The Ultimate Guide to Building A Working Wardrobe

Few people like to be told what to do. This is most evident, perhaps, when it comes to dressing well and style, a particular and personal pursuit for most. There are some rules that will, however, allow most to create a more flexible and quality wardrobe. We follow the mantra “less is more”, and we’ve come up with the ultimate beginner’s guide to building a wardrobe for work, that we hope will give you some direction when spending your hard-earned money.

You would be surprised about how many clothes you actually need. It’s fewer then you think. A great working wardrobe is classic, simple, understated, and, above all, will promote ‘wearability’. You want a wardrobe that extends from dressy to casual, from the office to the bar, where each item you own can coordinate with each other to maximise the wearability of your garments.

Choosing the items

Think fabric, construction and fit. Fabrics should be made of high-quality base materials. The construction of the garments should use manufacturing techniques that don’t cut corners and skimp on the fine details. Look for a floating canvas, check the sleeveheads and armholes, and look for handsewn touches. The garment should also fit you as perfectly as possible. An expensive garment in fine worsted wool hand made in Italy will still look cheap if it’s ill-fitting. Fit is everything.

The building blocks

3 suits

• 1 navy wool single breasted two button suit – ½ lined, lightly structured
• 1 charcoal grey wool single breasted suit – ½ lined, lightly structured
• 1 mid grey wool pinstripe or glenurquhart – ½ lined, lightly structured

5 shirts

• 1 plain white twill or poplin mid-spread collar
• 1 plain white French oxford button-down collar
• 1 plain sky blue twill or poplin mid-spread collar
• 1 check or stripe twill or poplin mid-spread collar
• 1 linen or chambray button-down collar

4 ties

• 1 plain navy
• 1 plain grey
• 1 stripe
• 1 pattern
  
  

1 jacket

• 1 lightly structured linen or unstructured cotton jacket

2 cotton chinos

• navy cotton chinos
• neutral brown, beige or off-white cotton chinos

2 pairs of shoes

1 pair of black oxfords, in calf skin
1 pair of dark brown brogues, in calf-skin

You can find The Afternoon Tailors here.

You may already have most of these items in your wardrobe, but they don’t look quite right? Most likely it is because they are not the correct fit and require some minor alterations.

Contact The Fitting Room on Edward to see how we can perfectly fit your every garment to make them look like they are custom made for you.