A successful investment-banker in a sharp Italian suit, a lawyer about town in an elegant two-piece affair, a politician on television in a formal suit-and-tie: all these members of the male species depend on their suiting and style to gain them standing and instant respect in their public life. Wearing an impeccably tailored suit is already a statement of affluence and impeccable taste, while the cut and style speak volumes about the wearer even before a single word is spoken.

The suit became commonplace in late 17th Century France. Louis XIV, the ultimate emperor of style led the charge towards a more casual and comfortable attire for men during his 72-year reign, shifting the style of male clothing from the doublet, hose, and cloak, the fundamentals of a man’s wardrobe, to coats, vests, and breeches – the three predecessors of modern male attire.
Suits are the ultimate business statement making an impression at interviews, in boardrooms, during cocktails and formal dinners. Why? A suit is still seen as a way to gain respectability and a man wearing a well-fitted stylish suit means business.

So how do you pick the best suit for you?

1. You need at least one fantastic suit in your wardrobe. If you don’t have much money then probably the one item to make a large one off investment in is your jacket. Don’t feel shy spending at least $500 for a great suit – even more if you can afford it. Then substitute it with a couple more light-weight suits and jackets in the $200-$400 range to help mix things up.

2. Always make sure your suits and shirts fit well around the collar. Don’t buy oversized collars; they come across as slack and lazy. And too tight, well, we all need to breathe now don’t we??

3. Some men can easily mix patterns, suits, stripes, loud pocket kerchiefs, silky shiny materials, hats, tophats, and blinged up cufflinks. Some cannot!! It’s important to find the style that suits your personality, fits your career (bling in a conservative law firm certainly won’t go down that well!) and helps you ease forward in the game of life.

4. Ties are the one accessory for men that can really be personalised and allow you to express yourself and add some color and diversity. Ties can be suited up or dressed down with jeans and a white shirt (open top button and loose knot). Wander into second stores to dig up some classic and vivid ties with vibe and spirit, and perhaps spend a bit more on some nice new (perhaps black or red) versatile ties.

5. Find the right fit for our body:

* If you’re a big guy: Remember there is more of you to love, so wear your bulk with pride. Wear lightweight, suits built from heavier textiles will only add weight. Soft, worsted wools are your best friend. Choose darker colors which give desired slimming factor plus they’re classy and classic. If you’re going to stripe it, make it a solid vertical to create a sleek, slender visual. The jacket: Two buttons are optimal – they won’t draw attention to your bulky frame and stay single on the vent, which will give you the extra room you need minus the extra attention.

* If you’re tall and very lean, add weight with heavier fabrics – on a tall, skinny guy, lightweight fabrics will hang and make you look all the more frail. Heavier wools like tweed or a heavier weight worsted wool that hold their form is the smart decision; and give you much-needed proportion and the appearance of additional weight. Colors – opt for the greys and classic browns – Lighter colors; will add weight to your overall look. Jacket? Three buttons create height and length, tall guys, with their longer torsos, can pull this look off successfully. Keep it classy with the single vent – Although taller, slimmer men tall, skinny men have two options for the vent: we advise that you stick with a single-vent or ventless jacket which is always the classier choice.

* If you’re slight and shorter than average avoid loud patterns – The print of an overly bold pattern screams for attention and will only draw attention to your slight frame. Subdued, chilled out colours and small stripes, if any, will be far more stylish for you. Stripes – For shorter men, the next best thing to a shoe with a higher sole is a suit with vertical stripes. As stripes run top to bottom, they tend to draw the eye upward. Plus, they also lengthen your frame by elongating the look of the suit; giving you the illusion of appearing taller than you really are. Go for double vents – Small guys, the double-vent jacket was created with you in mind. The dual slits (or vents) along the side emphasize the outside lines of the body; in doing so, they establish an attractive, longer silhouette that complements and lengthens your frame.

