I bought a cheap suit with the intention of making it look good through tailoring, but I don’t know how to actually get that done. The local stores don’t have websites and haven’t picked up when I called, should I just walk in with the suit? Do I need an appointment? Also, how much should I expect to pay? (California)
I live a fair drive from the local alternation/tailor shops (rural life), so I figured I’d try to ask before making the drive out just to make a fool of myself.
Generally you just walk in with your suit, and don’t need an appointment. You put on the suit while you’re there, they’ll draw some lines and place some pins. Then you leave the suit there for a couple weeks while they do their thing.
Can cost anywhere from about $20 to $100+ I’d say depending on the amount/type of alterations you need and whether the tailor is particularly expensive.
Awesome, thanks!
I always call my tailor first, just to be polite. Sometimes he’s really stretched thin. If you’re in SF, Taraval Tailor is a really good shop.
Thank you! I am near SF
Username checks out.
(I kid, I kiiid.)
Seconding the above, I want to say I paid $60 in a pretty average city.
The store I went to is called Jos-a-bank, feel free to look them up but any higher end men’s fine clothing store should have a tailor on site at all times.
There are also dedicated tailor shops you can try looking for one of those.
I don’t think places like dillards or Macy’s will do alterations but I could be wrong.
Worst case the place you go may tell you something like “he only works Tuesdays and Saturdays” or something like that, so you may want to keep trying to get them on the phone, but I’ve not been told that before.
Where I live there are a few little mom-and-pop dry cleaning businesses that do clothing alterations for a reasonable price.
I thought Jos A. Bank (stylized spelling of Joseph A. Bank) closed down a number of years ago. I remember getting some decent stuff on sale or closeout there very cheap. I was a bit sad to see it go. Maybe it’s still around under new ownership or something though.
The hole in the wall dry cleaning place across from me does alterations fwiw. You could look for places like that near you and ask.
Can confirm that Jos A Bank is still around near me
They are still around in S.E. VA
Lots of dry cleaners also do alterations on site if anyone is interested.
Maybe this will be unpopular, but it’s probably not worth it if it’s a really cheap suit. If you’re buying a suit, make sure it’s 100% wool (yes, even a summer suit). My top recommendation for affordable suits is Suit Supply, if you have one around you. I believe they will do many or most simple adjustments for free, which makes the price tag pretty hard to beat for a good quality suit. Regardless of what you get, a high quality suit will last much longer and be more cost efficient in the long run.
Edit: I’ve heard mixed things about Indochino and never shopped with them, so I can’t comment, but that is another option.
It’s also important to buy a fit that you like. Some people think tailoring will fix anything, but it can’t. If you want a slim fit, don’t buy a classic fit suit.
Unless it’s a really nice tailor, you shouldn’t need an appointment.
Great advice but unfortunately don’t have time to replace the suit. It’s a Uniqlo suit, synthetic materials.
This is also unfortunately boots theory for suits realized. I am already pushing my budget buying a cheap suit 😞. I also don’t have formal shoes, nice belt, so it’s a lot to buy at the same time already (I’m transgender so I have to start from scratch). My next suit hopefully I’ll have more money for something nice.
When you’re at the tailor, have him take your measurements. You can use those to order your next suit from indochino. They do nice, made-to-measure suits on a budget.
I like Uniqlo for basics, but I wouldn’t trust them for suiting tbh. They do some basic alterations free in store though. I’d check that out before a tailor, just to save a few bucks
TBF, the shoes and the belt are simpler than you might assume, though there are aspects that you do not want to skimp on with the shoes. For the belt, just be sure to match black or brown to the tone of the suit (and the same with the shoes; belt and shoes should be the same color, traditionally).
The shoes, and this is clutch, should be comfortable and insoles are your friend there, so dropping $20+ on a pair of supportive insoles will save you hours of discomfort if you’re planning on wearing those shoes during the whole workday. Lastly, you can generally find understated-yet-fashionable formal footwear on Alibaba for super cheap — as a stop-gap until you can afford to shop around.
Feel free to reply or DM, I’m happy to help any way I can, neighbor. 🤓🤘🏽
Thanks for the advice! 👍🏻
I have a dark grey suit and planning to wear it over a colorful floral shirt, my feeling was black shoes but wondering what you’d think?
