How to buy a suit for clerkship interviews

Note: This post is written for a female audience based in Sydney. If you are male, this post may still be helpful to you, but you may want to also refer to this amazing blog post:

http://survivelaw.com/index.php/blogs/careers/602-how-to-buy-a-suit

What to wear to your clerkship interview

You have the choice of a skirt suit or pants suit. Appropriate suit colours include black, charcoal, and dark grey. Navy is ok but I would not go for this colour for your first suit. I would recommend charcoal for your first suit. Black can appear harsh. Charcoal is a more youthful colour, which is perfect when you are going for your “intelligent young thing” look at your clerkship interview.

Some older women may advise you to wear a pants suit as opposed to a skirt suit, as any kind of sign of being feminine was seen as a potential disadvantage when these women were starting their careers. This is not so today. You can wear a pants suit if you like, but you will find most female clerks and graduates wear skirt suits to interviews, court and formal occasions.

When you are buying your suit, you should buy the jacket, skirt and pants, though you could buy two skirts if you preferred. As a rule of thumb, for every suit jacket you buy, you should buy two bottom items. Always get all suit components dry cleaned at the same time.

How much will I have to spend?

Good quality midmarket suits from brands like Rhodes & Beckett and Herringbone range from $700 - $1,000 full price for the suit jacket and skirt. Hopefully you can get your suit on sale, where you would pay a much more affordable $300 - $600 for your suit. You can get cheaper suits made from cheaper fabrics, but I recommend getting a decent quality suit. I purchased my suit for clerkship interviews three years ago and still wear it for court appearances and more formal days at work now. It is well worth the investment. Consider lay-buy if you cannot pay for it upfront. If you start your lay-buy now, you have a good 4 to 6 weeks to pay it off before clerkship interviews start in July.

What should I look for? Aka what to do when you are in the change room

Fabric

Locate the cleaning and fabric information tag. This will either be sewn in along the seam or sewn in the suit jacket pocket. Read the tag. I recommend 100% wool suits. They are breathable, durable and rarely need dry cleaning, as wool takes a long time to get smelly, coping well with sweat and other smells. Avoid polyester like your life depends on it. In a hot Sydney summer you will literally fry in your polyester suit when walking to court. The wool suits available in Sydney are made for hotter climates, so don’t think it will be too hot for summer. Wool is like climate control for your clothes. You can also buy a suit in a quality wool blend such as wool/polyester (make sure the percentage of polyester is low) and wool/cashmere (getting fancy).

Fit of the jacket

Put the jacket on and button the top button. The jacket should be a snug fit across your body as the modern look is for slim fitting suits. However, the fabric should not pull anywhere. Make sure the size is a good fit for your shoulders. If you can’t move your arms, the jacket is too tight. If the jacket shoulders look like they are jutting out from you, the size could be too large. Shop assistants are generally trained at fitting suits, so use them for a second opinion. Move your arms up and down to check mobility. You need to be comfortable. Do not worry too much about sleeve length, as you can get this altered. You do need to worry about sleeve length if you have long arms, as there is only so much a tailor can lengthen the jacket. Shortening is no problem. You will not find a ready to wear suit that fits you perfectly everywhere. I usually focus on shoulder and waist fit and leave sleeve fit to the tailor.

Long line v short line

The line of the jacket refers to the length of the jacket. If you are short go for a short-line jacket, as this will be more in proportion to your body. If you are taller, you may want to consider a longer-line jacket.

Buttons

A suit jacket will have anywhere from 1 to 3 buttons. Generally, you will only be using the top button, but if you are taller, you may use two buttons, so make sure your chosen jacket has more than one button if you are on the tall size.

Fit of the pants

The pants should be a straight fit ie not flared and not skinny. Make sure the pockets sit flat against your thighs and do not bulge out or look funny. Make sure you look at your rear view in the mirror to check the back is sitting straight. Walk around to make sure they are comfortable. The fit of the waist band is important, but can easily be taken in. The pants can also be taken up if they are too long.

Fit of the skirt

Most suit skirts are pencil skirts. Warning: there is such a thing as a too tight pencil skirt. You also need to be able to walk confidently in your skirt, so if there is no room for your thighs to move at all and you are reduced to walking like a penguin, it is probably not the right cut for you. Alternatively, you can go up a size to give your legs more room then have the waist taken in. Check that the skirt falls at least to the top of your knee.

Try your suit on with a shirt

You will be wearing a shirt to your interview, so make sure you try your suit on with a shirt to see how it will sit. If you decide to buy a suit, make sure you ask for a discount on the shirt. You might even be able to get a shirt for free, especially if you are buying the suit full price.

When to buy

Now! Mid-year clearance sales start this weekend. Most brands slash suiting prices by 30 – 50%, saving you hundreds of dollars.

Where to buy

Make sure you try on suits in at least three different brands before making your final decision. Shop assistants understand that most people shop around for suits, so don’t feel pressured to buy the first suit that fits. An even better one may be just around the corner. Below I have included my recommendations including comments and an estimate of the price range for a suit in that brand. Remember that on sale the price of suits is reduced dramatically.

You can’t go wrong if you shop at:

1.       Rhodes & Beckett

Price estimate: Jacket: $529.00; Pant: $249.00; Skirt; $169.00

Great quality wool or wool blend suits in classic cuts. Great first suit option. Also famous for their Egyptian cotton shirts. Their shirts continue to be made from Egyptian cotton in Alexandria, Egypt, while other brands such as Herringbone now source their shirts from China with quality being impacted. While Rhodes & Beckett is based in Melbourne, there are several stores in Sydney including Macquarie Place, Martin Place, Westfield Bondi Junction, Westfield Sydney and concession stores in Myer Sydney City and Bondi Junction.

