Biggest early wardrobe building mistakes

Join DateDecember 17th, 2012LocationCircleville, OH United StatesPosts52 Biggest early wardrobe building mistakes

Personally, I rushed into the wardrobe building thing because I believed I knew what I was doing and that if I didn't, I could figure it out. This is one of my most embarrassing purchases of my first year of trying to build my wardrobe. Awesome. These beauties have already found the dumpster. Anybody else have some embarrassing purchases that they'd like to share?

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Join DateJanuary 7th, 2013LocationLeesburg, VA, USAPosts12

Personally, I rushed into the wardrobe building thing because I believed I knew what I was doing and that if I didn't, I could figure it out. This is one of my most embarrassing purchases of my first year of trying to build my wardrobe. Awesome. These beauties have already found the dumpster. Anybody else have some embarrassing purchases that they'd like to share?

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Those dress shoes like alright to me. Who made them or where did you get them from?

For me I wouldn’t say so much embarrassing purchases but getting my size off as one. Ex. buying shirts that were a size larger (large instead of medium) then I really was so some of my dress shirts look kind of bulky.

Also in terms of my casual/business class wear I need more sport shirts instead of polo’s and khaki’s /pants as well. As I started building my college and career wardrobe during the summer of my junior year of college and went for a lot of polo shirts from a wide range of places (ralph Lauren, Lacoste, Brooks Brothers etc. So therefore I have a hell of a lot of polos instead and a couple of crappy sport shirts at most.

Join DateMay 2nd, 2012LocationRockville, Maryland (USA)Posts11

I have a black pinstripe suit that still lurks in my closet. Whatever should I do with that??

Join DateDecember 17th, 2012LocationCircleville, OH United StatesPosts52

I have a black pinstripe suit that still lurks in my closet. Whatever should I do with that??Get adopted by the "Addams Family"???

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Join DateDecember 17th, 2012LocationCircleville, OH United StatesPosts52

Those dress shoes like alright to me. Who made them or where did you get them from?

For me I wouldn’t say so much embarrassing purchases but getting my size off as one. Ex. buying shirts that were a size larger (large instead of medium) then I really was so some of my dress shirts look kind of bulky.

Also in terms of my casual/business class wear I need more sport shirts instead of polo’s and khaki’s /pants as well. As I started building my college and career wardrobe during the summer of my junior year of college and went for a lot of polo shirts from a wide range of places (ralph Lauren, Lacoste, Brooks Brothers etc. So therefore I have a hell of a lot of polos instead and a couple of crappy sport shirts at most.

The Mens Wearhouse. They are much more square looking on the hoof. It looked like someone cut the top of my shoe off.

Join DateSeptember 26th, 2011LocationJoiseyPosts1,856

Those dress shoes like alright to me. Who made them or where did you get them from?

For me I wouldn’t say so much embarrassing purchases but getting my size off as one. Ex. buying shirts that were a size larger (large instead of medium) then I really was so some of my dress shirts look kind of bulky.

Also in terms of my casual/business class wear I need more sport shirts instead of polo’s and khaki’s /pants as well. As I started building my college and career wardrobe during the summer of my junior year of college and went for a lot of polo shirts from a wide range of places (ralph Lauren, Lacoste, Brooks Brothers etc. So therefore I have a hell of a lot of polos instead and a couple of crappy sport shirts at most.

Whoa, dude, you need to raise your standards. Are those the worst shoes I've ever seen? No. Did I wear worse shoes at one point? Emphatically yes. But those are pretty bad, and williamsonb2 was right to ditch them.

I have much less of an issue with a black pinstripe suit than with a black solid. It's still not a great color for some guys, but it's not as far outside the traditional spectrum for daywear as a black solid. Now, it could still be an awful suit, for any number of reasons, but there's nothing too wrong with it. I think the stripe makes it a little less stark, a little easier to pair with shirts and ties. Upr makes his look very good -- I think he wore it in the last week or two.

My big mistake was buying a lot of clothes before I had any eye for clothes, and getting hung up on little details rather than the big picture. Luckily, I made those mistakes in thrift stores. I'm still building a basic wardrobe, but I don't have too many regrets at the moment. I'd say I regret having more patterned shirts than solids, but that's more of a thrifting issue than anything else.

Join DateOctober 1st, 2007Locationdenver, co, usaPosts631

Quantity over quality.

Now, my "lean business wardrobe" consists of:

Navy blazer
Gray trousers
6 MTM dress shirts (2 white, 2 blue, 2 stripes)
Blue (one shade lighter than navy) two-button suit
Gray (one shade lighter than charcoal) two button suit
Ox blood captoe shoes
Black captoe shoes
Six ties (blue and red mix of pin dots, rep stripe, etc.)
Ox blood & black dress belts

Join DateDecember 12th, 2012LocationNew Jersey USAPosts105

I always have trouble finding a suit that fits in the shoulders. Being short and broad of shoulder I find any suits with shoulder padding make me look absurd. Needless to say I've donated a few of those.

Square toes shoes haven't been a problem for me luckily! I've also been fighting the good fight against various people telling me to purchase a black dress shirt.

