best bet, although it may cost more than the original suit.
posted by holgate at 9:42 PM on March 6, 2006

When men do this the remaining piece becomes a pair of nice slacks or a blazer. I suggest she just use the jacket as a blazer (i.e. get a unmatched skirt or pant to go with it. If she has a blue top, a gray bottom might work well. Don't try and match a blue to a blue, or a black to a black, as in different light it will not match.)
posted by qwip at 10:06 PM on March 6, 2006

Best answer: She lost the skirt? Is it under your bed?

What brand of suit was it? Where did she buy it?
posted by astruc at 10:59 PM on March 6, 2006

Response by poster: Yes, Astruc, she lost her skirt. No, it's not under, on, or in the bed, we checked....

Yes, there's a vibrant Chinatown a few blocks from my apartment, perhaps we'll look there.

The suit is a Tahiri suit, I think.
posted by swerdloff at 4:17 AM on March 7, 2006

ebay?
posted by Orange Goblin at 4:33 AM on March 7, 2006

If it's from the past season or two, check Nordstrom or Macy's or whoever else sells Elie Tahari stuff and see if you can find a skirt in the same or similar fabric. In my experience, suit fabrics don't change that much year to year -- I had a benetton skirt that was fine for one job, but not conservative enough for another and 2 years later got a pair of pants from Benetton that matched the jacket perfectly.

Also, she lost her skirt? Weird. :-)
posted by echo0720 at 7:44 AM on March 7, 2006

Definitely call Elie Tahari, I am pretty sure they have an office in NY.
posted by astruc at 11:00 AM on March 7, 2006