Budget suit/blazer for teen boy?

[lunalibre]

DS15 is a high school freshman, and this is our first round of the suit-vs-blazer debate for him.

Our church is informal, so he's never needed anything nicer than a shirt and slacks. He's been young enough for family weddings that a shirt and slacks were also acceptable enough for those.

However, now DS is taller than DH. He's got the end-of-the-year band banquet in May, and a family wedding in June.

Do I buy him a suit or a blazer? DS is taller than DH, so he can't borrow anything other than shirts and ties from DH. I really don't want to spend a ton of money on clothes that DS will likely only wear twice before he outgrows them. And, truly, I'm sure he'll peel any jacket off as soon as he possibly can.

Thoughts? And should I look at buying before or after Easter? Are there likely to be deals at Easter? Any suggestions on stores? I've bought all his dress slacks from Penney's.

Thank goodness he at least has shoes that will work.

 

[3boymthr]

At that age, I'd go with a blazer, that way, since he's more apt to outgrow the pants than the jacket you might be able to replace just the pants and stretch your budget on the whole "suit" thing.

In addition, I'd hit Savers, Goodwill, St. Vincent, etc. I was just at the local St. Vincent and they had 5 blazers all for less than $20 and in excellent condition and most were super good quality/brand name. The also had silk ties and dress shirts for cheap.

ETA - also you might be able to team the blazer with pants that he already owns. When shopping for suits & jackets we've gotten great deals at J.C. Penney and I've also gotten great deals at Marshall's, TJ Maxx and Men's Wearhouse. TJ Maxx and Marshall's are hit or miss of course since their stock changes so much. If you find a great deal there buy and return it if you want to keep shopping and comparing prices.

 

[akcire]

Unless he is going to suddenly attend a prep school, a blazer will generally be out of place and make him look like my grandpa.

I would buy him suit seperates. They sell them everywhere now. I have seen them at Target, Walmart, JCPenny. Hopefully he will stay the same size. If he has a sudden change before your next event you may be able to just get him new pants/jacket.

My brother in law (who is 20 years my junior) grows like a weed. We got him a basic gray suit made of separtes from JCPenny. I have had to replace the pants twice, but the suit coat is still good. His legs just keep growing, and growing, and growing.

Like another poster said you may even be able to find these second hand. If you go that route check the stores first to see if you can find any current patterns

 

[tar heel]

I totally disagree with ackire. IMO a suit is what would make him look like grandpa. It would definitely be a very old-fashioned look. I think a cheap suit (polyester, I guess) would be an especially bad look.

Wearing a suit is way more dressed up than wearing a blazer. I can't remember the last time I saw a teen in one unless it was a tux for the prom or a concert.

I'd buy a navy blue blazer and pair it with a nice pair of khakis, which he can also use as his church pants. You can probably find a decent one at a department store in the $100 range or a little less.

 

[mjkacmom]

I totally disagree with ackire. IMO a suit is what would make him look like grandpa. It would definitely be a very old-fashioned look. I think a cheap suit (polyester, I guess) would be an especially bad look.

Wearing a suit is way more dressed up than wearing a blazer. I can't remember the last time I saw a teen in one unless it was a tux for the prom or a concert.

I'd buy a navy blue blazer and pair it with a nice pair of khakis, which he can also use as his church pants. You can probably find a decent one at a department store in the $100 range or a little less.

Well, I think it depends on the area. Even 8 year old boys wear suits for their first communion, and teens here wear suits to weddings - all men wear suits, as well.

 

[luvdzny]

Are you sure he needs either one? The guys around here were dress shirts & ties to school banquets, homecoming and some of them wear them to prom. I have been to a number of weddings in the past couple of years and it is unusual to see men in suit jackets. Most of them are wearing shirts & ties or even polo shirts. Not sure what it is like where you live, but suits would look out of place here.

 

[crisi]

I'd skip the whole thing depending on where you live. Is a blazer or suit normally worn by teens at the banquet? - As in more than half of them? And are they normally worn where you are going to the wedding? As you said, he'll peel it off as soon as he can.

We went to a wedding this year and very few of the young men - unless they were in the wedding party, wore a jacket. They wore slacks and white shirts with ties. Or even just polo shirts with collars.

I will say that I know this is HIGHLY regional and varies a lot by class.

