A Wee Blether

image by shortshrifted

Where does Waldo get his suits? Or Uncle Sam? Or Abe Lincoln impersonators? I ask, because, buying suits for real tall skinny guys is darn hard, especially if said guy has a small slim wallet.

My quest for a good-fitting suit (is it really “well-fitting”??) began more than a year ago, before I went to Scotland where I was to wear suits and a clergy collar every day. Before setting off for Scotland, I looked around at some discount suit stores for a nice cheap suit that fit reasonably well, but all I could find was baggy-pants floppy-neck suits made for short rotund people.

A suit made for your average joe does not fit me. You can’t take pleated pants in more than an inch and have them look decent. All the jackets were made for men who, what shall I say, had reached the expanding-belly stage of life. I’m not quite there myself, so I’d rather not have a suit coat that leaves room in case I become pregnant or feel like wearing a life jacket to work.

And if that wasn’t hard enough, I’m young, I’m hip: I want flat front pants — no pleats for folks under 30, I say — which narrows my options even more.

So I looked for suits in Scotland, but didn’t want to sell my plane ticket back to pay for one. I made do for the year, and figured I’d find a lovely suit for the lanky pastor in the good ole U S of A. Two words: real hard!

First, I made the mistake of trying on the Hugo Boss Red Label suit one day at the mall. OMG, that suit was made for me! 40L fits like a glove — pants are perfect, jacket a glorious slim cut. I had never tried on anything that fit better, or was of better quality, or said “buy me” more, or …. cost so MUCH. $900! I put it calmly back on the rack and cried over a free sample at the chocolate store. The Hugo Boss Red Label was made for me, but in another life where I’m an attorney or doctor or, well, anything but a student looking for a church job.

So I started looking elsewhere, particularly via mail order. Lands End — nice flat front pants, but the jacket was too short and could fit my entire family inside. Banana Republic — nice quality, but the jacket kept running back off my shoulders in this weird I-hate-you sort of way. Nothing warmed my heart like the Huge Boss. Nothing, that is, until I happened across a sale at JCrew.

Cue magical music…..

Not only did this three button navy flat front suit fit pretty darn well, but it was on major sale…making it about 1/3 the cost of the Hugo Boss. I’m not always a fan of JCrew, even if Michelle Obama loves it — they’re expensive and a little too frat boy for me. But, thank goodness, they cut their suits for the lanky among us, and their sale prices are pretty reasonble.

So, if you’ve got PTSG (poor tall skinny guy syndrome), and can’t afford the Hugo Boss Red, I highly recommend J Crew. Until I’m Rev. Dollar, it’ll do just fine.