Your Stylist: Casual, stylish, well-fitting menswear
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In response to the male makeover advice offered by ‘Crazy, Stupid, Love’ costume designer Dayna Pink, that I wrote about recently, I received the following letter:
Dear Mr. Tschorn,
Having seen ‘Crazy, Stupid, Love’ Friday evening, I read your article in the L.A. Times today with interest. May I, if you wouldn’t mind too much, ask for further advice?
According to federal statistics, the average American male over 18 is 5 feet 9, 195 pounds with a 39-inch waist. I’m 5-10, 148 pounds with a 30-inch waist. I suspect this is why, for many years now, I’ve been unable to find men’s clothing that actually fits. The problem is not limited to shoulder size and pants length (Ms. Pink’s key points of advice) but is pretty much global.
It seems for me tailored clothing must be the only road to clothes that truly fit, but I’m afraid that path is beyond my means. And, as a retired person, I no longer need business or formal attire. So what’s a fella like me to do for stylish casual wear that fits well?
Hesitantly hopeful,
L.M. Zimmerman, Long Beach
I passed Mr. Zimmerman’s inquiry on to Ms. Pink, who responded with the following advice:
Mr Zimmerman happens to be the exact same size as my husband and another client of mine.
Being slim certainly isn’t the worst challenge you could face when shopping for clothes, and these days there are many lines that offer slim-cut options, not all of them suiting or formal wear.
How about a simple silhouette like Banana Republic or Hugo Boss? Both of them are cut with a modern line and offer pieces somewhere between too-casual and suiting.
Another piece of advice is to just keep it pretty fitted without being tight or trendy. If a thinner-framed person wears oversized clothes it tends to be unflattering and sloppy-looking. Again, it’s all in the fit.
Keep it simple, well-fitted and neat and you can’t go wrong.
Banana Republic stocks a range of slim-fitting chinos and semi-casual pants with a 30-inch waist both in-store and online in either a 30- or 32-inch inseam including a pair of smart-looking 100% wool tailored slim-fit trousers in heather gray for $108 (if Mr. Zimmerman requires a shorter inseam, he’ll need to get them hemmed -- an easy, inexpensive process that can be arranged through most local dry cleaners). The label also offers some online-only sizes on the extra-small (28-inch waist) and big and tall (44-inch waist) ends of the spectrum.
Though the offerings in that waist size through Hugo Boss’ e-commerce site (which I’m told is still relatively new) are pretty much a choice between dress pants (including a sharp-looking pair of Boss Black, flat-front ‘James Brown’ style wool/elastane blend dress trouser in dark blue for $195) or dark-wash or colored (gray or blue) denim (from $135-$155), the Hugo Boss folks say that a trip to the two-floor bricks-and-mortar store at 414 N. Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills would be worthwhile, not just because of the expanded selection on hand but also because it has its own on-site tailoring shop that can make any necessary alterations.
Feel free to pass along your questions about men’s clothing or grooming -- if we can’t answer them, we’ll find someone who can.
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-- Adam Tschorn
Photos, from top: A post-makeover Steve Carell with co-star Julianne Moore in ‘Crazy, Stupid, Love’ ( The movie’s costume designer, Dayna Pink, recommends slim-fit trousers from Banana Republic (middle, courtesy of Banana Republic) and Hugo Boss (bottom, courtesy of Hugo Boss).