Men's suit in the Seattle area?
March 27, 2022 10:13 PM Subscribe
I'm looking to get my (male) other half a real nice grown-up suit for a significant birthday. How do I get this done in the Seattle area? Ideally Eastside but could cross the lake for the right experience.
Money isn't *no* object, but don't shy away from recommending someone because they're expensive. Pretend I know nothing about the process or options of buying a suit. As I understand it, it will be impossible for this to be a surprise as he'll need to go in and get measured, and that's fine with me. But I would give many extra points to someone who would make this easy - coming to his office in Bellevue for measurements and fittings for instance, or to our home, or offering night or weekend appointments.
Money isn't *no* object, but don't shy away from recommending someone because they're expensive. Pretend I know nothing about the process or options of buying a suit. As I understand it, it will be impossible for this to be a surprise as he'll need to go in and get measured, and that's fine with me. But I would give many extra points to someone who would make this easy - coming to his office in Bellevue for measurements and fittings for instance, or to our home, or offering night or weekend appointments.
This website lists several bespoke tailors in the Seattle area. YMMV, but I did not have a good experience with Indochino and have not found their products to be particularly high quality. I've had three blazers made at Indochino and none of them ever fit correctly--an unforgivable sin in made-to-measure--so I ended up getting rid of them after one season. A good, properly tailored suit made of a quality fabric should last at least a decade of regular use.
posted by slkinsey at 7:32 AM on March 28, 2022
posted by slkinsey at 7:32 AM on March 28, 2022
If your goal is to get a suit for your guy so that when he’s wearing it, he looks like the type of guy who wears suits, and you are willing to forgo bargain hunting but you don’t need Armani-level wear, the easiest thing would be to go to a high-end department store (like Nordstrom) and buy an off the rack suit with a salesperson’s help with basic measurements. Then take the suit to any tailor (and some high end department stores have in-house tailors) to have it further fitted. Expect to pay between $800-$1,200.
posted by hhc5 at 8:53 AM on March 28, 2022
posted by hhc5 at 8:53 AM on March 28, 2022
It's been a few years, but we got my partner's most recent suit from Nordstrom (downtown Seattle) and had a good experience. I remember thinking that they gave us some great options that were more affordable than I would have anticipated. I can't remember for sure if we booked an appointment for their free stylist services, but it certainly wouldn't hurt, or you could call to ask if an appointment is needed. They also offer alteration/tailoring services.
posted by pril at 9:59 AM on March 28, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by pril at 9:59 AM on March 28, 2022 [1 favorite]
I would gently suggest passing on Kuhlman, if you are looking at them. They can alter clothes to fit, but they did not take measurements correctly on my arms, and so I ended up with a very nice — and expensive — and irreversibly altered jacket that did not end up fitting me.
Nordstrom offers alteration services and fast turn-around. I have had good experiences with them, esp. for pants. You can grab just about anything in the men's section that you like, and they will chalk, pin and cut it up for you.
I have not been to Indochino, but passed on it after reading other mostly mixed reviews. I would research them carefully.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 11:08 AM on March 28, 2022
Nordstrom offers alteration services and fast turn-around. I have had good experiences with them, esp. for pants. You can grab just about anything in the men's section that you like, and they will chalk, pin and cut it up for you.
I have not been to Indochino, but passed on it after reading other mostly mixed reviews. I would research them carefully.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 11:08 AM on March 28, 2022
I have bought suits from Indochino, Suit Supply and J. Hillburn, though this was in the Bay Area and not Seattle. All three appear to be available in the Seattle area. Indochino and Suit Supply were within the last year. J. Hillburn was at least 5 years ago, so my information on them may be out of date.
J. Hillburn has stylists that will come to your work or home. Indochino or Suit Supply you would need to visit their store. In my area, Indochino is appointment-only, but Suit Supply is walk-in only. All of them should be available nights and weekends.
In terms of price/quality, Indochino is the cheapest/lowest quality, Suit Supply is in the middle, and J. Hillburn was the most expensive/highest quality. Indochino suits are around $500, Suit Supply is around $800, and J. Hillburn was around $1000, though I may not be remembering J. Hillburn correctly. The price will vary a bit based on fabric, and options like a vest to make it a 3-piece suit.
While I do think that the Indochino suits are slightly lower quality than the other two, I feel like the quality is adequate, and I don't personally find enough of a difference in quality to justify the higher price. At some point soon I plan to get some additional suits, and will likely be buying from Indochino. I do find that made-to-measure generally fits me better than buying something off-the-rack and getting it tailored, but I'm pretty far from a standard size.
I did have an issue with the Indochino suit where the trousers were several inches too short due to other adjustments that had been made. I brought the suit in, and they made me new trousers in the correct size at no additional cost. So a minus for them for not getting it right in the first place, but a plus for fixing it with no hassle. It was definitely a measurement issue and not a production issue, because the new pants with adjusted length fit perfectly.
I did feel like the Suit Supply employees were more knowledgeable than the Indochino employees. But that's for my local stores, so I can't tell you if that's also true for Seattle. In my area, Suit Supply also offers off-the-rack suits as well. I'm not sure about Seattle.
When your partner goes to get measured, it's a good idea to bring a dress shirt and dress shoes to wear for the measurements. This is not absolutely required, but does make it a bit more likely they'll be able to get the measurements just right the first time. Shoes are probably more important (for getting the trouser length right) than the shirt. It's possible they'll have shirts and shoes that he can wear, but it's nice to have your own.
posted by cruelfood at 6:53 PM on March 28, 2022
J. Hillburn has stylists that will come to your work or home. Indochino or Suit Supply you would need to visit their store. In my area, Indochino is appointment-only, but Suit Supply is walk-in only. All of them should be available nights and weekends.
In terms of price/quality, Indochino is the cheapest/lowest quality, Suit Supply is in the middle, and J. Hillburn was the most expensive/highest quality. Indochino suits are around $500, Suit Supply is around $800, and J. Hillburn was around $1000, though I may not be remembering J. Hillburn correctly. The price will vary a bit based on fabric, and options like a vest to make it a 3-piece suit.
While I do think that the Indochino suits are slightly lower quality than the other two, I feel like the quality is adequate, and I don't personally find enough of a difference in quality to justify the higher price. At some point soon I plan to get some additional suits, and will likely be buying from Indochino. I do find that made-to-measure generally fits me better than buying something off-the-rack and getting it tailored, but I'm pretty far from a standard size.
I did have an issue with the Indochino suit where the trousers were several inches too short due to other adjustments that had been made. I brought the suit in, and they made me new trousers in the correct size at no additional cost. So a minus for them for not getting it right in the first place, but a plus for fixing it with no hassle. It was definitely a measurement issue and not a production issue, because the new pants with adjusted length fit perfectly.
I did feel like the Suit Supply employees were more knowledgeable than the Indochino employees. But that's for my local stores, so I can't tell you if that's also true for Seattle. In my area, Suit Supply also offers off-the-rack suits as well. I'm not sure about Seattle.
When your partner goes to get measured, it's a good idea to bring a dress shirt and dress shoes to wear for the measurements. This is not absolutely required, but does make it a bit more likely they'll be able to get the measurements just right the first time. Shoes are probably more important (for getting the trouser length right) than the shirt. It's possible they'll have shirts and shoes that he can wear, but it's nice to have your own.
posted by cruelfood at 6:53 PM on March 28, 2022
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posted by mskyle at 7:08 AM on March 28, 2022 [1 favorite]