It's that time of year where summer is starting to wind down, internships and summer associate gigs are ending and interview season is about to be in full swing (at least for law students). It makes this a good time to discuss suits, particularly interview suits. It's worth noting that we recognize that the world of suiting is very large and there are a lot of myths out there about suiting. We can't discuss each and every myth in this post (if we tried it would just turn into a 25 year old hipster's memoir which isn't what we're going for here), so we're going to start a monthly series where we set the record straight about suiting. (Katie 2 wants a full disclosure that in actuality, promising a monthly series is quite lofty, given our propensity for not getting posts done.)
In our experience, corporate fashion blogs run the gamut with respect to suiting. While we've found some helpful posts over the years (we do give credit where credit is due), we've also found many posts about interview suits that skew waaaaaay too conservative to the point of being terrifying to a newly minted professional. On the other side of that coin, we've also seen too many interview suit posts that skew too casual (might be helpful to your wallet madam blogger, but not helpful for Real Working Girls). One common theme we've noticed is that corporate fashion bloggers as a whole absolutely LOVE Theory suiting. They love to tell Real Working Girls that if they purchase one suit it ABSOLUTELY MUST BE A THEORY SUIT. And there you have our first suiting myth.
Unfortunately, we've learned the hard way that Theory suiting isn't the Holy Grail of suits. Yes, the suits are beautiful. Yes, the quality in the past was very good (it has deceased in recent years). Yes every corporate fashion blogger and their mother write poetry to the suiting gods praising the amazingness that is Theory suiting. Guess what. Unless you are 5'9" and a size 0, Theory may not work for your body type. In our experience, Theory suits are cut for someone with a straight future- their cuts don't work on someone with curves (and we've got curves). Our tip? Try one on if you must, but save your money. Besides the difficulty with fit, Theory suiting can be very expensive, especially for Real Working Girls with real student budgets (or real student loans) for for Real Working Girls who don't regularly wear suits.
Now that you know that Theory isn't necessarily the Holy Grail of suits, you may ask the suiting gods: what brand is the Holy Grail of suiting? The answer to that question is simple and unanimous- there isn't one. Different brands work for different people and Real Working Girls have differing budgets, so what works for us may not work for you. However, we've been Real Working Girls for long enough that we've played suiting roulette a few times and the results of that game are below. Hopefully, our experiences will provide some good advice, especially to those newbie Real Working Girls currently navigating interview season.
Katie 1:
Katie 1's favorite suiting is the J.Crew Italian stretch wool. It fits her body shape well and the colors are pretty consistent one season after another so she's been able to add to her suiting wardrobe over the years. She admits that the other stretch wool suiting is superior to J.Crew's newer stuff but that's an entirely differentrant post. She won't buy J.Crew suiting anymore unless it's on sale with an additional 40% off. Below are some of her current favorites.
In our experience, corporate fashion blogs run the gamut with respect to suiting. While we've found some helpful posts over the years (we do give credit where credit is due), we've also found many posts about interview suits that skew waaaaaay too conservative to the point of being terrifying to a newly minted professional. On the other side of that coin, we've also seen too many interview suit posts that skew too casual (might be helpful to your wallet madam blogger, but not helpful for Real Working Girls). One common theme we've noticed is that corporate fashion bloggers as a whole absolutely LOVE Theory suiting. They love to tell Real Working Girls that if they purchase one suit it ABSOLUTELY MUST BE A THEORY SUIT. And there you have our first suiting myth.
Unfortunately, we've learned the hard way that Theory suiting isn't the Holy Grail of suits. Yes, the suits are beautiful. Yes, the quality in the past was very good (it has deceased in recent years). Yes every corporate fashion blogger and their mother write poetry to the suiting gods praising the amazingness that is Theory suiting. Guess what. Unless you are 5'9" and a size 0, Theory may not work for your body type. In our experience, Theory suits are cut for someone with a straight future- their cuts don't work on someone with curves (and we've got curves). Our tip? Try one on if you must, but save your money. Besides the difficulty with fit, Theory suiting can be very expensive, especially for Real Working Girls with real student budgets (or real student loans) for for Real Working Girls who don't regularly wear suits.
