Six Easy Steps to Sartorial Nirvana

1: Define Occasion

In men’s dressing form always follows function. Think about for what occasion or circumstance you need your new suit for. Are you buying it for work, a wedding, cocktail party or something razor sharp and audacious to hit the town in at night? What’s the deelio, big guy?

2: Climate Control

For which season, and in which part of the world will you be wearing said suit? Is it for Sydney and Melbourne, (temperate climate), Brisbane (subtropical), Perth and Adelaide (Mediterranean) or elsewhere internationally? At M.J. Bale we create our suits for the Australian climates, so are generally made deconstructed (less padding) and mostly from lightweight superfine Australian Merino wool (great all year round). However, depending on your destination, you may decide you want something more specific, like a suit made from cotton, linen or cashmere.

3: Which Style For What?

Based on the occasion, is it a single-breasted two-button suit you need, a big-end-of-town double-breasted number, or a 1-button tuxedo for big events? For the latter, think about whether you want to rock a peak or traditional shawl collar. If you want a jacket with a slim, tapered waist make sure you choose one of our Drop 8 ones (Esperance block). If you want a more traditional, classic waistline in your jacket (i.e not as tapered), you’ll look for our Drop 7 (Sydney block).

4. Measured Response

Get your suiting measurements by putting a tape measure under the broadest part of your chest. Don’t hold the tape too tight, and make sure you’re breathing normally (now is not the time to suck it in). Our jacket sizes are the same as your chest size i.e if you’re a 42-inch chest you will be a 42 M.J. Bale jacket. Our trousers are automatically matched to jacket size.

5. Purchase

With all that brain effort (admittedly, a fun one that is going to bring you handsome results) and measurements done, you’re ready to hit mjbale.com. Take your time to have a good nose around – getting dressed up is the most pleasure-filled activity you can do (note: ‘pleasure-filled activities’ may differ according to each customer’s lifestyles and values).

6. Alter Boy

Depending on your body size, you may or may not need to make slight alterations to the suit to make it fit like a body glove. If you don’t have a good relationship with a local alteration specialist, call M.J. Bale and we’ll point you in the right direction to one near to you (within reason).