Starting a government job
Canada
Been blue collar casual my whole life, but potentially moving into a more formal public sector job.
Budget: $1000ish to start
6’2”
250
Somewhat significant gut
Long hair
Preference given to rustic or timeless pieces, i dislike most patterns and like to keep it simple. Unfortunately for some more formal things i have quite a few visible tattoos that may clash with colours.
Looking to grab some essentials, like button ups, trousers, shoes and a few accessories.
No timeline- can wait for sales.
Thanks in advance and let me know if anything else is needed!
27 Replies
What's the dress code of your office? What do people usually wear?
Unknown- prospective opportunity. Government job so i would assume business casual or business formal.
Oh, I get it now.
I would recommend an "earnest" suit for the interview, look at how people are dressed in the office, and if you get hired just ask HR / the equivalent what the specific dress code is (likely in the employee handbook, government likes to codify).
Of course, shoes, shirt, suit, and tie are very likely to hit or exceed your budget by themselves, if you lack all of the above for a good interview attire.
(of course of course, not all interviews in government positions require a full suit, but many offices and orgs want to see that from candidates.)
This is think is the way to go. I think i could skate by on lower-quality garments as long as i get them altered
Any suggestions for retail shops?
Depends a fair bit where you're located. Mall department stores have some decent selections (and a lot of junk unfortunately.) Ralph Lauren, Brooks Brothers, in addition, might be good bets for a wide selection of 'business basics.' Todd Snyder and J Crew might work, though they currently run pretty slim in general, I think they have less-slim stuff. (I would tend to avoid slim if you've got a belly, it's not gonna work out awesome.)
Depending on what "rustic" means, some stuff can be found for pennies online compared to new prices. The market for used tweed jackets for example is... over-supplied and under-demanded, resulting in pretty good pricing. Same for trousers.
Nothing is truly timeless but going for a middle-of-the-road cut, maybe erring a little on full-cut / wide, would work decently well for probably the foreseeable future. Especially in colder months, wools tend to be soft, warm, and fairly classic. In summer months, focus more on cottons and linens (and blends). Some options are pretty "basic uniform" which can be good or bad, but given your preferences probably good -- things like plain toe bluchers (shoes and boots) in brownish colors, khaki/tan color pants, oxford cloth shirts, etc. The rest really depends on the accepted formality levels.
I think we could give better advice with more specific requests, but in the meantime, I know on reddit there's a "basic bastard version 7" guide and a "business casual that doesn't look like shit" guide somewhere. Or maybe it moved into substack for this slack?
Building A Basic Wardrobe v7.0
Version 7 of the classic MFA post
https://malefashionadvice.substack.com/p/how-i-built-an-academic-wardrobe - this might be of interest especially with your request for rustic+timeless
Building a secondhand academic wardrobe
Those of you who know my posts here know I'm all about buying secondhand, so, I wanted to share my progress on building an academic wardrobe completely secondhand. I work in academia, and like to play into that a bit with some loafers and tweedy sport coats, especially at professional events like conferences.
Used tweed you say…..
oh yeah man I got the best tweed shit online for tiny fractions of new price, in excellent condition
Big fan of tweed!
$50 gets a perfectly decent jacket from some unknown brand that was made 40 years ago, $200-250 gets you absolute top tier stuff. I had to stop buying tweed because I have 7 jackets and live in san jose and can only wear them 3-4 months of the year at best
$50 gets you pretty decent tweed trousers as well, though those seem to be rarer in my experience
I can occasionally pull off “disheveled writer”
Put This On
How To Do Business Casual Without Looking Like a Schmuck
It’s never been harder to figure out how to dress for work. A generation ago, the average office uniform was...
I live in a place that literally warns people not to go outside or else they can freeze to death.
Oh fantastic
Yellowknife has internet now? ;)
Whitehorse had internet last time I visited but I dunno how easy it is to find retail near there ;)
Not quite that north but similar yes. Not uncommon to have -40 for a week
Its really as simple as sport coat, dress shirt, trousers and nice shoes isnt it
Suit should be in arsenal anyhow
Realistically unless your office is VERY casual, I think a "casual sport coat" like tweed would always be fine. At worst, you'd be known as the guy dressing slightly fancier in a tweed coat. Plus if it's cold as shit for half the year then it fits well thematically
Sport coat, a dress shirt, trousers, and nice shoes, all matching roughly in formality. Ties may be optional, you'll find out, but you may want one for the interview, along with the suit.
So like, for less formal office dress, you could do:
Brown bluchers (or blucher style boots, including chukka); non-stupid looking socks; classic-cut trousers (cotton/linen/blend in the summer, wool in the winter, especially a tweed or flannel [I prefer a worsted flannel over woolen flannel for trousers]); rougher oxford cloth shirt; linen, lightweight wool, or tweed sport coat which regularly comes off as needed/desired (depending on weather).
Or for more formal:
Brown or black bluchers, or brown oxfords, including boots; non stupud looking socks; classic cut trousers (smooth worsted -- tropical wool and lightweight wool blends for the summer, warmer but still smooth worsted wool for the winter); finer oxford cloth or poplin (or broadcloth) shirt; lightweight wool or wool blend (summer) or more standard weight wool (winter).
Obviously those are just ideas, not precise recipes, but it'd more or less work.
Amazing reply!! Thank you so much!
I dont mind being a bit more formal. Rounds out the alternative style that i cannot as easily shed
(Not without a cheese grater or many many laser sessions)
a secondhand wool overcoat coat could be very helpful in that climate
Ive got one in navy that gets a lot of use.
For formal occasions
The good news is that its so cold that extreme weather gear is not a faux pas regardless of the look of it
Its what you have underneath that will mess things up
It’s difficult as i struggle with poor self image and more conservative clothing options are currently exclusively used for weddings and funerals
shetland and fair isle sweaters are also a great option for both office and casual wear
what part of canada are you in btw? canada has made a lot of tailoring over the yrs (especially in quebec and ontario). probably all sorts of finds in a secondhand shop
Dress formal to begin with, then take stock of what everyone is wearing in the office. Then adjust.
Been in government jobs which were actually very casual. Which I didn't clock to begin with.
If you’re near Toronto check out Spier Mackay. If you aren’t near Toronto, order from them online.
Great one stop shop to get you started. They have everything you need for a basic office ready wardrobe
S&M's fits for a portly gentleman might not be as good as the brands whose fits are not a choice between "slim" and "slimmer" which is why I didn't recommend them, but they're always an option.
Portly is pleasant- i reckon that my body is mostly proportionate save for the beer gut. Slim fits are already outlawed