Hello!

So, I am a recent college graduate and am looking to invest in a cheap, but nice suit. I am 5'0 and about 95-100lbs. I am currently comparing the following suits (express and loft).

Express:
http://www.express.com/studio-stretch-1 ... 74ff7c6710

http://www.express.com/studio-stretch-w ... 7ff656b2dc
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Loft (blazer with dress pants):
http://www.anntaylorloft.com/catalog/pr ... ck&size=00

http://www.anntaylorloft.com/catalog/pr ... ck&size=00
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I found reviews on the Express's studio suits pieces, but nothing on loft's. I know that Express didn't get really good reviews from a few of the petite bloggers, but it's so cheap ($105) compared to other places i.e banana, theory, j crew, ann...
I am on a tight budget.

Has anyone tried the loft pieces yet? What are your thoughts? Should I just go with Express and get them altered or is Loft the better choice for someone of my height and weight? I am on a tight budget so I want to go with the best choice!

Please help!!

I haven't tried Express suiting in a LONG time, but I remember it being ridiculously too big and needing major alterations. Reading through some of the reviews on the Express site, it seems the petite ladies are all mentioning that the suiting runs big (one said the size 00 fit more like a size 3/4), so my guess is that the Express suiting would require alterations.

LOFT suiting can vary wildly (I've tried p00 items that fit off the rack, and others that were huge), but the Marissa cut pants usually come pretty close to fitting me right off the rack, with minor alterations needed. Blazer jackets I find to be a little boxy.

My first instinct is to say to go for the LOFT items. The fabrics are better, and the fit is actually proportioned for petites, which is a plus since you're 5'0". If you can hold out for a good coupon code, you can get the items for a good price too!

Let us know how your suiting search works out! And I'd love to see pics.

Hello.

I have bought the two EXPRESS suiting items that you are interested in on the Black Friday sale. I am 5ft 1 in and 106 lb. Here are my thoughts:

*the pants fit pretty well (a tiny bit loose in the waist and needed 3 in heels on me), on you they would need slimming and possibly a hem;
* the blazer fit well overall, the sleeves were a bit long for my liking, I would have had them taken in if I were to keep the suit. For reference the sleeve length was exactly the same as the Banana Republic 00P current lightweight wool suiting. The waist on the blazer fit wonderfully. I have not found such a great waist line in BR or AT. The hourglass shape, the fit in the shoulders and the blazer length were my favorite parts. However, you are smaller, so these good points may not apply.
* the fabric was very good quality. Definitely a winter suit (it was thick), but I believe this is why the suit held its shape so great.
* I also tried the matching skirt and it was really big (and this comes from a pear-shaped gal )

Unfortunately I have no experience with the AT suit. I would say expect a better fit on your frame with AT, but be aware that the fabric may be too casual for what you are looking for.

Alessia

I haven't tried Express suiting (or Express clothing in a while, actually), but I have the city blazer and pencil skirt from LOFT, and the P00 fit me perfectly without any alterations. I'm 4'9" and 90 lbs. I think it's worth the investment, and of course, the Express pieces would be more expensive because you most likely will have to get them altered. Plus, someone always has a LOFT coupon code to share.

Thank you for all the help! I decided to go with LOFT, but will wait for a good sale. =)

How much do you guys usually pay for alteration? I will def. post pics once I get the suit.

It depends on what kind of alterations, but here are examples of prices I've paid for suiting...

Sleeves shortened on a blazer - $15 (without lining) to $25 (with lining)
Shoulders narrowed on a suit jacket - $40
Torso taken in on a jacket - $30-$35
Skirts with lining taken in at the waist - $20 to $25
Skirts and dresses hemmed - $15 (without lining) to $25 (with lining)
Pants hemmed - $10

I once had an H&M sz 4 skirt suit altered down one size and it cost $90!!! So sad...one of my earliest purchases and they didn't carry sz 2 in suiting way back then.

wow alteration is expensive. How hard is it to alter a suit/blazer yourself?