The Bespoke Suit
These are custom made by a tailor from a pattern created entirely from the client’s measurements, giving the best-fit and free choice of fabric. Some of the most expensive suits in the world are painstakingly hand made by an increasingly scarce breed of extremely skilled tailors. These tailors know how to make suits that hide physical flaws and highlight attributes, without sacrificing comfort. Machine use is minimal, and each and every nuance of a client’s spoken and unspoken needs are met and often exceeded. Brioni, Attolini, Kiton, Luigi Borelli and Caraceni are some of the best known names in Italian bespoke suits. Some of the world’s most expensive suits are the Kiton K50s exclusively tailored by Senor D’Orsi, one of the finest tailors in the world. He makes not more than 50 suits in a year, each costing up to 50,000 USD. The fabrics used on a bespoke suit are usually the best, mostly worsted wool for business suits. These fabrics are used in the counts of 80’s and 90’s, or super 100’s, super 150’s and higher. The counts in the range of 80’s and 90’s also feel great and usually last longer than higher counts made at even the best clothing manufacturers. For those who can afford it, a bespoke suit made in the super 150’s fabric can be an absolute asset. It feels fabulously comfortable to wear and looks even better.

Made-to-Measure Men’s Suits
Not every one is privileged enough to get a bespoke suit made, but there is a range of suits which is nearly as good. With made-to-measure suits, (a pre-made pattern modified to fit the client, with a limited selection of options and fabrics is available) it is possible to achieve a degree of customization because the tailor takes up to 25 measurements of an individual body, and these are then sent to the factory. Here, alterations are made to already available basic patterns in order to achieve the best fit possible. Special requests like extra pockets, specific fabrics and linings, and a certain design and style can be accommodated. Some of the best fabrics, threads and interlinings are used, which helps guarantee a quality suit. But the production is assembly line, and many tailors work on the suit at different stages of production, unlike the single tailor for the bespoke suit. Ermenegildo Zegna su Misura does some of the best fittings in the made-to-measure industry. A good deal of technology goes into the making of these suits and their fabrics. Some Zegna suits use fabrics like Micronsphere which has all the great qualities of worsted but is also stain-resistant, or Cashco, which is a blend of cashmere and cotton, making it an all-weather fabric.

Off-the-rack Designer Men’s Suits
Though these cost about half that of a good made-to-measure Italian suit, they are still worth the money. The first and foremost advantage is speed, no agonizing fittings and long waits for the suit to get ready, and if chosen carefully, an off-the-rack suit from Prada, Armani, Versace, Zegna or Gucci fits quite well and is unbeatable for casual elegance and comfort. The trick is to shop around for the right size, cut and look. What is more, off-the-rack suits are good for those who are looking for variations and for different types of fabrics and styles. The beauty of an off-the-rack designer suit lies in its ability to change from season to season, and to bring in a hint of casual flair to the conservative world of men’s business clothing.

Ready to Wear
These suits are mass produced, least expensive and most common. You’ll find them in department stores and are an option for the budget conscious shopper. If you’re diligent in shopping carefully and following the tips above on getting the best fit for you, these suits may allow you to look suitably elegant in business attire and save your pocket at the same time.

By Maggie Kalogeropoulos

Sure, tall men might be good at reaching the top shelf or making that slam dunk, but when it comes to style those with plenty of height to spare face a different set of fashion challenges than others. Pants that are too short, shirts that are too tight and shoes that are too small make dressing a hassle for those over the six-foot mark.

Rest assured, however, that tall men are not doomed to be out-of-date and out-of-style; vertically gifted men, too, can dress as spiffy as their shorter, more fashionable brethren.

And what better place to turn to for fashion tips for tall men than the NBA? Former NBA players and uber-tall fashion experts Jalen Rose and Allan Houston, gave us the lowdown on how to dress your bigger build.

What are the biggest fashion challenges facing tall men?
Allan: If there are clothes you like, you probably wont be able to get it in most places because tall men’s bodies are different. Most of the stuff you see are for men who are a little bit shorter. Even if you’re not athletically built, the height issue makes the difference. It’s easier for shorter men who are even a little wider to find clothes and make them work than it is for tall men.

Jalen: A lot of the time tall men can’t buy stuff off the rack because it doesn’t fit right; it may be too big in the waist or too big in the leg or too small in the ankles. You can’t get the same kind of custom fit as someone who’s “normal” sized. It becomes challenging, but tall guys just have to take a little more time and really take their look seriously. When you’re a tall man, you can’t just grab something and throw it on and have it work -- you have to put thought and effort into it.

