the Burns Wedding

I just got these pictures of the Burns Wedding and thought I'd share them. Mr. Jared Burns (@clubjburns) and I met a little over a year ago through mutual friends, and he's been a very loyal client. It was an honour to have suited him and his groomsmen for his October wedding.

Champagne with a champagne suit.

Many of Jared's men don't wear suits all that often and find ties uncomfortable, so for the suits they decided to ditch the ties and go with an open collar. Though they ditched the ties, they made up for it with small minor detailing; the suits were a tope/champagne colour that closely matched the bridesmaids and included very subtle pick-stitching and satin piping on the pockets.

A few celebratory drinks.

Show time.

A contributing factor to going custom was the fact that Jared's entourage ranges greatly in size. In fact, one of his groomsmen (Skyler, pictured below on the far left) is a tower; he's essentially a Canadian version of the Mountain from Game of Thrones and has trouble finding clothes that fit. The picture is deceiving, but Skyler's actually standing downhill on a slope; in reality, this guy clears 6'5" easy.

The wedding party.

Speaking of Game of Thrones, this last picture may be my favourite. It is of Jared and his prized Khaleesi (aka. Rachel) taking a stroll through a rolling field. The picture looks so natural and kind of reminds me of the show. I think it's a combination of the wilderness, Rachel's flowing hair and Jared's manly beard. Regardless, I love this photo.

"Babe, hate to tell you this, but WINTER IS COMING!"

Congratulations to Jared and Rachel; I wish you all the best!

Herringbone

With winter just around the corner, some clients have been asking me about coats and jackets, as well as the colours they should consider. While it's not necessarily for everyone, I usually suggest something with texture; specifically, Herringbone.

Herringbone (or fish bone) is a V-shaped weave pattern that runs repeatedly in broken zigzags. It closely resembles the skeleton of a herring fish (hence the name). It looks like this: 

Reminds me of Magic Eye...

It's traditionally one of the most popular fabrics among suits and outdoor coats, and the pattern size ranges greatly. Many people might not even know that they own a suit with a Herringbone pattern unless they look closely at the fabric.

But what are they advantages? Well...

Herringbone adds texture.

Solid-coloured fabrics are generally one colour and offer less visual variation, whereas textured fabrics such as Herringbone will offer more. The variation will obviously depend on the size of the pattern, but even small patterns cause more variation than a solid-coloured fabric. The extra texture adds a little 'something' to a suit no matter the colour.

Grey Herringbone, from You Only Live Twice

Herringbone hides imperfections.

Clothes get worn, and (unfortunately) clothes get worn out. It can happen slowly over time, or all of the sudden if you're unlucky. I think everyone's been in a situation where they accidentally got nicked or hooked by something (an all-too-common occurrence when travelling, especially for public transit users). The great thing about Herringbone is that it hides imperfections extremely well.

It`s harder to find imperfections on textured fabrics.

The Herringbone weaves on fabrics aren't always uniform, so the slight variations in the pattern makes the fabric look 'consistently imperfect'; therefore, it has the ability to hide wear and tear over the course of its life. It can't hide everything, but it will do a much better job at hiding than solid-coloured fabrics.

Herringbone hides dirt.

Ever brush your jacket against a dirty car door? Or get salt kicked up on your trousers? Canadian winters, no matter how beautiful, can get pretty dirty at times, and keeping your clothes clean can be a hassle.

That's another great advantage with Herringbone, especially those that are charcoal. When you accidentally brush up against a dirty surface (such as a car door covered in salt from the winter) it usually leaves an opaque mark. A charcoal Herringbone fabric may be able to hide that mark much better than a solid colour. It can even camouflage the dirt mark long enough until you have time to wash it out. That can be a godsend, especially if you're running late and on your way to an important meeting.

Speaking of winter, I've just checked the weather and it looks like Ottawa is due for a big snowfall tomorrow. Good news for some, bad news for others! So, dear readers, dress warm and watch out for those dirty surfaces. And, if you have one in your closet, why not try out that Herringbone jacket?

Or give YourSuit a shout. Always happy to help!

Ready for this?

Suits in Action

Clients usually send me pictures from their big day, but today I received two links to their wedding videos! My wife and I didn't even think about hiring a videographer for our wedding, so I forget that many couples capture their wedding day on camera and film.

The two clips are below. The first is from the Rossiter Wedding, where Josh sported a three piece navy. The second is from the Nguygen Wedding, where Steven and Co. wore royal blue. Enjoy!

(Videographer - BOXTOP FILM)