RETURN OF THE THREE PIECE SUIT

Gentlemen, step your games up... (try telling that to Juice...hahaha) ..in an interesting read in the Toronto Star's Living section...came across this article on the evolution, or should I say, reverting back to looking like class.

Nov 23, 2007 04:30 AM
Derick Chetty
Star stylist

When 24-year-old Matty Tsoumaris dresses for work, most likely he will put on a three-piece suit.

Tsoumaris' office hours start at 7 p.m. and his place of business is the swank King St. W. watering hole Cheval, where he is co-owner.

He is one of a growing number of young professional men embracing the return of the three- piece suit.

"It's a very powerful suit. It's edgy and fashionable," he says of the four three-piece suits he owns. "It has a cool factor and a professional factor. I can take the jacket off in a hot nightclub and still look dressed up."

"You can't get that with a two piece suit – which just looks too Bay St.," he declares.

Not only was this matching vest, jacket and pant combo seen in designers' fall collections, but a variety of young musicians and actors are adopting this elegantly waisted look.

Canadian actor Ryan Gosling showed up on the red carpet at TIFF this year in a windowpane check three-piece suit and he is on the cover of the November issue of GQ looking louche in a navy pinstripe three-piece. Bringing not just any sexy back, Justin Timberlake has been making it seductively dressier in suits and vests. Even hip-hop kings like P. Diddy and Jay Z. have all but abandoned their earlier uniforms of slouchy jeans and oversized hoodies for sharply tailored suits befitting their music mogul status.

But it's also a sign of these boom times.

James Hou, 33, who ordered his custom-made three-piece suit from Trend Custom Tailor, the made-to-measure atelier on Gerrard St. E., says it is a sign of how well the economy is doing.

"Venture capitalists, private equity, hedge funds – these industries are driven by formality. It is the uniform of this segment of business," he says.

The last economy boom we had like this was with the dot.com set, where the look was khakis and polos. It worked well for those times, since the nerve centre was the laid-back environment of the West Coast.

The pendulum in menswear is swinging from the sloppy casual looks to one that is sartorially sharp. It's now hip to be fashionably formal.

"Classic menswear style is coming back – hats, vests, ties – things that your dad or grandpa used to wear," says Melissa Austria of Gotstyle, the King St. W. menswear emporium. "It's almost a rebellion of younger guys wanting to dress better than their dads or guys in their 40s and 50s."

Austria says it is mostly younger guys opting for the three-piece looks from her store. "The older guys laugh and say, `I remember wearing that in the '70s.'"

What's even more surprising is these young bucks are upping the style notch by having their three-piece suits custom made.

Despite the off-the-rack three-piece styles from labels like Tiger of Sweden and Z Zegna the store sells, men are opting for Gotstyle's made-to-measure service. It offers a well priced made-to-measure package – two suits, four dress shirts and four ties for $2,500. For the third piece, the vest, it's an extra $125.

"They like the bragging rights to owning a made-to-measure suit," says Austria. "Especially the guys in finance. They are very competitive, they try as much to out do the other guy."

But it's not just a Bonfire of the Vanities thing. "They also want to get more involved with the purchase – selecting the crazy linings, the different colour buttonholes – details that give it their signature look."

Austria believes the three-piece look shows individuality, creativity and says you're a risk-taker. "But when the younger generation dresses better, it also shows a sign of respect," she adds.

But not all guys are taking the traditional route and matching their three pieces.

Shawn Hewson, the Project Runway Canada judge and creative director of Toronto menswear label Bustle, showed the three-piece suit in his fall runway show with mismatched and contrasting fabrics.

"We were going for that British gentleman look, but quirky," he says. "This is not your grandpa's three-piece suit; we mixed it up. It's sexier."

Hewson also says he paid a lot of attention to the third piece – the vest – adding lapels, multiple pockets and even making it double-breasted because a lot of guys are wearing just the vest with the pant as a look right now.

You can almost credit this third piece for the revived interest in the three-piece suit. The vest, or waistcoat, was a big hit this summer, worn with a T-shirt or even on its own like a high-end tank.

And that's what some men are finding appealing about this very traditional look: its surprising versatility. It works overtime from board meeting to bar hopping.

As Darcy Pack, co-owner of the Yorkville menswear boutique Anti-Hero puts it: "The three-piece suit is really two characters. It's Tommy Lee with a tank top and it's Tom Wolfe with a tie."