If you think its needed, I'd go for a navy blue or brown sports jacket (unless he is the nerdy kind of kid, in which case, tweed could be really cute). And remember that they usually look lousy off the rack and are expensive to tailor, so that expense needs to be accounted for. A second hand store could be a really good bet, but probably won't be at the cutting edge of fashion.

 

[mjkacmom]

Are you sure he needs either one? The guys around here were dress shirts & ties to school banquets, homecoming and some of them wear them to prom. I have been to a number of weddings in the past couple of years and it is unusual to see men in suit jackets. Most of them are wearing shirts & ties or even polo shirts. Not sure what it is like where you live, but suits would look out of place here.

Lol - talk about regional differences. Boys wear tuxedos to the prom here. I can't imagine a man not wearing a suit to a wedding, and most wear them to funerals. Heck, I had to by 2 for my ds's communions, because they were different sizes (that hurt).

 

[SDSorority]

H&M has some well priced suits right now.

 

[SaraJayne]

DS15 has his confirmation coming up in a couple months and we've decided to pass on the suit and just go with dress pants/dress shirt and a tie.

He'd never wear the suit again before he grew out of it and I'm not going to spend that much money on something he's only going to wear for a couple hours.

 

[englishteacha]

Here shirts and ties are the norm at all events except for prom (which is a rented tux) and nice weddings (like not at the Legion hall). That goes for men as well.

My husband has a very nice black jacket that he pairs with black pants. He "outgrew" his suit several years ago. I'd get your son a nice jacket to wear to those events where a shirt and tie just isn't enough.

 

[sparklynails23]

Macy's young men's suits and separates are seriously on sale. I bought my son a $35 jacket last week. I'd go with khaki's and a jacket for a banquet, not a suit. For a tie, I like to opt for the thinner ones; they look nice on skinny teens.

 

[disykat]

We live in a really casual area, but the teenaged boys like to dress up. I've been really surprised by how often they wear suits. My boys are NOT big socialites, but they do music and debate. I'm pretty sure they like the suits because they get LOTS of attention when they wear them - from girls and from us old ladies!

DH, on the other hand, rarely has need for a suit.

My 19 year old owns one suit, one tuxedo (he is a musician) and one sport coat. He is actually on his second suit. His first one we bought for his confirmation (9th grade) in the boys department of JCPenny's (size 18) since he hadn't had his growth spurt yet. He didn't take his suit to college, just his tux for band and his sport coat, but ended up taking it the last time he came home - said he needed it!

My 16 year old has his growth spurt before confirmation so is still wearing the first suit we bought him. At our church, most of the boys got suits for confirmation and wear them occasionally. (they normally wear jeans to church, but they're like girls - they text each other and decide to all wear their suits!) He's also worn it for several school dances. He also wears it for debate meets. We had to buy his a second shirt/tie so he could switch it up, he wears it so much. If he goes to prom, I plan to buy him a tuxedo since he'll probably need for for college band. No way am I paying to rent a tux when I can buy one for not much more.

I have found sport coats at TJMaxx. We've had the best luck for suits on sale at Kohl's. I got my older son's tux on sale at JCPenny's for less than $150. I'm also on the mailing list at Men's Warehouse and, although I've never purchased anything in their store, I once scored buy one get one free sport coats for 49.99 online- which is the reason DS has a sport coat!

I also know people who've had luck with ebay, goodwill, etc. too.

 

[lunalibre]

Thanks so much for everyone's thoughts. I'm not sure I'm any closer to a decision , but I've got a lot more information!

In general, our area is pretty casual. I think a lot of it has to do with the Texas heat. Once it gets past early May, NO ONE wants to wear anything as hot as a suit.

WRT the wedding...I think I'll ask my cousin what she would like to see. If she's okay with DS wearing just a shirt and tie, then that's probably what he'll wear.

I just don't want to be forced to go shopping the day of the banquet because DS has suddenly decided that he'll be mortally embarrassed if he doesn't wear...whatever I *didn't* buy for him.

I guess boys are still easier than girls, though, when it comes to clothes. I'm dreading going shopping for my daughter's Easter, confirmation, banquet, and wedding attire!

 

[ReneeA]

My local Salvation Army store is full of men and boy's suit separates and blazers that were worn once and outgrown, then donated. I've gotten really nice, high end suits for my DS for all his events. I buy it, get it cleaned, keep it until he outgrows it, then it goes back to the SA.

 

[bluvw]

Do you have a Burlington Coat Factory near you? I have found good quality suits for my boys there so cheap!