Looking for a teal suit for my wedding, any recommendations?
I'm looking for a nice teal suit for my wedding and am having trouble finding much in the way of options. Here's an example of one I liked from Indochino that was unfortunately sold out https://www.indochino.com/product/hamilton-sharkskin-teal-suit. I also liked this one however the fabric is probably too thick as my ceremony will be outdoors and it will likely be quite warm https://www.indochino.com/product/hayward-flannel-teal-blazer. I've also looked through SuitSupply and their custom options and can't find a teal fabric available there. Anyone have any other recommendations of where to look? My price point probably maxes out at around $1500.
9 Replies
Definitely don't buy from indochino. Suitsupply likely has a lot more in their mtm program than what's online. There's a lot of mtm out there and a lot of fabrics that are unusual enough that nobody stocks suits with them. Those shades of teal you picked aren't..... super popular. And I'd probably add 'for good reason' without meaning any offense. Maybe you'd be happy with a mid blue or bottle/forest/dark green?
Ah, I'd seen some good things about indochino on the subreddit but maybe that hasn't been most folk's experience, thanks for the heads up. I would check out SuitSupply's in-store mtm but they unfortunately don't have one near me. And no offense taken haha, I realize it's a bit unusual, and I do appreciate the input. I might have to widen the range of colors I'm looking at.
Indochino has some decent marketing and they do make decent looking suits... a lot of the time. The problem with them is twofold. First, their construction quality is fairly attrocious, they basically cut every corner possible to meet their price point. They focus on "the heuristics" like working buttons and pick stitching and full canvas (but actually they fuse the canvas down, so...) but not on actual build quality. The second problem is that they break the old saying, "an amateur practices until they get it right and a professional practices until they never get it wrong." Their hit rate is far too low and their QC far too poor and their employees generally a combination of ignorant and uncaring about things like fit, construction, quality, and QC. The subreddit if you search is literally full of people detailing their poor experiences. You constantly end up with not just things like "shoulders and chest were wrong, garment unfixable, they fought me on a remake for 2 months" but also things like "one sleeve was 2 inches shorter than the other." IE, not just miscommunications in measurements, but outright failed QC that anyone can see. Now, if you have like 6 months, you can probably get a custom suit from indochino that fits well, but you really need to dedicate literal months to getting it right, which they will do eventually probably.
But if you're absolutely set on a teal you cannot find in a store and don't want to broaden your horizons, you do have options. You're hardly the first to want an unusual color suit. For example, check out https://www.styleforum.net/threads/explorations-of-questionable-taste-the-pink-sportcoat-thread.726009/ -- and note what the guy is doing. He couldn't find a jacket off the rack that he likes and I assume he didn't find any good pinks in any cloth books at his favorite tailor, so he's scouring basically every good mill he can find and getting samples of every pink-ish fabric they have. He's spending $$$ on shipping all the samples and hours on research. If he finds a fabric he likes, he'll need to ask his tailor (or a tailor in general) if they do "CMT" (cut, make, trim, which really means, a tailor to whom you can send fabric and they'll do the rest), which not all tailors do. If they do they'll tell him how much cloth to buy, then he'll need to buy it and bring it / ship it to them, or maybe they can order it themselves.
Styleforum
Explorations of Questionable Taste: The Pink Sportcoat Thread
Perhaps a cry for help? What does the guy who needs nothing thinks he needs: A dusty rose or perhaps pink sportcoat.
This started off a year or so ago when I attempted to buy a length of a vintage VBC fabric from Il Vecchio Drappiere - think dusty rose with a white windowpane. Then, a day or...
If that seems like the sort of effort you're willing to go to... then by all means. It's a lot of time, a lot of money, and a fair bit of risk that it won't look how you like, but it'll be yours.
Have I done this myself? No, but I might in the next year or two, there's a lovely parisian check flannel from fox brothers that I want a sport coat out of, and maybe a gun club from the same. But! Not only do I have a pretty good relationship with a tailor, I've also had a number of items commissioned, so it's not like it's my first rodeo in general. Despite that, I'm still fairly nervous about the whole procedure, time-and-money wise. Would I recommend it to you? Probably not unless you're absolutely dead set on it, in which case all I can do is give the best advice possible within the bounds of what you've decided on. I hope that makes sense and I hope it helps.
This is wonderful, thanks for all of the information! If my search for something doesn't turn up anything I probably won't go to quite those lengths. Instead I'll probably check out the other colors you recommended or default to a standard black suit, perhaps with a teal tie (and I'll definitely avoid Indochino either way). I really appreciate your help and advice, thank you!
Definitely don't wear a black suit, it's not standard at all except in movies
Black for weddings is only for Black Tie, or adjacent. That's very formal and very specific
Defaults are navy and charcoal and navy is probably better for a wedding, but charcoal does almost everything you want from black and more. It's a context thing. Movies made it seem like black is popular but the social context of formality says no to black suits at weddings (in most western culture.)
I had a sage green suit custom made for my wedding by Rosen, and it was an amazing experience. You may even be able to stay in budget with a shipped muslin try on suit to confirm measurements before the final suit is made.
Gracia at Rosen has access to absurd amounts of suiting fabric, I'm sure she has one that will fit your desired aesthetic.
Also, the lining is usually Chinese sandwashed silk, which is pure luxury to the touch.