# Ties/Shirts for a trad black glen plaid suit?...



## Willx45x (Mar 16, 2007)

I have a black, glen plaid suit that I picked up on the clearance rack at Jos. A Bank about a year ago. To this point, the only thing I've put with this suit is a white shirt and a solid red tie. It's a very trad black glen plaid with a red stripe in it. I know there are other things I can/should put with the suit, but I just can't figure out what. I'm thinking a trad blue shirt maybe with some sort of regiment stripe tie, but I may be crazy. Anyone got a suit like this and if so, what do you wear with it?

Thanks in advance! New to the forum!

w


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## AldenPyle (Oct 8, 2006)

Willx45x said:


> I have a black, glen plaid suit that I picked up on the clearance rack at Jos. A Bank about a year ago. To this point, the only thing I've put with this suit is a white shirt and a solid red tie. It's a very trad black glen plaid with a red stripe in it. I know there are other things I can/should put with the suit, but I just can't figure out what. I'm thinking a trad blue shirt maybe with some sort of regiment stripe tie, but I may be crazy. Anyone got a suit like this and if so, what do you wear with it?
> 
> Thanks in advance! New to the forum!
> 
> w


I have almost the same suit, Jose Bank Glen Plaid Signature 110 (Made in Mexico) suit picked up for $200 last labor day. Only difference is that it has light blue stripe instead of red. I don't think its very trad. For example, its darted, though its so voluminous in the waist I am not sure why they bothered. I've honestly never worn mine, but I don't see why it wouldn't pair without just about any standard dress shirt and tie. Obviously, that kind of plaid isn't super-conservative business wear, so you might as well throw in a patterned tie. As long as it plaid.


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## Willx45x (Mar 16, 2007)

I'm new here, so sort of clueless I suppose. I've always thought of black glen plaid as being a fairly traditional look, but I could be wrong. My suit is the same one as yours, just a different stripe. Is it one of their better-made suits? I'm not a JAB fan in general (had several suits from them that fell apart), but this one seems to be reasonably well made. 

Also, please for the love of God explain to me what the difference between a sack suit and a darted suit is! I'm at my wit's end.

w


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## AldenPyle (Oct 8, 2006)

I bought the suit on an impulse w/o knowing much about JAB and then started looking at Style Forum and then AAAC to try to find out if I had really gotten a good deal. I've worn another JAB in the same cut with different pattern that I got at the same time twice. One button has broken in half on each wearing. WSJ tested 110 and 120 suits and found the JAB to have the weakest fabric and construction. Even at $200, I'm not sure these suits are a good deal. Especially since I've gotten better (non-sack) suits at better prices from Lands End. 

Glen plaid is a traditional pattern, but I think people here refer to "Trad" as being specifically of the styles that were most popular during 1955-1965. Most also define a sack suit as one w/o darts which are shaping seems that go straight up vertically from the pockets toward the chest. Look at your JAB and you will see what I mean. Sack jackets typically have a minimum of waist suppression though this varies. Sack jackets often have a 3/2 roll meaning they have three front buttons and button holes, but the top button lies under the roll of the lapel and is thus never buttoned. But I think the lack of darts is the main thing. The main labels of sacks which are almost always made in N. America are Brooks Brothers, Southwick, H. Freeman & Son (a different company than the far larger and more famous Hickey-Freeman), Corbin, Orvis, J. Press and a made-to-measure line of Samuelsohn. JAB used to make sack jackets though they make none now.


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## kkollwitz (Oct 31, 2005)

I have the same suit. I wear solid red, red paisley, black & red diagonal stripe, and black-red-yellow repp ties with it.


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## Willx45x (Mar 16, 2007)

Thanks for the informative replies! I actually paid less than $100 for mine on a deep clearance, so I figure I got a decent deal. I wear it once every couple of weeks. The tie suggestions are excellent - too bad red/black is a tough combination to find. I'll be looking for a red/black stripe or a variation of a regiment stripe. If anyone finds any online, let me know!

Thanks for the definitions. I'm new here and think my look is somewhere between trad and fashionable. Hopefully I can still post here. 

w


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## AlanC (Oct 28, 2003)

I think you're overthinking this. Try to avoid something that would directly clash with the red in the suit, otherwise you can wear most any traditionally designed tie. Most any blue would work. Paisley would certainly work. Don't throw too many patterns in at once, but black and white (I assume) glen plaid with a red stripe is a pretty standard glen plaid. How bold is the glen plaid? That will also dictate things, but some glen plaids are quite muted.

Here are a few ways I've worn Glen plaid:


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## Willx45x (Mar 16, 2007)

Thanks for the reply! Great pics as well. I would say the glen plaid is similar to your third pic, perhaps slightly more bold. I will try to post a pic soon just so y'all can tell what I'm talking about. I think you're definitely right about over-thinking it. I tend to get caught in these silly boxes for some reason. The more patterned the suit, the more freaked out I get. Thanks for the great ideas! I will post a pic later for a little more feedback.

Thanks again!

w


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## ROI (Aug 1, 2004)

A black and white plaid suit (like the third photo) is a grey suit. Wear anything you'd wear with a grey suit, but beware of plaid shirts.


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## Willx45x (Mar 16, 2007)

I wanted to post a few photos of this suit for y'all to take a look at and let me know if you have any additional thoughts. I'd love to put a classic blue oxford and a regimental stripe with it. If you think it might look good, what color ties should I look at?

Thanks!

w


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## Dapper Dan (Jan 18, 2007)

*Some ideas for you*

If the plaid in the suit seems to disappear from four or five feet away, then the plaid is very subtle and can be more or less treated as a solid suit in the "field" or main color of the suit. In other words, if you have a black and white plaid that looks gray from four or five feet away then treat that suit like a solid gray suit. Use the color of the contrasting thread in the plaid (blue or red or whatever it may be) to coordinate your tie or shirt or pocket square to "pull out" that color from the suit. For example, with a blue thread in the suit's plaid, pair up that suit with a blue shirt in the same or similar color. With a red threat in the plaid, look for a red tie or a pocket square with some red in it, for example. The lighter color in the background of the plaid (say white or cream, for example) is good for a shirt color. As to patterns in the tie, widely spaced patterns work better with plaids, in my opinion. Striped ties also work great with plaid, provided there is adequate contrast in the width of the stripe. I think ties with a thin "pencil stripe" are very flexible and easy to pair with plaid suits, but ties with thick stripes work great, too. Really, as others have said, don't over-think this. A suit in a subtle black and white plaid is like a gray suit with a little texture to it. It is less formal than a solid gray suit and thus better for this transitional time of year. Just some thoughts.

DD


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