Love it! I enjoy similar ensembles myself, in fact! I’d say that black/dark shoes and matching belt would be the easiest start, and branching out from there into warmer tones that support/echo hues in the chosen shirt — best if similar is done with other accessories, too (eyeglasses, jewelry, pocket squares, shoe laces, belt buckle, etc ) and you’ll be turning heads & hearts in no time! 🤩✨
Yes awesome ty!!
Look for reversible belts. Most are not expensive but should last a fair while, and you only need to buy one.
I used them a lot when traveling for business; it let me pack one fewer item.
Decent masculine dress shoes come through thrift stores quite a bit at least around where I live and they usually don’t sell for much.
Yeah, maybeeeee the sole will fall off if you get unlucky, but usually the dress shoes are so cheap even in that case you are still saving money by going back and getting another pair instead of buying new. Also you can get the sole replaced on a nice masculine dress shoe if you really like the shoe.
Just don’t take the first pair that kinda looks ok, look through a decent amount and when you find a dress shoe where the sole is in good condition (the heel isn’t super worn down or anything) and appears to be from a good quality brand, nab it if it is comfortable.
Everyone’s gotta start somewhere. I do know that it’s not easy for trans men to get a well-fitting suit. I’m familiar with one case where the tailor sent the suit back without any alterations, because they thought the body proportions given by the shop were a mistake. That was rather infuriating to see, but it worked out in the end. I guess what I’m saying is that you should give yourself plenty of time in advance to get your next suit. It may not be the “come back in a week for pickup” that most men are used to.
Hell, I know a cis guy who had to visit 8 different places to find a suit that fit him. He’s a normal looking guy, but the proportions between his hips and waist was somehow an outlier for 99% of the pants he tried on.
even a cheap suit will benefit from tailoring, but, I suppose it’s possible for a suit to be so cheap that it’s better to just get a better and better fitting suit instead.
an expensive suit that’s poorly tailored says “slob”, and is never a good look. You’ll also be more comfortable wearing the suit; and that means you’ll look better in it.
I’ll second the advice on wool, though. it’s by far the most comfortable material.
As you’ve already been helped regarding it being a walk in friendly business, I should warn you that not every suit can be tailored like that. The cheaper suits skimp on material, So even the best tailor can have difficulty improving the fit, with that difficulty increasing if you have unusual measurements.
I’ve lost a lot of the muscle mass I used to have, but I still have an unusually thick neck , big shoulders and a big chest, which can make things difficult for a tailor if the suit isn’t pretty well made to begin with. So if you’ve got an unusual size issue, expect it to be a scant improvement.
My size issue is just being small, I’m 5’4" and 110 lbs. Even extra extra small suits don’t fit me off the rack, and kids suits honestly just don’t match my style preferences from what I’ve seen.
I only have a couple weeks until the wedding I’m attending so I’ll just have to see if this suit works. If not hopefully I’ll at least learn what to look for in the future…
Are you buying short sized jackets? And did you keep in mind vanity sizing means the chest size might not 100% match your measurement?
I did not know short sizes jackets were a thing! And I measured with measuring tape, I didn’t realize that the actual measurements could possibly be wrong … good to keep in mind
Vanity sizing is less common in suits, but chest size can be tricky. If you’re a 35 and the suit only comes in 34 and 36, for example. And yeah, suit jackets should have either S, R, or L for short, regular, and long sizes.
A good tailor can do amazing things, but there are limits.
When it comes to tailoring, putting aside the quality of the suit (fused/glued canvas or not, among other things), the key thing you want as close to right from the start is the shoulders. Sleeve and jacket lengths are simple, neck and chest less so, but if the shoulder width is all wrong it’s a major undertaking to alter if it can even be done.
Yeah, that’s in the difficult range from what I’ve been told. The good thing is that most suits in that size range should be alterable as long as it fits right through the shoulders and the arms are long enough. Even the cheap suits in that range tend to be fairly easy to work with as long as the person isn’t a lifter or very overweight, and that doesn’t seem to be an issue here.
At least that’s what my tailor said back when I had to wear a damn monkey suit for work sometimes. I’m a big guy, so I was curious about what he was doing, which led to a nice little mini ted talk about it. He did a lot of work for the really huge lifters, including the ones that were shorter than average. Managed to make folks look good even in meh to bad suits.
Yeah, Eddie is good people. Keep in mind, it’ll take at least two weeks. Make sure to call a few days before pickup to confirm.
Any alterations shop should be able to do it. You’re gonna wear it and they’re gonna take your measurements and probably be finished in like a week
