Black

[hksj]

I learned it as black suits being reserved only for formal events, but I see a fair amount of black suits worn in everyday usage. Do I have the wrong idea here?

 

[JamesT1]

Not really, I usually think of them as suitable only for funerals. They are too ausitre and boring for most things - I don't own one black suit.

 

[Orgetorix]

I learned it as black suits being reserved only for formal events, but I see a fair amount of black suits worn in everyday usage. Do I have the wrong idea here?

Well, sort of. Black is for formal events, but a regular black business suit (what used to be known as a "lounge suit") is not formal wear. Clothing for formal events is a different class altogether, with varying types for daytime and evening formal and semi-formal. Despite what you see on the red carpet at the Oscars, a black suit should not be worn in lieu of a tuxedo.

The English, from whom modern men's style is taken, long regarded a solid black lounge/business suit as a faux pas, and many who care about such things still think that way. Personally , I think they make one look too much like an undertaker. I daresay that in the Golden Era that this forum focuses on, black suits would have been pretty rare and not generally considered appropriate.

However, as you've noticed, the rule against black for informal suits has fallen by the wayside, and they're quite common today. Is this correct? It depends. Not if you want to honor tradition. I'd advise sticking with other colors for your suits But, standards change over time, and it may be that this is just one "rule" that has fallen permanently out of use.

 

[Matt Deckard]

A couple years ago orange was the new black, then black took over.

I myself am leaning toward black in my wardrobe. I forget sometimes that black to my eye looks fantastic and stark, though to the eye of the general guy or gal on the street it can many times just fade into the background.

I still prefer the brown suit over the black though when I want to go for that Gattica style I wear a grey suit and a black tie.

Hmmm. I've never been a really big fan of the black suit though with different attitudes you can have different demeaners. My hair has to be a little shabby at work as i don't like to look perfect... I like to be a little lived in. Black suits for me are hard at giving that lived in appearance. I know people say black goes with everything though my pallette is a little different... It's hard for me to put together outfits with a black suit... I just prefer brown shoes and that old stodgy patina that comes with the overly pollished leather.

Black suits are great for chauffers or morticians... though when it comes to dark suits make mine grey. I can wear one though not without it feeling more like a uniform than a suit.

 

[Mr Maltby]

However

You can offset the formality with a straw fedora. Or if weather forbids, a wool fedora, with a houndstooth or windowpane pattern, or something to that effect. Thats my route.

Other people often use the colored shirt, with a black suit as a good offset. Not for me, but go to Nordstroms or whathave you, and thats what you encounter.

Thoughts?

 

[Mr Maltby]

oh!

Actually I posted this and realized...Im wearing a black 1960s blazer, with red pocket square(tribute to deano), black polo, with crosshatch charcoal grey slacks, and black 1960s dress shoes. For head covering when I go outside, I have the stingy houndstooth wool fedora. For jewelry, my pinky ring.

Thoughts on a black blazer, as opposed to a black suit??

 

[Matt Deckard]

Black jacket is a different scenario. The suit for me is too stark, though when going the mixing and matching route it's a different story. Just make sure the jacket is of a stout weight. I'm not into the light materials.

 

[Hemingway Jones]

.

In my opinion, black is totally appropriate for the business world. I see them everyday. Black suits are best with dark shirts and ties. It is a very effective color for business; a bit menacing. I have one and wear it often.

It only looks like funeral wear with a black tie, which, consequently, is what I wear to funerals. It only looks like a tuxedo with patent leather shoes and a black bowtie.

It is also an excellent suit for a night on the town. With a white shirt and elegant gray tie you can create a dashing look. Black suits look great with a casual shirt underneath, and by casual I mean a button up fitted dress shirt with a pattern in the weave. This is what I wear to dinner parties.

I am going to The Boston Pops in a bout 45 minutes and I may wear my black suit there. If I do, I will wear it with a scotch plaid tie evoking a holiday look; black hinting at the formality of a tuxedo and the tie looks like the ribbon on a Christmas present.

It's all in how you wear it.

 

[Fletch]

I agree with Matt in that there's an obligatory or functionary feeling about black. A black suit is handy for a musician, which I am, and versatile for traveling or clubbing it after work. But there's a limit to how much of a "look" you can get out of it - the accessories have to do all the work. The rest of you just fades into the background.

 

[Harry Pierpont]

Pin stripe?

I learned it as black suits being reserved only for formal events, but I see a fair amount of black suits worn in everyday usage. Do I have the wrong idea here?

What about a black pinstripe suit?

 

[JamesT1]

What about a black pinstripe suit?

Only if you are in the Mafia

 

[David V]

Black suits are popular now because that is the trendy look. I find a black suit boring. There are so many other options that why one settles for a black suit is betond me. I also don't believe an unrelieved black suit is appropriate business wear. IMHO.

 

[Micawber]

I generally only wear a black suit to funerals, memorial services and masonic events.

 

[Feraud]

Black is acceptable for formal events, funerals, or if and only if you are really cool.

 

[Senator Jack]

THANK YOU, FERAUD!!!!

I have something like a half-dozen black suits. Some pinstripe, some solid. From the 30s to the 60s. You can't just wear a black suit, you have to be a black suit. I saw a lot of junior achievers (young Wall Street types) trying to wear the 3 button black in the 90s. They couldn't pull it off and looked like square stockbrokers in an intimidating suit.

I'll post some pics later to show you what it's all about.

Regards,

Senator Jack

 

[Feraud]

THANK YOU, FERAUD!!!!

I have something like a half-dozen black suits. Some pinstripe, some solid. From the 30s to the 60s. You can't just wear a black suit, you have to be a black suit. I saw a lot of junior achievers (young Wall Street types) trying to wear the 3 button black in the 90s. They couldn't pull it off and looked like square stockbrokers in an intimidating suit.

I'll post some pics later to show you what it's all about.

Regards,

Senator Jack

I remember the Wall Street types. They always look like they are wearing their first new suit. You know the type: uncomfortable, tentative, unsure of themselves... strike three, you're out!!
A black suit works at a funeral or formal event because everyone is wearing it and you blend in. It's a "no-brainer".
If you choose a black suit for daily dress you had better be sure of yourself and your outfit.

Senator Jack is a guy who "owns" the black suit look. I have seen him wear it in person with a colored shirt and tie and he nails the essence.

 

["Doc" Devereux]

Once again the New York contingent nails it. The plain black suit has been my signature look for years and if you get it right it looks spot on.

Wear the suit, and don't let the suit wear you. But as far as I'm concerned that applies to whatever one wears, no matter how 'right' or 'proper' it supposedly is.

 

[Tomasso]

In my opinion, black is totally appropriate for the business world.

I concur. There seems to me a MB bias against Black that doesn't exist in the real world.[huh]

 

[Harry Pierpont]

Only if you are in the Mafia

Hey, there is no mafia! and we'll kill anyone who says there is

On that note, what about dark colored shirts with darks suits? Realife or just the movies?

 

[Fletch]

I saw a lot of junior achievers (young Wall Street types) trying to wear the 3 button black in the 90s. They couldn't pull it off and looked like square stockbrokers in an intimidating suit.

This was (and to some degree still is) the era of Boxy: boxy suit, boxy tie, boxy shoes, boxy haircut. The look of the junior management meatball who's paid to think inside the box.