Double Breasted Suits

Double breasted suits have been up and down in popularity over the years, but in the last few years its been making a comeback.

These first came into style in the 1930s. Many old school gangsters would wear them and then big time movie stars picked them up in the movies about the gangsters. Humphrey Bogart was one of the first to really start wearing these. Frank Sinatra was also a wearer. They lost favor somewhat in the 70s and early 80s. Tom Cruise wore some double breasted tuxs to various award shows in the late 90s and early 2000s. In recent years, Ryan Gosling has shown up for several premieres rocking these. Lots of rap and R&B stars such as Usher and 50 cent have been in them as well. They are definitely making a slow but sure comeback to the mainstream.

Nearly all of the top suitmakers have designs for these, although you'll sometimes have to look hard, or possibly get a made to measure setup. You'll hear terms like 6 on 2 with these, this basically means that there are 6 buttons, two of which can be fastened.

People often say that this is a tougher style for shorter guys to pull off. For a smaller fellow the jacket can tend to emphasize the middle section and make them look more squat. They can definitely work with the right kind of tailoring, but a more rotund guy may want to look at another style. Making sure the jacket is the right length to help with this issue. Make sure also to get peaked lapels with the jacket, as notched will not quite look right.