How to Wear the Plaid Suit…

At NELSON WADE, we feel the traditional classic English plaid pattern is becoming popular once again in today’s mens style. This pattern was once considered an old and outdated pattern style.  But the younger fashion forward thinking men today, see the English pattern of crossing  irregular checks as a great new pattern of today’s hip English look.

A few basic notes, that you may want to know about plaid suits, how to wear them, and how to combine shirts and ties with a classic plaid suit.

Different Types of Plaid:

The Window Pane Plaid:
This fabric pattern has horizontal and vertical lines that creates boxes or a grid of woven lines – hence the name “window pane plaid”. The Window Pane grid lines contrasts with the main fabric color.

The Glen Plaid:
This type of woolen fabric has a pattern of tight twill with broken checks or hound’s-tooth check pattern in horizontal and vertical lines. Glen Plaid is short for Glen Urquhart plaid.

Prince of Whales Plaid:
The Prince of Whales is sometimes use as the nickname for the Glen Plaid. The Duke of Windsor made it popular in England during his time.

The Tartan Plaid:
A woolen or worsted cloth woven with stripes of different colors and widths crossing at right angles. Generally the Tartan plaid design is woven with colors and plaid designs for the Clan’s of Scotland and Ireland.

How to Wear the Plaid Suit:
A custom tailored plaid suit from NELSON WADE in Scottsdale, Arizona is typically designed in the traditional English cut with details that are most flattering on the average and athletic body types.

Some of the traditional English suit details are;

Front Pockets:

The front pockets on the English style jacket, generally  are not cut horizontally, but are angled up with
flaps.

Side Vents:

The rear vent of the coat are generally side vents, they are cut into the right and left sides of the coat, resulting in a back flap. This enables your hands to be comfortably inserted into the pants pockets without bunching up the coat and altering its clean lines.

Suit Pants:

The English styled suit pants have a medium to high rise, with the top fly button directly in front of the navel. They are usually pleated (but not always) and can be cuffed or un-cuffed trouser legs.

Another hallmark pant detail is the brace (suspender) buttons. They are sewn into the inside of the waist. A couple advantages to having brace (suspender) buttons, is the trousers tend to “hang” better and are more comfortable to wear.

Dress Shirts, Neckties for Plaid Suits:
The plain color of the woven Royal Oxford shirting fabric goes exceptionally well with a custom plaid suit from NELSON WADE. For a bolder presentation, Gingham patterns or very fine glen plaid shirting fabric works very well also.

Plain colored patterned neckties or classic diagonal striped ties enhance the the plaid presentation. Silk patterned bow ties are another excellent choice!

If you are looking to add even more style then also add a contrasting silk pocket square to the breast pocket of your jacket.

Live Well! Dress Well!

~ by nelsonwade on August 17, 2011.