Now that you know that Theory isn't necessarily the Holy Grail of suits, you may ask the suiting gods: what brand is the Holy Grail of suiting? The answer to that question is simple and unanimous- there isn't one. Different brands work for different people and Real Working Girls have differing budgets, so what works for us may not work for you. However, we've been Real Working Girls for long enough that we've played suiting roulette a few times and the results of that game are below. Hopefully, our experiences will provide some good advice, especially to those newbie Real Working Girls currently navigating interview season.
Katie 1:
Katie 1's favorite suiting is the J.Crew Italian stretch wool. It fits her body shape well and the colors are pretty consistent one season after another so she's been able to add to her suiting wardrobe over the years. She admits that the other stretch wool suiting is superior to J.Crew's newer stuff but that's an entirely different
- Yes, it's a suit dress, which can be more on the casual side. However, she owns this dress and absolutely loves it.
- Look! It comes it all 3 basic suiting colors
- Katie 1 has an older version of these. Loves them. Can't speak to the current quality.
- It's a wool pencil skirt. It comes in all 3 basic suit colors.
Katie 1 is also a fan of the "Wear to Work" collection from Lands' End (see the post for links). She thinks the quality is good, it's at a great price point, fits her body shape, and is machine washable. For the money, especially if you're a student, this is her #1 recommendation for suiting.
Also, and if you've got a larger budget, Katie 1 is also a huge fan of Hugo Boss and Elie Tahari. Sometimes Nordstrom Rack has amazing deals on these higher end suiting brands (and if you're lucky you may be able to find some good basics).
Katie 2:
Please don't throw something at me. Because my go-to for suiting is Ann Taylor. I know, I know. It's unoriginal, and some Real Working Girls hate it. But I don't and here's why: I have big boobs. And hips. And Ann Taylor's jackets are cut short enough on the hip to not make you look like you're wearing your big sister's jacket and long enough to not look like you're Jackie O. Plus, they offer a two-button jacket which is a must when you have a larger chest (check back for a post on finidng the right jacket for you!!!). Ann Taylor has sales all the time, so you can get it for a reasonable price. It's easy to return. You can find a store close by. Here's the bad news: I can't show you any examples of great suits Ann Taylor has, because it's summer and all of the two-button options at Ann Taylor don't have matching bottoms to go with them right now. The good news: SALES!!!
I also love Hugo Boss when my budget is a little more flexible or when I have time to scour racks for a deal. Hugo Boss pieces are beautifully made and timeless. There is just enough femaninity while not being overly girly and making me feel like I'm playing dress up. Plus, the fit is one of the best on my curves. Like Katie 1 said above, you can find some great deals at Nordstrom Rack or Saks Off Fifth, or you can start looking for pieces at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale.
I used to swear by Banana Republic, but no more. They used to use the exact same fabric year after year, so if you needed to replace a piece you didn't have to worry that the colors or patterns were different. But Banana has fallen off my love train due to shortened hemlines and decreasing quality.
Elizabeth:
Elizabeth didn't know that Ann Taylor was on bloggers' shit lists, and now that she does, she doesn't care. In all honesty, she hasn't bought a suit in years. She has blazers and separates, but the office we currently work in is not particularly formal, so the last suit buying she's done was when she was interviewing after law school. At that time she loved Ann Taylor's tropical wool suits. She has three of them and the cut just fit her body type perfectly (though they are too small at the moment). If she had to wear a suit today she would have to go out and buy one, and she would probably go to Ann Taylor to do it. Although, as a tie-in to our Anniversary Sale post, there are a couple of Hugo Boss options on sale that she would totally go try on.
Her advice, like what you've heard above, is focus on what looks good on you and your figure rather than choosing a brand that a blogger has mentioned. If you try on a suit and it looks awful, it is not cut right for you and that's the suit's problem, not yours.
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