I also have a penchant for purchasing blue checked shirts which can be seen a lot on me at work.

Join DateDecember 17th, 2012LocationCircleville, OH United StatesPosts52

I bought not one but FOUR Austin Reed Blazers (black, navy, gray, and tan) at the Mens Wearhouse. I saw that they were marked down to 89.00 from 350.00. What a DEAL!!! The lining was already pilling and degrading after 7 months. I sold three of them for ten bucks a piece. I kept the navy, of course.

Join DateJanuary 14th, 2006LocationMadison, Wisconsin, USA.Posts521

GREAT topic. Well before I discovered the Forum, I relied on the advice of salespeople I presumed were knowledgable. Some were, more weren't. At this time I've mostly shed those early purchases, chalking it up to experience. I still patronize those for whom time has proven to be fair and honest, but as I've gotten a bit more experienced at recognizing the details and quality I desire in clothes I mix personal experience with the experience of forum members, who collectively have been a terrific asset. Thanks!

Join DateDecember 3rd, 2011LocationBaltimore, MD, USAPosts550

Wasting money on alterations done by a dry cleaner rather than a real tailor.

Join DateJanuary 16th, 2008LocationLethbridge, Alberta, CanadaPosts958

Wearing a pink bow tie everywhere, with black dress shirts.

A close second would be wearing my polyster blue blazer for every occasion including being hungover for class, and not being hungover for class. Basically I wore a single piece of clothing virtually every day. It wasn't so much for necessity, but that I wanted to look good. Didn't quite work out so well.

One of my profs, accused me of a "sartorial atrocity".

Tom

Join DateDecember 17th, 2012LocationCircleville, OH United StatesPosts52

Wasting money on alterations done by a dry cleaner rather than a real tailor.I did the same thing with the mens wearhouse. I later discovered that our local store had only one tailor who knew what she was doing. I definitely had one of the others working on my clothes.

Join DateDecember 17th, 2012LocationCircleville, OH United StatesPosts52

Wearing a pink bow tie everywhere, with black dress shirts.

A close second would be wearing my polyster blue blazer for every occasion including being hungover for class, and not being hungover for class. Basically I wore a single piece of clothing virtually every day. It wasn't so much for necessity, but that I wanted to look good. Didn't quite work out so well.

One of my profs, accused me of a "sartorial atrocity".

Tom

That's a great story. I might need to use that line on some of my students!

Join DateDecember 25th, 2012LocationFlorida, USAPosts132

Not sure if this is appropriate, but my most tragic sartorial misstep was a short-sleeved, safari-jacketed, seersucker leisure suit...a size too large. I think my mom might have even made it for me with much love. I looked like someone on the exercise yard of a mental institution. I was so traumatized even then, that for thirty years I have not been able to look at seersucker without shuddering. Maybe next year I might gird my loins to venture once again into this foreboding fabric.

Join DateAugust 29th, 2009LocationCharlotte, NC, USAPosts1,738

I've been pretty mistake free over the decades for two reasons: old style "men's stores", and the Esquire Etiquette for Men (1959), present from an aunt. Just about every town had a men's store with career salesmen, and usually an on-premises owner. He put his name on the label, and had no incentive to send you out looking like a clown, and they knew how to fit clothes. Still, there was this pumpkin colored...."top"...in '67 that looked really cool on the mannequin, but in the real world was a farce. And of course in '74 or so we were all insane.
The "Etiquette" I still refer to from time to time. Classic in all ways.

Jack Floyd
I remain mystified

Join DateApril 28th, 2013LocationAkron, OH United StatesPosts27 Biggest early wardrobe building mistakes

Going to Men's Wearhouse was a big one for me. I kept going to the same salesman, too, who really didn't know what he was doing. For years because of this one salesman I thought I was a size larger than I actually am and bought several suits fro him. Once I went to a proper tailor and found my actual size, I pretty much had to start my suit wardrobe over.

Join DateJuly 31st, 2012LocationBaltimore, MD, USAPosts326

At one point when I was college I was "measured" at a Men's Wearhouse or the like and I was told that I am a 42L, 16.5 in shirts. For a long time I collected 42L jackets (regardless of the true measurements) and 16.5 shirts. Only in the last year have I come to grips with the fact that I am actually a 41L, 16 in shirts. Luckily the jackets were mostly crap and the shirts can be taken in 1/2 inch. Based on my experience;

1. Don't just blindly trust some dude at the mall to tell you your size and then base your wardrobe on that size.
2. MEASURE for yourself or ask for measurements for any second hand clothing you purchase. Don't just look at the label and say "Gee I'm a 42L and the label says 42L so I guess it fits."

I am looking for love in all the wrong places, as well as for 100% cotton must iron OCBDs in 16 x 36 and a pair of wool tartan trousers in 36 x 32.

Join DateApril 24th, 2012LocationPeoplesRepublikofOregon-BeavertonPosts486

Peach,polyester,three piece and.......................saddle shoes with 2' heels.

Marxism is the opiate of the academy.

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