SUITING GUIDE: STYLE COMES EASY

Your Suiting Guide

The Relaxed Suit

 

The most easygoing suit in your arsenal, a Relaxed Suit should be the pinnacle of nonchalant cool. Meant for weekends around town, casual events, and packing for a trip, The Relaxed Suit highlights an effortless style that doesn’t need much consideration.

The overall approach to building a Relaxed Suit is to combine design elements that are unmistakably casual, to help differentiate it from a more classic-looking suit. Pocket style, lapel width, and especially the shoulder construction and lack of lining will immediately set this apart, both in appearance and feel when worn.

You ultimately want a Relaxed Suit to feel as easy as it looks–so consider functional, lightweight, and breathable touches that will feel very much at home on a vacation. Here are some of our favorite elements of a Relaxed Suit:

Casual Shoulder

We love the look of a more casual shoulder on a Relaxed Suit, and will sometimes recommend removing shoulder padding altogether, to create a completely casual look that focuses on the full, natural drape of the jacket. Also consider going for a half-lined or unlined jacket, depending on your preferences and climate. An unlined jacket is refreshingly comfortable, and just feels easy in a way that suits a Relaxed Suit perfectly.

 

Notch Lapel

The standard-bearer of suit lapels, and for good reason. It’s the most commonly seen, and works best with an understated, casual suit jacket. Don’t mess with a good thing here.

 

Patch Chest Pocket

A small touch that we really love adding for clients building a Relaxed Suit. If you’re going for patch pockets (we’ll get to those, too), we would strongly recommend considering a patch chest pocket for a unique custom touch that oozes easygoing cool.

 

Three-Roll-Two Button Jacket

Not often seen, and a great little flourish for your casual look. You would still only button the middle button, but that flash of the top (third) button adds an element of indelible cool that can’t be faked or forced. Originally, this style developed as a way for younger guys to hide their 3-button jackets and fool people into thinking they had a more modern 2-button variety. Proportion is, as always, a factor here–you want to focus on where that middle button is positioned on your torso, as that will still be your go-to for closure while on the move.

 

Patch Pockets

Playful, functional, and a supremely casual pocket style. Traditionally, these have always been the most laid-back option, and we enjoy employing them on a soft jacket or Relaxed Suit. Pick-stitching can add another layer of style here.

 

Versatile Fabric

Not surprising, but this is a critical element–choose a fabric that expresses your style while also exuding a sense of relaxed cool. Consider a unique texture or unexpected shade, but ultimately find something that makes you feel casual and confident in equal measure.

 

Build Your Relaxed Suit