finding a vintage suit to fit a skinny guy

[StanleyVanBuren]

So after doing a lot of looking around on this site and others, I'm completely convinced that I would love to pick up a vintage suit. One with high armholes, definitely, peak lapels, probably, and maybe even one that is double breasted.

I'd also love to retire my rubbish 1990s 3-button, no-waist, broad-shouldered crap navy blue blazer and trade it in for one that still captures the supposedly "timeless" quality of the navy blue blazer, but one that, ya know... fits right. So again, I think I'm looking for one that is vintage.

My question is this: where am I going to find what I want in my size? I'm super skinny and wear a 36R jacket (usually) with 29x32 trousers (I usually have to get them tailored to be right, though sometimes I can come across the odd 29x32 off the peg).

Any suggestions at all would be appreciated. You can assume I have no experience buying vintage whatsoever. I live in the Los Angeles area so if someone can recommend a particular store, that could be helpful. Any internet sites would also be appreciated. I've seen some other posts that do have some links, but I so far haven't come across a topic that specifically deals with this problem. Everything I've seen on eBay, etc. has generally been 40+, which obviously does not work for me.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Your size is a very common one for vintage '30s suits. Size 36 suits with small waists turn up often on eBay ... if not this week, then the next. Here are three links for you:


[EDIT: Live eBay auction links removed. ]


Sorry about that, Bartender. But you get the idea, Stanley: do suit searches in eBay's vintage men's clothing category: 1900s, 1930s, 1950s.

.

 

[StanleyVanBuren]

Well that is a relief to hear! Right now must just be a bad time. I'll watch those links.

 

[big kahuna]

The other side...

Stan: I understand..but from the OPPOSITE end of the spectrum. I'm 6'5", with a 56 long jacket, 44-46 waist, size 16 shoe, and big-ol bucket head. lol

I think that many vintage clothes within the "regular" spectrum of sizes survive because of the sheer number of items produced. The smaller and larger sizes were made less frequently, and , therefore, there are less in circulation or the person who had to "custom" order wore them until they were threadbare....
....just my 2 pence

 

[Baron Kurtz]

36R? If you don't have a 30s suit within a couple of weeks, i'd be very, very surprised.

bk

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Everything I've seen on eBay, etc. has generally been 40+, which obviously does not work for me.

Ah, there you might be in trouble on eBay at the moment. For some reason, the smaller suits are fetching pretty good prices right now ($100 or more). When i picked up most of mine from the Bay they were averaging $25-30 but these days there seems to be more interest and the suits are actually getting the prices they deserve.

At a vintage store, you're probably unlikely to get something at $40 or below. You might get lucky in a thrift store . . .

bk

 

[Mr. Rover]

I guess I just haven't had the same luck as some of you other small guys- either that or I have good taste. It seems that whenever I see a suit that I like on eBay, every other size 36 in the world thinks so too. I ended up paying $80 for my first vintage suit...

 

[cookie]

Small Guys that can't find a vintage suit their size

These (SKINNY YOUNG) guys are stitching us old blokes up right?????

 

[Baron Kurtz]

they're not looking hard or obsessively enough!

But it really must be said that the small sizes (that is, 36 and below) are pretty difficult to find, too. You need to snap them up whenever you see them . . . What most people consider small is not small at all, it's average. That's why sizes 38-41 regularly pull in the big bucks.

bk

 

[StanleyVanBuren]

Ugh, no luck as yet.

Any ideas on brick & mortar places in/around LA I should check out?

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Not these days, no. You should have been around here 15 years ago.

.

 

[StanleyVanBuren]

Not these days, no. You should have been around here 15 years ago.

.

I knew I shouldn't have wasted my time with grade school.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

lol Good shot!

.

 

[reetpleat]

I guess I just haven't had the same luck as some of you other small guys- either that or I have good taste. It seems that whenever I see a suit that I like on eBay, every other size 36 in the world thinks so too. I ended up paying $80 for my first vintage suit...

I know there are some students and young people and people on a budget, but I thank my lucky stars every day that objects of interest to me are priced in the $100 to $200 range. Nothing beats that twenty buck thrift store special, but for a suit that will probably outlast you or at least your fitting into it, 1 to 2 hundred is not a lot. See how much that gets you in a abercrombie and fitch for cheap crap that will barely last a few years.

But I sure don't blame my fellow loungers for liking a bargain. I sure as heck do.

 

[reetpleat]

they're not looking hard or obsessively enough!

But it really must be said that the small sizes (that is, 36 and below) are pretty difficult to find, too. You need to snap them up whenever you see them . . . What most people consider small is not small at all, it's average. That's why sizes 38-41 regularly pull in the big bucks.

bk

I may have not been watching the bay as carefully as some. But in general the 38s and 40s don't seem to be near as valuable as the 42s, 44s and 46s if you ever find them.

Agreed taht 36 or smaller is getting back to scarce. I find that 38 and 40 are the most common in 30s and 40s suits, 40 is the most common in 50s and 60s by the way.

 

[reetpleat]

Is it just me, or do a lot of vintage dealers say the size is whatever the measurement across, or otherwise confusing info. Not sure if it is on purpose or not. Half the suits I see I would have to specifically ask the exact chest measurement before I would bid.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

I may have not been watching the bay as carefully as some. But in general the 38s and 40s don't seem to be near as valuable as the 42s, 44s and 46s if you ever find them.

Yes the bigger 'uns are more valuable simply due to unavailability. My ref was to the difference in 38-41 prices vs 34-36 prices.

bk