Whom better to ask than a woman who's dressed Janelle Monae and Snoop Dogg?
Amber Doyle is a bespoke tailor and designer specializing in custom suiting. Her clients include Turbonegro, Janelle Monae and Snoop Dogg, as well as non-famous people who appreciate the artistry of a well-made suit. Aiming to change the world one suit at time, Doyle gave Playboy some tips for suiting neophytes.
“The worst things are the most obvious things,” says Doyle. And while one might assume certain “obvious things” to be common knowledge—that, say, a Long Island Iced Tea is a guaranteed hangover or that the Babadook is openly gay—spend a morning walking around Midtown and you’ll realize nothing should be taken for granted. So, once more with gusto: Gentlemen, after you buy a new suit off the rack, remove those threads tacking your jacket vents closed before you go out in public. “It doesn’t matter where you buy your suit,” says Doyle. “If you leave those white threads—not cute. Or when you leave the label on the wrist. It’s not a good look.” Doyle has been known to assist hapless strangers she sees on the street, a kind of folk hero for the sartorially challenged. “I’ll try and do it with a smile and a nudge. ‘Oh my god, something’s on your jacket. Let me get that off,’ and I’ll send him on his way.”
Similarly, “it doesn’t matter how expensive or inexpensive a suit is if it doesn’t fit right.” While fit, to a certain extent, depends on personal taste and the silhouette of the moment, there are a few rules Doyle swears by. “When you’re wearing a suit jacket with a button-down shirt underneath, you should always have a ¼ inch to ½ inch of cuff showing.” Like a Victorian ankle, “showing that little bit of stark white shirt cuff is so becoming and handsome and shocking.”
For pant length, mind your break. While Doyle likes the look of a cropped leg, “for a work suit, it’s too much. I think it’s nice when the hem has a heavy fall on the shoe and has a bit of a break—which means there’s a little crease in the pant leg when it hits the shoe. So when you walk or sit down it doesn’t kick up too high.”
Your jacket should also fit proportionally on your body. Doyle cautions that “if a jacket is too long, it’s overwhelming. If a jacket is too short, it looks like you’re in a shrunken suit, and unless it’s by Thom Browne, it’s probably not done right.” A general guideline is that, when your arms are down by your sides, the bottom hem of your jacket should hit right around the first knuckle of your thumb. Cavemen, disregard.
If you’re just starting out and looking to purchase your first proper suit, “a charcoal or a navy is always in style.” But the current Guccification of fashion sees suiting moving away from the Mad Men-inspired silhouettes that dominated the last decade and toward a more 70s-era glam. Doyle, for one, is psyched. “I welcome a big lapel. I love velvet and jewel tones and metallics and prints. But this is coming from a human who believes in fantasy and glamour and rock-and-roll.” If you’re not quite ready to go full gold lamé tuxedo (although Doyle thinks you should strongly consider one), she recommends taking some risks with a sports jacket. “You can be a little more playful with it. With just the jacket, it’s not all one color of something very bold.” And if a double-breasted suit reminds you of Gordon Gekko or a guy who’s about to make you an offer you can’t refuse, it’s time to reassess. Says Doyle, “I really love that people are doing double-breasted suits again. I just think they’re so flattering. People have this idea that if you wear a double-breasted suit you appear bigger, but actually it’s very slimming because you have to keep it buttoned for it to look clean and polished.”
If you can afford it, Doyle recommends investing in a suit that will be with you for years to come, whether it’s bespoke or by a high-end designer. “There’s nothing sexier than a really fine suit on a man—or a woman. That suit should last you a very long time if it’s made well. It’s not disposable. It’s not fast fashion. It should be timeless.” With an inexpensive suit, you’ll likely be looking at a polyester blend fabric as opposed to a super 200 worsted wool cloth, for example, and the jacket will almost certainly be fused rather than canvased. What does that mean? In order for a suit jacket to conform to your torso correctly, the outer fabric is attached to a canvas interfacing—a stiffer fabric traditionally made from horsehair that makes the difference between a tailored construction and a drapey poncho. A quality suit will feature canvas hand-stitched directly to the fabric, whereas mass-produced suits instead use a fusible interfacing that is essentially glued on. Doyle cautions, “Just through going to the dry cleaners and normal care, a fused jacket will start to pucker after a while. Whereas with a fully canvassed suit, the canvas starts to mold to your body. It basically becomes a part of you.”
While a suit may not make the man (trust us when we say there are plenty of assholes walking around in beautiful Italian wool), there is a particular je ne sais quoi that radiates off a man in a well-made, expertly fitted suit—and that’s what drives Doyle. “I always liked the idea that you put something on and it transforms you. It can change your energy and outlook for the day, give you extra magical powers. Especially with a suit that fits well and feels great. You see it; when somebody puts it on, they get this extra boost of confidence. I love the concept that clothing does that. I believe in that.”