Welcome back to the Gentleman's Gazette! In today's video, we'll discuss whether
or not that most ubiquitous of business outfits, the black suit, is actually a
stylish look or not. In the world of men's suits, which is to say ensembles
with jackets and trousers, as well as optional waistcoats which are all made
from the same materials, there are an almost unlimited number of colors
available to say nothing of patterns and textures. As a general rule though,
brighter and bolder colors are seen as less formal
whereas various shades of gray, blue, and sometimes brown are seen as more formal
and therefore, business appropriate. on that topic you can find our video on how
to pair shirts and ties with grey suits here as well as our video on the first
five suits we believe a man should own here. Aside from gray, blue, and brown then,
there is one other color that's fairly widely seen in suiting and that's black.
While a black suit would certainly be more conservative than something in a
flashy color like electric pink, for instance, today's video is going to
tackle the question of wearing a black suit is something you should do as often
as many men try to. Now, if you're a longtime viewer of the channel, you may
already be forming an idea of what our opinion is on this topic. After all, we've
previously done a video on why we believe black is the most overrated
color in menswear and you can find that video here. However, we believe
there's more to say on the topic of black suits specifically, so that's what
we'll cover in today's video. Before we get to the main question of whether or
not we think you should wear a black suit though,
let's preface it with this question, why is it that black suits are so widely
seen today? The answer has a lot to do with the fact that the typical dress of
the general populace around the world, especially in the United States, is
largely dictated today by what famous and other
notable people are wearing, be they celebrities, politicians, or people in
similar fields. And to focus in on men, what do we see these famous individuals
wearing? We see them wearing black ensembles at award shows, black
ensembles in music videos, black ensembles at political debates and other
state functions. In short, the color black is everywhere. With that said though, the
presence of black ensembles in these various situations can ultimately be,
divided into three camps; appropriately formal, high fashion, or ultimately
misguided. To go over these cases in order then, we'll start with the question
of formality. When we see men wearing black ensembles at awards ceremonies and
other similar functions, they aren't wearing or at least shouldn't be wearing
conventional black business suits rather they're adhering to historical dress
codes where the formality of black is appropriate. These, of course, would be
black tie or tuxedos, white tie or tail coat ensembles, or formal day wear or
morning dress featuring cutaway coats. By the way if you'd like to learn more
about any of these most formal of men's dress codes you can check out the
comprehensive guides to each of them we have on our website here. In these kinds
of formal situations, a black business suit wouldn't be formal enough in its
details and styling and would therefore be an ill-advised choice to wear. Next,
the case of high fashion. Of course, black is the bedrock of the fashion world for
both men and women. You don't really need to look any further than the little
black dresses that women wear to award ceremonies, or in movies, and on runways
and so forth. And for men, there are all kinds of black garments as well like
black turtleneck sweaters, black leather jackets, and black suits. As an example,
famous designers like Tom Ford and Karl Lagerfeld have made black suits their
signature ensemble over the years as a way to look stark and chic but there's
an important distinction to be made here too
and it can actually best be summed up in famous words from another designer
Yves Saint Laurent. He said "fashion fades, style is eternal." What we mean by that is
this, if you'd like to look hip, trendy, on point and so on, there's nothing wrong
with you wearing an ultra skinny fit black suit, white shirt, and black necktie.
More power to you if you'd like to do it! But on the whole, black suits and
especially monochromatic all black looks don't have a place in the traditional
style canon of the early 20th century which, of course, is our focus here at the
Gentleman's Gazette. Phrased another way, black suits, black shirts, and so on,
undeniably have a place in modern fashion but they're harder to implement
well in a classic gentleman's wardrobe. Finally here, we touch on the case of
individuals who are probably simply just misguided. The main culprits in this camp
are politicians. Now, I know what you're thinking but hold any specific political
beliefs because that's not what we're talking about here. When we say misguided.
Rather what we mean is that most politicians from various political
parties all across the Western world but again, particularly in America, have
adopted the black business suit as a sort of default uniform over the last 30
years or so. Why is it that they've done this? Probably, it's an effort to look as
serious and businesslike as possible and in reality, while a black suit certainly
is serious, it's not all that appropriate for most business settings and so it
ultimately looks somewhat out of place. If we look back further though to
presidents and other political figures of the early to mid 20th century, we'll
see that they weren't afraid to wear suits in various different shades of
blue, gray, brown, and other colors. As a notable example here, we can look at
President Harry Truman who, believe it or not, was actually once a haberdasher
before he eventually ascended to the Oval Office. So to sum up these points,
the reason that black suits are so ubiquitous in
society today is largely as a result of various adjacent figures coming together
on society as a whole. With that in mind then, we reach our main question for
today, should you wear a black suit? Our answer, in a nutshell, is not often. As we
laid out above, there are better choices for most scenarios. Firstly, formal events
should be given their proper due with adherence to formal daywear or black
and white tie. On that note, you can find our recent series on the differences
between suits and tuxedos as well as appropriate situations for black tie and
white tie here. Meanwhile, more politicians should feel free and
confident enough to shun the confines of the black suit uniform and while high
fashion can have its own trends, we believe that classic menswear follows a
different set of guidelines. Setting aside all of the points we've laid out
so far today, there is one other major reason why we believe most men shouldn't
wear black suits often and that comes down to a matter of contrast. While it is
true that the stark contrast of a black suit, white shirt, and black necktie can
have a flattering effect on the silhouette of many men, it's also true
that there's a downside to this. In that that stark contrast between the black