The No. 1 fashion rule is about having confidence in your look. You should look in the mirror and accept, like and appreciate what you see. Yes, there are tips you should follow, but for the most part fashion is about your confidence and look. Be the clothes, don’t let the clothes be you.

Should tall men have their clothing custom-made?
Jalen: Ideally, everyone would love to have the opportunity to have tailor-made clothes, but if you can’t do that, the cleaners work just as well, you just have to understand your size.

Allan: There are big and tall stores… but it depends on what you want. Like for me, I’m not all about wearing suits; I like to wear jeans, sweaters and T-shirts, so when you start getting into the different elements of style, clothes gets a little harder to find, and so getting things custom-made becomes one of your only options.

What are the common fashion mistakes tall men make?
Jalen: A lot of the time, tall men might not find things in their size, so they might wear pants or shirts that are too big, or even a hat that’s too big. If you’re tall, you’re trying to compensate for the fact that your pants [for example] don’t fit well in the waist, so you overcompensate with the size.

Allan: There’s just not a lot of stuff out there for tall guys. When you’re tall, you most likely have a build that’s long and lanky, but most clothes aren’t built for that [body type] so most guys wear pants and suits that are too big or too small for their body. This is why you have to get your clothes tailored or custom-made.

Should tall men stay away from things like bright colors and vertical stripes?
Jalen: You can dress for the season; color is universal and it all depends on how you pull it off with the rest of your look. If you’re a tall guy, I don’t think the way you dress can be confined, but there are subtle ways to wear all the looks. There are ways to wear colors, verticals stripes…
Allan: I don’t believe in myths like that. I mean, I wouldn’t wear a bright green shirt with orange pants, but if you have a general idea of what works for you and you have a certain style, that shows me more than what you have on. It shows how you put it together and how you feel in it. That’s really what people see: Someone with confidence in what they’re wearing and how they’re wearing it.

Use common sense when you get dressed. Some men just want to go out there and make a big, bold statement, but if you’re tall you don’t have to do that.

What advice should tall men follow when suit-shopping?
Allan: Don’t be afraid to let the suit really fit your body. Embrace your body type. And I’m picky with ties, so don’t let the suit do all the work, let the tie do more of the work.

Jalen: My favorite quote is by Jay-Z: “So long and lanky, my suit it should thank me.” Your look is all about how you feel, so when you’re shopping, [what you choose] has to be you. Everybody has their own style, some guys like to wear a three-piece suit with a blazer, and some guys might like to wear a “corporate thug look” where you have on your gym shoes with your outfit -- there are many different ways to dress it up and down.

What are the best shoe styles for men with big feet?
Jalen: For dressy gym shoes, you can get into the Louis or the Guccis; for the dress shoes, you can go the gator route; but for everyday shoes, there are tons of brands you can rock, and that’s what makes your look so fly. Having big feet doesn’t tell you what type of shoes you should wear. There are men who like to wear cowboy boots, dress shoes… It all depends on your outfit.

Allan: I don’t like the big, floppy types of shoes, but I think that it’s really a preference thing. It really comes down to being comfortable and to not wearing shoes that make your feet look a lot bigger than they are.

Who are some designers that cater to tall men?
Allan: I used get stuff from Narciso Rodriguez, John Varvatos, Ralph Lauren… You can get a nice pair of jeans from a place called Jean Shop in New York, but as far as designers go, it’s really tough because it’s not really available.

Kevin Willis (who used to play for the Atlanta Hawks) has a line that caters to tall men. He has some jeans that a lot of athletes wear, and they’re as stylish as they’re going to get and they cater to our [tall] body types.

Who are the most stylish tall men?
Allan: LeBron James does a good job… Cuttino Mobley, Kevin Willis…

Jalen: Jalen Rose is a real good dresser! Keyshawn Johnson is a real good dresser, so are Michael Smith and Chris Carter.

Allan Houston retired from the NBA in 2005 after playing with the Detroit Pistons and the New York Knicks. This two-time NBA All-Star and fashion connoisseur stands at 6’6”.

Jalen Rose’s NBA career spanned from 1994-2007, during which time he played for the Chicago Bulls, the New York Knicks and the Phoenix Suns, among others. Jalen was also voted as the NBA’s Best Dressed and is currently the fashion editor at HOOP Magazine. He stands at 6’8”.