Say 'summer suit' and most people instantly think of something they might have to wear to a wedding but that's not necessarily the case. Sure, weddings more often than not require tailoring of some description, but when did we start thinking of tailoring as solely event wear? An Oliver Spencer suit can be styled in a multitude of different ways because it has been designed with versatility in mind. Moreover, we think of suits like a smart extension of our everyday wardrobes - naturally, they have a smart silhouette, but at their core our suits are casually elegant, and elegantly casual.
So what makes an Oliver Spencer suit different from the styles you might find on Savile Row? Structure is a crucial difference and is the main reason why our suits are so much more wearable in relaxed summer wardrobes. Our suits, be they crafted from cotton or linen, are completely unstructured, meaning they have no internal padding or canvassing to bulk out the jackets. The result is a really soft and natural drape across the shoulders and over the chest, helping to create a more relaxed silhouette. Our trouser styles are also more laid back, with contemporary shapes through the legs, from our cropped tapered judo pants to wider leg styles.
All of this amounts to summer suiting that doesn't feel anything like uniform or occasion wear. They joy of having such easy tailoring at your disposal is that you can dress it down with a tee, polo shirt, or Cuban collar, all of which are perfect for accentuating that relaxed yet sophisticated summer attitude. But when they need to smarten up, our summer suits will just as easily pair up with a sharp collar and silk tie.
If you've shopped at Oliver Spencer before, you'll know that our iconic suit, the Solms, riffs on a workwear silhouette and so has a natural utilitarian shape to it, whereas our Wyndham and Mansfield suit jackets stick more closely to the rudiments of classic tailoring, featuring a perfectly proportioned, softly-rolled peak lapel. Our Theobald suits are a beautiful amalgam, featuring a notch lapel and two-button front, while our double-breasted jackets represent the smarter end of the spectrum, all the while still offering understated refinement.
Styling our summer suits couldn't be either, since the cotton and linen fabrics give you a beautiful textural base to work from, as do the neutral tones such as sand, navy, dark brown, and stone. Introduce other elements of texture and pattern by way of linen short-sleeved shirts, camp collar styles, or menswear classics such as a Breton t-shirt and you really can't go wrong. Bookend you look with Derbies or loafers if you want to maintain a smart edge, otherwise slip on some leather slides or fisherman's sandals for a bohemian twist and you're good to go!