and white can also wash out the complexion of many fair skinned or fair
haired men. This, of course, is especially true when out and about during the day
and in direct sunlight. Of course, men who have darker complexions or darker hair
could probably get away with wearing a black suit more easily but the fact of
the matter remains that for a large amount of men, black suits in the daytime
are just going to wash you out. This could perhaps be mitigated to some
extent by livening up the black suit with colorful accessories or maybe even a
pastel colored dress shirt but still, black will wash out your complexion if
you wear it during the day. Meanwhile, conventional black
evening wear circumvents this issue by virtue of its being worn out of direct
sunlight in the evening and nighttime and also, ideally, out of harsh
fluorescent light as well. With that said, you can take a look at our video on
finding the best colors for your skintone here.So there's our list of
reasons why we think most men shouldn't wear a black suit often. With all of that
said though, here's a brief list of some situations where black suits would
indeed be appropriate.The first situation, as you may have guessed, would
be funerals. Black has a historical association with mourning and while
formal daywear or evening wear would probably be seen as too celebratory in
tone, a black business suit can strike the right somber tone that would be
appropriate for a funeral. if you'd like to learn more you can find our video on
funeral etiquette here. The second scenario here would be
musical concerts. While the world of classical music does have an association
with white tie and black tie that's still ongoing today, a more contemporary
and popular alternative to these dress codes has been the rise of the so-called
concert black dress code. The objective here is that the musical ensemble look
as uniform and consistent as possible so that what the audience will focus on
will be the music itself. And our third and final scenario here is in situations
relating to religion. Worship leaders such as priests and pastors will often
wear black suits as will adherence to certain sects of religious tradition
like Hasidic Jews or the Amish. Those are the three key situations where a black
suit could be worn with a relative degree of style. To relate these points
on a personal level, the black suit I'm wearing in today's video was purchased
just earlier this year. I bought it so that I could participate in a choral
concert where the dress code was indeed concert black and also to attend
a funeral around the same time. Finally, today if you've gotten this far into the
video and decided that you're still set on wearing a black suit, here are our
tips for how you can do it well. First and foremost
and as we've said countless times before in the channel, fit is everything. and
while we're usually big fans of a classic, more full cut silhouette, still
in relation to your overall body type our videos on how a suit should fit
which you can find here are perfect examples of this. We do believe that a
slightly trimmer cut in a more modern style, though not ultra skinny, will help
you to wear a black suit during the daytime without it looking like it's
swallowing you up. Just make sure that all of your bases are covered in that
your shoulders, chest, and midsection are well fitted and that your trousers
aren't baggy or puddling around your ankles. Our next tip here is to try to
incorporate a bit of color into your outfit. As we mentioned earlier, the black
suit, white shirt, black tie look is one that's only going to flatter a very
small fraction of men. Therefore, wearing a shirt, tie, or other accessories that
add a bit of color to liven up the outfit will take some of the somber tone
out of the black suit. by the way if you'd like to learn how to use the color
wheel to assemble better outfits you can take a look at our video on that subject
here. Our third tip would be to stay clear of shiny fabric finishes. Nothing
is going to make you look more like a teenager wearing his first suit than an
all-black ensemble in a cheap shiny finish. Suits with a more matte finish
are going to look more refined and you should try to opt for wool or wool
blends rather than synthetics. Also, a slightly textured weave will help to
give the black suit a bit more character. On a related note, patterned black suits
can look more lively than solids; you should avoid bold stripes unless you
want to look like a Mafia Don at halloween but something like a pinstripe or wide
check pattern could look good if it were subtle. on that note you can find our
guides to stripes in menswear here and just keep in mind that if you are
wearing a black suit with a pattern, it should be done confidently. Which brings
us to our final tip today which is that a black suit should always be worn with
confidence and cool. We laid out numerous reasons today why a black suit shouldn't
be your first choice very often. A navy or charcoal colored suit would be much
more versatile and indeed more elegant in many situations.
Therefore, wearing a black suit in spite of all this knowledge requires the
confidence to say "I know the rules well enough to flout them. As with any
ensemble, you want to have the effect that you're wearing it rather than
having it wear you. To sum everything up then, while there are certain situations
where a black suit would be appropriate, we don't believe that it should be the
primary suit in any gentleman's wardrobe. Here's one more reminder today to take a
look at our video on why we think black in menswear is so overrated and also
to take a look at our ongoing playlist in the should you wear series here which
covers various other questions on men's wear topics. it should be obvious that
I'm wearing a black suit in today's video just to illustrate some of the
principles that we outlined as I mentioned previously I purchased it not
too long ago to wear for both a concert and the funeral situations where a black
suit can be appropriate I've paired it today with the conventional white dress
shirt although a shirt in a different light pastel color like lilac or pink
might also have worked to harmonize well with my accessories speaking of the
accessories we'll start with my bowtie which is a lavender colored madder silk
with a micro pattern from Fort Belvedere my linen pocket square also from Fort
Belvedere is in a color we're calling orchid and it has light green stitching
and embroidery as a bit of contrast and my
boutonnière is a hydrangea which remains in the same pink and lavender color
family all of these three accessories work to provide some pops of bright
color to the outfit to tone down the somberness of the black suit my final
Fort Belvedere accessory today are my cufflinks which are platinum plated
sterling silver in a monkey's fist knot design grounding the outfit are my socks
which are also plain black and my shoes which are plain black cap toed derbys this
black ensemble isn't one that I'd wear often but using the tips we outlined
today I think it works well enough