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Affordable Men's Style

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In Person: The Semi Affordable Flannel Suit

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L.L. Bean Signature Searsport Flannel Blazer and Pant – $320.00

Size shown:  38R.  Shirt by Blank Label.  Tie by Personality Milano.  Umbrella by Totes.  Suit ships free.

Between this and their New Traditional Twill suit, L.L. Bean Signature has the market cornered on suits that feel way too comfortable to be, y’know… suits.

Whoever sourced the fabric deserves a raise.  It’s a 79% Wool / 20% Nylon / 1% Lycra nubby blend that has some actual stretch to it.  To the touch it feels somewhat close to the J. Crew Factory Tweed, only not as rough.  And that 1% lyrca L.L.B.S. has mixed in makes a big difference.

Unlike the New Traditional Twill this one ditches patch pockets in favor of  more dressed up flaps.  It’s still a little dressed down at first glance, but nothing incredibly out of place if worn with a bright white dress shirt and conservative tie.

The weight of the fabric is heavier than normal suiting fabric, and it better be since it’s flannel.  It’s warm.  Very warm.  You’ll reach for it plenty between now and March if you live in a cold or damp climate.  If you’re in a border region where your local municipal garage hasn’t had more than one snowplow since your town became incorporated, then best to skip it.

Off the rack fit is very good.  Almost excellent.  The pic above and the back view here are both of the jacket pre-tailoring.  It’ll need to be nipped at the sides if you’re in good shape.  Like most L.L. Bean Signature jackets, the sleeves are a little long.  AND they’ve got the damn functional buttons, so tailoring will be tough.  But with a sweet striped inner lining, flipping those cuffs back might be more pleasure than pain if you work in a relaxed environment.  Shoulder padding is there, but not invasive.  The pants feel slimmed down compared to its twill suit cousin.

$320 isn’t cheap, but relative to other flannel suits, you’ll end up with plenty of bang for the proverbial buck.  Keep your fingers crossed for a sale.

Comments

  2. Hey Joe, how do you deal with jackets with functioning or decorated buttonholes when you need the arms brought it to show cuff properly?  My tailor, when faced with this, sacrifices 1-2 of the buttons and attacks it from the wrist.  When I asked about taking from the shoulder, he tells me that this method affects mobility at the arm as the arm narrows, giving him less fabric to work with.  What do you think? Is he wrong?

  3. That might be true but Im guessing its just way easier to take some off from the wrist end rather than detaching and reattaching a sleeve

  4. Yeah, I don’t know if you want to mess around with detaching the sleeve.  That’s pretty major surgery.  My tailor takes it up from the wrist if possible

  5. Want. But seriously waiting on a sale so I can jump on the twill suit. Been waiting for a while now. Does anyone know how often LLBS sales happen? Seems like twice a year, if that. :/

  6. My tailor routinely shortens sleeves from the shoulder so as to preserve the functioning buttonholes. He does it well and cheaply. (don’t recall exact cost but I’ll be finding out soon when my Lands End Canvas cotton blazer arrives. Thanks Joe). He once explained to me how he does it and from what I learned it is very doable. Joe? Article idea? Buttonholes are more frequent so the issue is getting pushed.

  9. Okay, dunno how it works; I got an email that said to click through for 10% off. Can’t find a coupon code.

  11. Looks good but after my experience with the New Twill Blazer, I’ve realized that LL Bean Sig just isn’t cut for me – shoulder pads were too big and jacket was too short (I’m 6’4), throwing off the whole button stance.  So until they get their act together and start making true long sizes…

  12. I’ve been looking for a navy suit for ages, so I bought the navy version of this suit several weeks ago. For the price I wasn’t too thrilled… mostly with the color, which is very nearly black, although it was a pretty good fit now that they’re offering a 36R (still quite long in the sleeves). So I returned mine. If the price ever comes down to something more reasonable, though, I would think seriously about picking up the heather grey version.

  13. Sharp. Will definitely keep an eye on this. Really impressed by the sleeves–they look perfectly slim. Armholes look good too. Possible to get a full body shot Joe? I’m interested in seeing the fit of the pants. What’s the rise of the pants like? Sharp suit–thanks for sharing.

  14. OK. Thanks. Although I’m wondering if they ever do something deeper like 30%. I guess I’m spoiled by Gap brands and LEC, but 10% off a $200 suit is still out of my range right now. 

  16. Yeah, one of the reviews on the LL website  has me a little concerned about tailoring from the sleeve:

    Poor Design = Tailoring Nightmare!
    December 8, 2010

    byMrLeefromUpstate NY55-65
    years old
    Male

    This
    is a decent jacket and pants ensemble for the price, but the problem
    lies in the details. First is the attempt to make the jacket look
    “custom” by having working buttons on the sleeves (known as “surgeon’s
    cuffs”). The sleeves are cut extremely long (even for my 35″ sleeve
    length; these come down to my knuckles) thus requiring the tailor, when
    he shortens the sleeves, to eliminate one of the buttons and sew the
    sleeve VERY close to second button–too close in our mutual estimation.
    This is a detail that should not have been overlooked by the designer in
    charge of this special line that is supposed to appeal to a younger,
    hipper LL Bean consumer. If you are going to offer a tailored jacket, it
    should be tailored properly and this sleeve design was not well-thought
    out. Second, I also bought the pants (cheap and decent suit for $300)
    and they are cut way too baggy for a jacket with slim lapels, even for
    my 36″ waist. So the pants have to be narrowed, too. It will probably
    run me $75+ to make this suit fit anywhere decently. Probably should
    have returned.