I Wore This $346 Suit Everywhere This Summer
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For my entire adult life, I’ve been an occasional wearer of suits, in a literal sense. As much as I love the confidence I get from wearing a formal outfit, the hassle of accessorizing and maintaining a wool suit is enough to deter me from wearing them outside of special occasions. But Buck Mason’sTropic Twill Carry-On Suithelped me realize that formalwear doesn’t have to be fussy, or even all that formal, to look sharp.
I came across the Carry-On in late May while shopping for a couple of summer weddings. At just $346 for bothjacketandpants, it looked the part and was far more affordable than most suits made entirely from natural fibers. But it’s the fact that the cotton-Tencel blended fabric is machine washable and naturally wrinkle resistant that completely changed my mind about suiting, and when to wear it, in general.
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The Ivy-inspired, unlinedthree-roll-twojacket has a relaxed drape that fits neatly without tailoring and is available in sizes XS through XL. I wear a 38T jacket, and the medium fits me perfectly. Little details, like the buttonless cuffs, give it a unique personality that’s often missing from sport coats under $300. It also makes it easier to pair with a wider variety of tops and bottoms. I happened to be wearing a collarless Orslow button-up when I first tried it on and loved how the jacket’s workwear-inspired patch pockets complemented the shirt’s railroad stripes (below), almost like a chore coat. But it also worked great with dressier shirts, like Buck Mason’s ownsummer-weight California oxfordwith or without aknit tie. Despite my usual aversion to a blazer-and-jeans combination, I even liked how it looked with myrelaxed-fit faded jeans from 3sixteenand a (slightly) croppedEverybody.World Trash tee.
The suit pants come in a fitted cut that’s a touch wider than slim and are available in sizes 28 through 38. If you buy them in your true waist size, you’ll get an inch of breathing room that can be taken in by a belt or by the hidden drawstring in the waistband. To me, this drawstring is a sign that these are ultimately comfortable clothes meant to be lived in and not meant to feel like punishment for having to dress up.
When I first tried the set off the rack at Buck Mason’s Soho store, it looked nothing like the generic poly-blend suits typically available in this price range. Looking in the mirror, I felt a twinge of confidence that I’d only previously experienced in tailored wool. I remember thinking that looking put-together isn’t supposed to be this easy — the sartorial equivalent of an Alison Roman recipe. I left excited to wear it at the first opportunity.
My summer of suiting began on the last weekend of May at the Metropolitan Opera’s staging ofThe Barber of Seville.It was one of the first hot days of the season, and I felt comfortable in both the outdoor heat and the indoor air-conditioning. I then wore it to a weeknight production at a rural Vermont playhouse, where, in addition to being among the youngest members of the audience, I was one of the only people wearing pants, let alone a suit. But I was happy for the mosquito protection despite the evening’s mugginess. I also went to a crowded art-fair preview, where the Champagne flowed like water but my sweat did not, thanks to the breathable fabric. And I found myself reaching for it just to add a touch of class to various dinners and date nights in the months since.
In each instance, the breezy cotton blend of my Carry-On kept me comfortable and grounded while making me feel a little more put-together than usual. In a world where suits are so rarely required, wearing one by choice conveys that I put some extra time and thought into dressing up. And the fact that it was so easy to do doesn’t diminish the end result — as long as no one notices the drawstring in my waistband.
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