About the Author: Ryan N. is a professional web developer who keeps a close shave as to not be confused with his strongly-bearded twin brother. He plays guitar and drums, loves going to concerts with his wife, and loves being a dad.
SIZING NOTE: Ryan is 5’9″ / 160. Blazer shown in this post is a size Small.
Goodfellow & Co. are no stranger to giving a go at some nice blazers. Navy ones, even! But they may have finally outdone themselves. Many of the qualms of yester-blazer have finally been sewn up here – and while qualm-less this ain’t, it’s really close. And costs just $45. Let’s dig in.
First off, finally – FINALLY – we have someone making an entry-level, versatile cotton-fabric blazer again! It’s been a while. Probably years now since J.Crew Factory seemingly wiped their stretch chino blazer off the site, and we just haven’t seen much appear in this price range in quite some time. Now, Goodfellow makes some pretty solid clothes across the board. There’s not a ton of wonk outside of some sizing issues (which seem like they may have gotten better, anecdotally?), so in general, you’re going to get a pretty nice piece when you pick up something from Goodfellow. Very rarely do you get a full swing and a miss.
Size Small on 5’9″ / 160.
But in the past, Goodfellow’s attempts at blazers/sportcoats haven’t quite measured all the way up to their other, more casual offerings like tees, short-sleeve-button-ups, and chinos. Because those blazers have usually suffered from a nasty combination of details = chopped butts and overly long sleeves with expensive-to-tailor non functioning sleeve cuff buttons. And that annoying duo of fit-fail has strangely plagued the entry-level-blazer/sportcoat market, no matter the brand (GAP, Amazon, etc…), for years now. Chopped tails look funny on most torsos, making the wearer look like they’ve outgrown an elementary school picture day outfit. That stunted silhouette is often visually exacerbated by overly long sleeves, of which one could only fit the most gangly of used-car-lot fan-inflatable dancy-men. The “bleep-this” coup de gr¢ce is finishing those overly long arm-tubes with functioning sleeve cuff buttons. Which are expensive to manufacture! And also expensive to tailor (read: shorten the sleeves) meaning most cheap blazers are a waste of time and resources.
I mean, if it’s not something a tailor can fix, why buy it in the first place?
Thankfully this iteration of their stretch cotton blazer features neither an overly-chopped tail, nor overly long arms.
“Nice tail!” …. Thank you.
It’s a frickin’ miracle. Yes, those ARE functioning cuff buttons you see (hence the non-“qualm-less” qualifier in the intro), but with sleeves that run more average in length, they won’t be as much of an issue to deal with… for most. Long arms just plain don’t fit many properly on a blazer like this. The sleeve diameter seems to fit a little slimmer, which is welcome. So, the tail and arms are well and good. How about the rest?
Yes, the sleeve buttons are functioning, which makes shortening the sleeves difficult/expensive.
But the arms don’t run overly long. Most (not all) will be able to get away without tailoring the sleeves.
The stretch cotton fabric itself is quite nice. If you’re familiar with their chinos, it’s a very similar weight and feel to those. Not even to mention, from a pure value standpoint, their chino pull-on shorts are running a whopping $25 a pop now. Feels like an absolute steal to get a solid blazer for just $20 more. ESPECIALLY when you consider their blazers cost $50 apiece one of the last times we saw them!
98% Cotton / 2% Spandex has a weight and feel similar to their chinos.
As for features, we’ve got two patch pockets on the front, a welt chest pocket, and a pair of inner pockets. Finally, the blazer has a center vent, butterfly lining to keep it lightweight – the lining is also all cotton, so no polyester funny business to keep the cost low, plus it’ll breathe better.
Casually constructed. Cotton lining with a butterfly lined back.
Available in both khaki brown, and the pictured nice shade of navy, which is a little darker/less saturated/less “BLUE!” than the Target website would lead you to believe. With 2% spandex woven into the otherwise 98% cotton fabric, there’s also a noticeable amount of stretch.
Straight off the rack fit. Size small on 5’9″/160.
For another fit perspective, here’s how a medium looks on Joe, who is 5’10″/185.
Could they have done without the sleeve cuff buttons? Absolutely. Dialing in sleeve length at a tailor can help make a cheap blazer look like a million bucks. But for forty five dollars, it’s a pretty feature-packed blazer for the price, which will look great on most frames, and help dress up everything from a t-shirt and jeans, to a button up and chinos.
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