We have all heard the infectious song, "Suit & Tie" by Justin Timberlake and of course the side effects are.... women requiring men to wear a suit and tie, and men wanting to dress this way! To this newer generation a suit and tie is something perhaps completely new, when in reality there is nothing more classic than a man in a well tailored suit.
This past weekend I had the privilege of interviewing one of my close friends, who I find to believe has amazing style when it comes to suits and ties. Yes, he was born and raised in Fort Worth, and surprisingly has never owned a pair of cowboy boots! During our interview he explained a little bit to us about what is the difference when it comes to suits, the jackets, pocket squares, and even down to the socks, because let me just tell you, you can't buy a suit off the rack and expect to look great in it! No! There is alot more to it. But, why don't we let my friend, Jesse Esquivel explain:
How old were you when you started to find an interest in what you were wearing?
Well I can go all the way back to my middle school years, I would always get complimented left and right for the clothes that I was wearing. To me it was highly important to have everything ironed correctly, the proper shoes and just have a very clean-cut look over all. And all I had to work with was a uniform. After that in high school, there was no more dress code, no uniform, so I sort of evolved and started playing with different clothes. I was always trying to be different, to stand out, and when I took a course about tailoring, that's when I knew I had the tools necessary to stand out. That course introduced me to a whole new world, from then on I started tailoring all of my shirts. And that is a habit that up to this day, I still haven't lost!
What about your love for suits, when did that start?
That definitely started after high school, I would say around the year 2008.
So, everyone around here basically knows you for being a man that has an amazing taste when it comes to suits, so now it's time to spill the beans, how do you do it?! What are your favorite suits? I want you to "school us" on suits & ties!
(Laughs), Well first of all I must say that if you really want to look good in a suit, IT MUST BE TAILORED! There are no exceptions. A suit will not work any other way. With my suits I try to have of course a diversity of these my favorites suit is a slim suit, european cut, I really like the flaps on these suits. Slim down to the leg and the waist.
There are three suits that ARE A MUST in every man's closet:
- Gray
- Navy
- Black
The tie, is definitely a key component. I really think that a tie can change the entire look of a suit. I always go for the slim ties, 2 1/2 inches, no skinnier.
Spring/ Summer color for ties are:
- Pastels
- Bright Colors
Fall/Winter colors for ties are:
- Gray
- Charcoal
- Navy
- Maroon
- Burnt Orange
- Brown
- Dark Colors
Shirts, those are always of course something that can change the entire look, but you have to becareful with the color combinations that you do. I usually shop for my shirts at Express or Nordstroms. You can also try different patterns with shirts like plaid ( of course with a solid suit) and pastels.
Then of course there is shoe, and the following are some of my favorite, that I would also recommend:
Cap-toe Shoe Vintage
Doble-Monk Strap Shoe
Wing Tip Shoe
Suede
There are two places where you can be a little rebellious and not have to match with the entire suit, and that is your pocket squares and socks. You can go ahead and have fun with these! Incorporating some fun pastels, patterns and bright colors.
Now you can mix and match a suit to make it look unique and only yours, for example with a navy suit you can add some different colored pants tanned, white, those pants work well! Also you can do different colored suit jackets.
The one suit that you can't really touch and mess with too much is the black one, because, the black suit is NOT a spring, summer, fall or winter suit. The black suit is an ICONIC suit! You are respected when you wear a black suit. The only colors that I would say would be ok are dark reds, maroons, white, or, gray and that's only if you are going to a wedding or a very elegant event. Other than that, any other color would just make you look like you are going to a quincenera. We don't want that.
Now with all this said, why do you think that men in Fort Worth don't really like to dress up and go out of their way to much this much effort into their suit and tie attire?
First of all because we live in a city, but a city that is part of the country, the atmosphere here is so much more laid back and casual, than that of a eastern city like New York. People don't really feel the need to dress up. With that said, I always wanted to stand out, I never wanted to blend in with the crowd. And even though I was raised here in the south, I always felt like I had more a big-city mentality and feeling to me.
So what advice would you give to men in the Fort Worth area that are trying to dress a little more sharp?
Two things, the first one is that, with clothes you find a way to express who you are, yourself. ANd secondly, that the way that you dress is definitely going to be the way that you are treated. If you see a guy who has a clean hair cut, and clean face, and is dressed sharp, in a nice tailored suit, that man means business, that man is respected. And that is the man that I want to be.
THE FOLLOWING ARE SOME OF JESSE ESQUIVEL'S FAVORITE PLACES TO SHOP AND INSPIRATIONS:
- TheTieBar.Com
- Express
- J.Crew
- Nordstroms
Inspirations:
The Classic, Mr.Tom Ford
Justin Timberlake, The Modern Gentleman
If you would like to know more about Jesse Esquivel, and are interested in more style ideas of him. Make sure to follow him on Instagram, @esquivelboy !!!
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