2.       Herringbone

Price Estimate: Jacket $549; Pant $269; Skirt $189

If you like supporting Australian brands, go for Herringbone. Herringbone was established in 1997 and has beautiful wool suits. Since the brand has been acquired by German shirting brand van Laack, I personally believe the quality of at least the shirts has gone downhill. Herringbone remains a solid suiting option. Herringbone has stores at Circular Quay, QVB, Woollahra, and Mosman. There is also a clearance store at Birkenhead Point. Given classic suiting never goes out of fashion, it may be worth hitting up the Birkenhead Point store if pricing is an issue.

3.       Farage

Price Estimate: Jacket $589; Pant $289; Skirt $249

Farage is pure luxury and will give you the satisfaction of wearing a brand not many other clerks will be wearing. Farage is an Australian brand inspired by Parisian lifestyle. Sigh. Shop at Farage if attention to detail and quality is your thing. They often have great contrast lining and stitching details. Farage is great for taller lawyers, as many of the jackets and styles are longer line. Stores in Sydney include Chifley Plaza, MLC Centre, Strand Arcade, and Westfield Bondi Junction.

4.       Saba

Price Estimate: Jacket $399; Pant $199; Skirt $175

Go to Saba for modern classics. They do have wool suiting, but just be careful as some of the suiting is not wool. I own Saba non-wool suiting and it is fantastic, but I would not recommend non-wool suiting for a first purchase. I find Saba great for shorter figures, as they have cropped pant options meaning you don’t have to pay for the tailoring.

5.       Hugo Boss

Price Estimate: Jacket $1,000++; Pants $600++; Skirt $500++

Probably beyond the price range of most law students. But if your parents are paying...

6.       Carla Zampatti

Price Estimate: Jacket $649; Pants $449; Skirts $449

Carla Zampatti always has a seasonal range of modern, sharp suiting. If Julie Bishop is your inspiration, shop where she shops (FYI she also shops at Hugo Boss).

Hit & Miss but might be worth a look

1.       Sportscraft – usually reserved for people our parent’s age and above, Sportscraft actually has some great suiting options in classic cuts. They also do wool suiting which is a bonus. 

2.       Cue – great modern suiting, but the fabric quality can vary. While some of the synthetic blends are of acceptable quality, it can be difficult to find wool blends at Cue.

3.       Oxford – a cheaper suiting option, just watch out for fabric quality, fit and cut.

4.       Country Road – the suiting is very overpriced for the quality and given the cuts are often not classic, clerks should avoid suit shopping here.

5.       Witchery – better to shop at Witchery once you have the basics of your working wardrobe sorted.

Once you have got the job and seen what your colleagues wear you can get more inventive in the brands department. Some unexpected brands do really great work wear including Zimmerman and Sass & Bide. Once you have some good quality basics, you can also get seasonal work wear from your old university favourites like Forever New and Witchery.

Tailoring – aka how to make your Saba suit look like Hugo Boss

Unless you resemble a mannequin, you will need to get your suit tailored. Do not skip this step. The most expensive suit jacket with too-long sleeves can make your suit look cheap. The most common alterations required are:

1.       Taking the jacket sleeves up or down;

2.       Taking trouser or skirt waist line in; and

3.       Taking the hemline of the skirt or trousers up or down.

Shoes

Your work shoe-drobe needs to start with two essentials:

1.       Black flats

Ballet flats are ideal, but anything in plain black or patent leather is acceptable. Flats with a pointed toe shape are popular at the moment and can be found at most chain stores including Witchery and Country Road. Wittner always have about 20 different pairs of black flats to choose from at any one time. You will be wearing these flats to death so make sure they are comfortable. If you are new to the “black flats” scene go to Ferragamo for inspiration and then Sambag to actually buy a pair.

2.       Low court heels

You need a low, basic court shoe in black nappa or patent leather for your interview. I cannot reiterate enough how the heel should be low. Some clerkship recruiting processes involve extensive networking functions that go for hours. You need to be standing up and walking normally, not like you are about to keel over because your heels are too high. Round toe, pointy toe, and almond shaped toes are all appropriate. Peep toes are not.

If you are tall you can wear your black flats to your clerkship interview. Otherwise I recommend wearing low court heels. Always travel to your interview in flat shoes so you can run for it if you find you are running late.

Make – Up

At your interview the look you are going for is “fresh and alert”. You should barely be able to tell you are even wearing make-up. If you are a serial offender when it comes to heavy foundation and excessive dark eyeliner, you may want to book a make-up appointment a few weeks beforehand to be taught how to do the more natural look by a professional. If you are booking a professional appointment, avoid brands like MAC and Illamasqua that generally create full face event make up. I have had make-up tutorials at Clinique, Lancome, and Chanel and found they were all great at creating minimalist, natural looks. Just specify that you are after a natural work-appropriate look that you can recreate yourself.

Nails

Short, natural nails are ideal for interviews. You want to appear practical but well-presented. Three types of nail polish are appropriate:

1.       Nude – make sure you pick the right nude for your skin undertone;

2.       Baby pink (not bright pink); or

3.       Simply apply a top coat to give the nails a natural sheen.

Long nails and any form of fake nails are inappropriate. Once you get the job, life becomes more flexible and you may be able to wear other coloured nail polish. For now, reign in your creative side.