This month I took your father out to get him properly attired for events. He had gained weight and no longer fit into the one suit he owned since high school.

Read that last bit again.

Yeah. So I want to impart on you a rule that was imparted on me regarding staples in your wardrobe.

At the very least, while you are on a fixed budget, you should have what I call the interview, funeral, wedding suit. It works triple duty. It should include 1 power tie, 1 soft casual tie (pale/patterned in nature) and 1 dark tie. You should have two button down dress shirts for this suit. One white dress shirt and one of a pale/pastel color (gray, peach, ivory, blue) but whatever that pale color, it should coordinate with the casual tie and/pr dark tie.

When you get established, then you should expand your wardrobe to have a warm triple duty suit and a cool triple duty suit. (one for summer with lighter fabrics and one for winter with heavier fabric)

And you should then expand your wardrobe staples to have one sport coat. One that goes with jeans/khakis. Again, as you become more established, you will want a summer one and a winter one (winter == tweed/herringbone).

All the while, you should be frequently trying on said suiting to be sure they still fit you. If they do not, you should replenish/replace pieces as needed. Never get caught having to run out and buy whatever in haste. Bad decisions are made in a rush.

And expect this shopping to take hours with a tailor. Because well-made men’s suiting is not finished and ready to wear. It has to be tailored to your body and finished. If you buy ready to wear, expect it to wear out and be ill fitting. Take the time to get a good suit.

You are your father’s son and I hope you have his metabolism and not mine. If you have his you should be able to keep a suit for years without replacement. However if you follow me, you will need to restock/replace often due to the various weight fluctuations. Be mindful.

I know in the grand scheme of things this is the furthest from your mind; but it’s the little things I will want to mention to you before I am gone.