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[Flying Dice]

Hey, folks, I've got a bit of work to do putting together a small professional wardrobe for myself, and I need some advice. There are two points here:

1. I've already got several nice shirts in white twill and grey linen, as well as a good pair of brown leather dress shoes. What shades should I look for in slacks that would match those?

2. Additionally, should I go for the extra trouble and (painful) expense of getting tailored slacks? Normally I'm all about keeping my costs low, but this is something of an issue for me. I'm an American, but I'm 6'1 and 115lbs. What that means is that when I'm shopping for more casual pants, I go to the teens section simply because nothing in the adult men's is both long enough and slim enough to fit me.

I can't do that for dressy clothes, and in most stores the best I can hope for is to find a pair of slacks of the proper length which are slim enough that I can hold them on with a belt, but that still ends up looking rather bad, especially when most belts are so big that I need to puncture a new hole much further from the end.

[martinuzz]

It really kind of depends on the company you are planning to sell your body and soul to.

Some businesses like it when you 'dress down'. So, find nice queit colours that don't stand out against each other, and certainly don't stand out amongst the masses.

Other business are exactly the opposite, they'd like you to be shiny and flamboyant.

It really depends on company culture.

For the latter, I *think* the teens section should be able to serve you. Just go with the current trend. Just don't take those pants that have been premade to look ripped and worn lol.
For the former, it might be worth spending the little extra on custom tailoring.

[Eldin00]

As martinuzz mentioned, 'Business Casual' means different things to different employers. If you don't know, and are unable to find out before shopping, a new/prospective employer's take on business casual, you're probably better off playing it safe with more conservative color/style choices (but of course if you DO know what is normal at the workplace in question, be consistent with that). In going with a conservative color scheme, khakis or grey/charcoal slacks are probably a good choice to go with the selection of shirts/shoes you already possess, and almost always accepted as within the realm of business casual. Some places will allow black (but not blue) jeans in business casual attire, but avoid them if possible unless you know they are acceptable at the workplace where you will be. I'd try hard to avoid spending the money on custom tailoring unless you are certain that slacks are going to be needed in order to fit into the business culture where you'll be, and you really can't find any that fit otherwise. You might try searching out specialty stores that cater to tall people, for a price point above what you'll pay in other stores, but still less than quality custom tailoring. Many cities in the USA have such shops, but what options are available will vary quite a bit from one place to another, so I can't make specific suggestions there.

[Flying Dice]

It's mostly for more formal stuff during my time in grad school and after that either shooting for a doctorate or going for a job related to my field, not specifically trying to get hired on by a company or bank that would mandate a specific standard of attire, if that helps.

I was already looking at slate grey as one good option, so thanks for the confirmation on that. It's primarily a matter of ensuring that things match and don't look completely terrible; if I ever find myself in need of a real suit I'll be going to someone in the business.

[nenjin]

Tailored clothes just to look professional for grad school events and stuff seems like overkill, both in terms of expectations and your wallet. Unless you're going to do job interviews, or meet with the Dean or something, I'd save that for later.

I'd think most people expect grad students to look a little dumpy. It's pretty rare that anyone wearing 'ran out and bought these khakis' looks crisp and put together.

Sometimes you can go farther with a nice button up shirt, nice jeans and a pair of dress shoes. Still technically fits within business casual. Also can give the impression you're more about practicality than style, while still looking like you play ball with the establishment.

That said, after getting tailored dress slacks, I can't really fathom wearing anything else. So sheik, such comfort.

[Eldin00]

Well, given that you're looking for general rather than a specific, change my 'dress to the standard of the specific workplace' to 'dress to the crowd you're dressing up for'.

As to color selections:
Combinations of greys, muted and lighter blues, whites, off-whites, and beiges generally work out together. Brown shoes work with about anything unless you're wearing navy (or other blue) slacks, while black shoes are ok with anything but brown clothing.

Note that this advice won't make you stand out, but should fall within the realm of 'acceptable' for most less-than-formal but not-totally-casual purposes.

[Vector]

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[nenjin]

Maybe seek some outside help for a visual opinion too. I do dark tones, and I keep hearing stuff like "You'd look great in pale yellow" or some shit.

[Flying Dice]

Mm, I'm more on the earth tones side of things myself; most of the brighter colors that look good on me aren't the sort of thing you find dress clothes in, save for rare shirts.

I only mention tailoring at all because it's practically impossible for me to find any slacks which are both dressy and store-bought with even a remote pretense to fitting -- if it ends up costing too much, I'm more likely to just fall back on casualwear that looks decent and resort to khakis if need be.

But yes, it's not for day-to-day wear, just something for important meetings, conferences if I end up doing any research interesting enough to want (and get accepted) to present, &c. Thanks again for the advice, folks.