You see him on the train, at the office, at your place of worship, you definitely see him while bar hopping.
You know him, the Prince of Prada, the Burberry Baron, Mr. Dolce down to the socks, the Louis Vuitton Don, the .. GAUDY GURU! He’s always “freshly dipped” in the most expensive labels from head to toe and let’s you know it (not necessarily in a tasteful way). Tom Ford shades, Balmain sweater, Louis Vuitton belt, Versace jeans, Ferragamo shoes, Hermès bracelet, and that’s all that in one outfit! And to top it off, it smells like he marinated overnight in crockpot full of Creed Cologne Stew.
I’m not here to knock you if you’ve got the financial means to purchase luxury goods. Live your best life! In fact, I own some myself! My point is that fashion doesn’t equate name brand everything, especially when it’s distastefully done. Loud and proud doesn't always get the job done. Also, unless you’re being paid, there’s no reason why one needs to advertise with every article of clothing.
After hearing this, you may ask “so tell me what’s SUITABULL to wear?” Before I answer that, let me breakdown some of the other attributes of high-end luxury brand clothing (besides the name) and how they could be an appropriate addition (in moderation).
Fabric Quality
Luxury houses tend to use finer and in many cases more durable fabrics. For instance, there’s a reason why your JC Penny’s department store merino wool sweater looks different from let’s say, a Saks 5th Ave brand merino wool sweater. There’s no equality in wool quality; meaning, wool quality varies based on a few factors. Wool is mainly sourced from lamb/sheep, llamas, cashmere goats (yes that’s where the name comes from) and even camels. The process to produce the finest wool, reserves the longest and thinnest wool strands with minimal defect, for this process. Expect your higher end brands to contain these "Grade A" long fibers, which more than likely derive from a cashmere goat, specially bred on a private ranch owned by the luxury designer conglomerate, where the goats are fed blades of grass watered by the tears of 1000 angels. Your moderate to very affordable (cheap) sweaters may have the opposite characteristics (shorter, thicker fibers containing greater defects) aka “Billy goat” wool.
Style
Nine times out of ten, you’re paying for that cutting edge design from the guy that knew the ins and outs of embroidery and design before he knew the ins and outs of potty training. Features such as functioning button holes or pick stitching, made it onto bespoke suits before it ended up on the ones you find at the "Suit Barn." Specific styles of higher end brands eventually trickle down to some of the more common clothiers, but you still pay to be first.
Colors
If you enjoy specialty colors like cerulean (instead of blue), oxblood (or burgundy), obsidian (black), amethyst (you guessed it, purple), then the luxury brands will have an array to choose from. Whether it’s pumpkin orange, vomit yellow, or gang green, you’ll come across some of the deepest, richest hues of unique colors. These colors are attributed to the various education of the color wheel and custom mixtures of colors to invoke feelings or moods from those who see and where the.
Now that we have that out of the way, let’s talk about some different looks.
The key word of the day...moderation! I’m not saying that name brands are a bad thing, but why leave the house looking like Neiman Marcus threw up all over you.
Subtle and Suave
For an understated, yet high quality look, first rule is No Ads allowed. Let the billboards do all the marketing, not your body. Go for fine fabrics in rich deep hues or unique colors. An “insert high end brand name here” cashmere sweater in a deep royal blue, to go with those plum colored cotton pants. Or perhaps the super 120’s gray wool pinstripe slacks with cream, merino wool Henley shirt, paired with camel skin suede loafers. But what about a fancy belt, is that SUITABULL? Sure, as long it doesn’t clash or contradict your entire ensemble. Reach for that ostrich skin belt with the simple belt buckle or a monotone belt with a designer logo buckle in the same tone. Either belt should match the shoes of course.
Bad and Bourgeois
Another approach, if you’re more of the Bruno Mars 24 Karat music video ilk, try pairing a flashy logo shirt up top, with solid colored bottoms (either in black, white or a color that picks up a minority color in the shirt) and a clean designer loafer with a bit. Complicating the design on the shoe would clash with all of the glory happening up top. The reverse will work as well (no pattern, monochromatic colored shirt or sweater paired with an eye catching, designer pattern on the bottom).
If you’re somewhere in between, sport the busy sweater or shirt, but turn down the volume with a singular color blazer, jacket or cardigan.
Helpful hints:
Dress the brand, don’t let it dress you...unless you’re attending a red carpet for the Grammys, Oscars, etc. 99% of the time the big bird yellow feather sweater that you saw during NY Fashion week, isn’t going to grasp the kind of attention that you want, just because it’s Gucci or Prada and cost $2000. The other 1% I would suggest wearing it, while still in the store, just make sure it’s off before you leave. Be balanced, be great in whatever you choose, be tasteful and above all else..
Stay SUITABULL guys.