Just because this is bothering with my OCD-ness and my style sense...
- Suit jacket should only be worn with the matching suit pants. Suit pants should only be worn with the matching suit jacket.
- A sport coat, or a blazer (technically there is a difference--in reality they're the same thing), is something that is much more versatile. That can be worn with khakis, dress slacks, and even jeans (although I abhor that look).
- Colors
- Unless you're going to a funeral or playing in an orchestra, don't do a black suit. Get a charcoal or navy suit. Even grey. MUCH more versatile.
- Navy sportcoat is probably the most versatile. Wear it with Khaki's and any dress slacks that are not blue or black
- After that, a Khaki/brown/tan colored sportcoat is the next most versatile. Wear it with charcoal/grey slacks, navy slacks, olive slacks... Basically anything except for khaki's.
So don't separate a suit. If you want to do that, just get a bunch of slacks/khaki's, and 1 or 2 sportcoats (Navy is a necessary one).
Hmm...guess we are not particularly stylish. I like clothes well enough and do pay a certain amount of attention to my own clothes, but rarely have patience for multiple fashion rules. If I wasn't there to nag, DH would still be wearing nasty pink/purple/whatever plaid shirt around 20 years later. And I'm terrible - I have not yet figured out the difference between a sport coat, a blazer, and a suit jacket. They all look the same to me.
I had no idea DH was breaking the rules all these years :)
I took a look at a bunch of pick of khaki/tan jackets with grey pants and absolutely hated the color combination. Since DH only wears jackets for evening events, I really can't picture a scenario where he would use a tan jacket. So unfortunately, it wouldn't be versatile for him. A Navy jacket and dress pants doesn't scream evening to me. But maybe I need to consider this look more.
It still seems to me that, for our particular lives, the most basic and useful formal clothes would be a black suit. Around here, pretty much everybody wears a basic black suit for evening functions. Although I guess a charcoal suit would work fine too. Black suits always seemed more practical since he could use pair the pants with dress shirts to go to work.
Except...is that a fashion faux pax?
Well, in full disclosure I really only like a "tan" sportcoat that is really more of an olive green, and usually with a bit of a pattern.
Look closer at the black suits you see everywhere. I'd suspect that they're really a dark charcoal or a dark navy. The reason that you don't want to wear a suit pant or jacket separate from its mate is that one will wear faster than the other, and will fade. It will be minor, but it is there. The other reason is that a suit is typically a better/finer knit. I can tell this because I'm super OCD about it, but 99% of people would never be able to tell. Realistically the only difference in the jacket and a sportcoat is that the sportcoat will have flashier buttons. Change out the buttons and who would know?
FWIW, I never wear black pants. Period. Never see anyone at work do it either, and we're in a bank. It is always blue, tan, grey, olive, etc.
All of this being said, I'm picky about what I wear. I notice these things. I'm one of the few probably who does. And I don't spend much on my stuff either, 1 suit was from goodwill, 2 hand me downs, and 1 was about $250 when all was said and done. I get my dress shirts and slacks at Costco, and wear them til they rip or fray at the collar or cuffs. I think my annual clothing budget is probably around $75 most years.