Speaking of blazers, which one should I get between these two:

http://www.anntaylorloft.com/catalog/pr ... ype=Petite

http://www.anntaylorloft.com/catalog/pr ... pe=Petite#

sorry one more thing...

Should I buy both the black dress pants and a black blazer from loft or black dress pants from loft and a black blazer from express?

The break down

Loft suiting
Dress pants - orig. 59.99-40%= $35.99
Cotton Blazer- orig. 128 =$128
Total= $163.99-20%= 131.19+11ish s&h= $143

Mix-Loft and Express
Loft Dress pants - orig. 59.99-40%= $35.99 + 8.95 s&h= $ 44.94
Express jacket - orig. 98.00-$25 =$81.00 + 8.00 s&h= $ 89.00
Total = $ 133.94

difference of $10. Not much.

Loft:
blazer
http://www.anntaylorloft.com/catalog/pr ... ck&size=00

pants
http://www.anntaylorloft.com/catalog/pr ... ck&size=00

Express' Jacket
http://www.express.com/studio-stretch-1 ... 842ac7fa82

Which blazer looks better? I know the express one will be a bit larger, but to me it looks a little more professional. However, I do like loft's blazer more, but think it might be too boxy. I can't decide!! What do you guys think?

Honestly, if I were to buy just one suit, I'd go with something more classic and professional. Especially since I'd only be wearing them to job interviews.

First, you don't want to mix and match the express and Loft because the material and color won't be the same even if they are both black, and you'll be able to tell you're not wearing a coordinating suit, which is pretty important if you want to look professional.

Second, I'm not a big fan of the Loft jacket. It's a 3/4 sleeve and is made of cotton, rather than wool or fake wool (polyester), which makes it more business casual, and unsuitable for something like an interview, and the ruffled back looks like it could really date the suit in a few years. Plus, I think the trendier blazers look funny with their coordinating bottoms because it looks too matchy-matchy, but not professionally put-together. I reserve trendy blazers for dressing up jeans or a dress.

The Express jacket and its coordinating bottom is a better choice, but for similar quality, and material, H&M has an eerily similar one on shelves now for $50, and the coordinating pants or shift dress for $35 or skirt for $25. The rise on the pants are a bit high, and the hem is too long, but the skirt and dress were pretty decent. not perfect as the pants were slightly too big and the button on the jacket was about an inch lower than what I would have liked, but for less than $100, I thought it fit better and the price was better than Loft. H&M blazers seem to have gotten smaller since AN reviewed them. Since almost every size 2 blazer I've tried from them has fit pretty decently.

I used to sew costumes, and even though I had made some crazy costumes before, sewing up a lined blazer for one costume was surprisingly very frustrating (something about that collar...agh). Based on that experience, I can confirm it can be difficult and very time-consuming to properly alter a suit yourself if you don't know what you're doing.

If you can do sew very basic needle work, you can get by with folding in sleeves and pants if they are too long and doing a one or two subtle stitches here and there all around the cuff. You can also look up on how to do the blind stitch. Anything beyond that, I would get it professionally done. To me, the lining is what makes things tricky. You have to take it out without ripping it, alter both the jacket and the lining, and then reattach the lining while making sure it doesn't pinch or tuck in the wrong places. Factor in that suits are usually made with expensive, sometimes lightweight/delicate materials, and that makes things more nerve-wracking to do.

Sorry for the long spiel! I can definitely understand your position, but sometimes taking the cheaper way costs more in the long run (like getting a suit fixed from failed attempts to alter it). PAG's price guide is very helpful. Take those prices in consideration as well, as some alterations are more expensive than others.

As for my own first suit, I spent an entire day combing the outlet mall. I found only one suit that fit me, wasn't old-lady ish, and was interview-appropriate at Ann Taylor for $122. I could have checked the BR Factory store as well, but I wasn't as huge a BR fan as I am now.