Presenting Evan’s top menswear picks in the Nordstrom sale! His stats for reference: 6’1″, 210 pounds, XL in tops, 36 in bottoms, 13 in shoes. For John’s top menswear picks, visit his full article here.
I don’t know how other men are with shopping for themselves, but my husband has to literally be forced to buy himself anything. I mean one of his shorts are ‘I don’t know how many years old’. They are ripped to shreds on one leg, and yet he still wears them around the yard or after he gets home from work. Seriously?!?
Here are his reasonings:
1. I spend all our money on my clothes (okay, fair enough).
2. He doesn’t need anything (ummm, ripped shorts above, I beg to differ)!
3. He doesn’t feel like trying on (for two years now, I’ve heard this one)!
Well this time I said “nope, you are going”. He only gave in because I promised the discounts would be really good (he will only buy for himself if on deep sale)!
So I tracked down the salesman who seemed the most patient and a little bit older. We all started grabbing stuff from the racks for him to try. By the time we headed to the dressing room, every hook was full. I think Evan was a bit overwhelmed, but he soldiered on.
First up were shorts. This one was a non-negotiable (see above), ha! Rachel’s husband, John, had already advised us his favorite brand — Travis Matthew, so that’s what I mostly grabbed.
top (different color – XL) | shorts (36) | shoes (grey, 13)
First question…why are men’s clothes SO much cheaper than women’s? Above he is wearing a Theory polo (I cannot find his particular color online) and the sale price was only $57.90 (40% off $95). If I had to pick my two favorite brands for him, it would be, without question, Theory and Vince. They are both so consistent for quality and style.
Travis Matthew Shorts
Once he tried and decided he liked the Travis Matthew shorts, he bought the dark grey (above), medium blue, and a light grey. They are true to size in his normal size 36. I think he has learned a lot from me…when he got home, he tried the blue pair on (with tags on) and walked around, sat down, put stuff in the pockets, etc. His review:
I think they are comfortable, not hot or cold, stretchy, deep pockets (important so things don’t fall out when you are sitting down!), not tight on the waistband, and they feel durable…and fashionable, I guess.
They have a subtle stripe that makes them even better.
Ted Baker Shorts
The only other pair of shorts he bought was this pair of Ted Baker in tan. They are a little dressier than the Travis Matthew, which he needed. He did have to size up to 38R in this brand (which can be pretty common with UK brands, in my experience).
Theory Short Sleeve Tops
We started buying him Theory polos years ago (during an anniversary sale) and they are a staple in his wardrobe. One thing to note…he will NOT wear short sleeve shirts with pockets in them, hahaha. These are all free of pockets, phew! These are true to size for him — he always wears XL.
They don’t get too hot, feel comfortable, don’t feel too big or too small, and make me look like a really hot model, even though I’m not.
We also picked up this dressy linen top for him, which I personally LOVE. I think it’s the perfect summer top for a man.
Vince Short Sleeve Tops
Vince polos are similar to Theory. Both of these brands have the same high quality, comfort, and style…so they are equally loved by both of us. These are true to size for him — he always wears XL.
We also bought this top which looks so good on. Very stylish for year-round.
Robert Barakett Tops
These are another favorite brand of his. He always picks up a few of these tops whenever they are on sale. They look stylish, wash well, and fit comfortably and true to size.
Faherty Long Sleeve Top
He only ended up with one long sleeve top…mostly because he wouldn’t let me look anymore and he does have a lot of nice dress shirts, so it wasn’t a true need. This is the first time he’s tried the brand Faherty and I really like it on him. The material is really soft. It fit true to size in XL.
Magnanni Shoes
I found these shoes on sale earlier this year and brought them home to him. To my surprise he actually loves them and has been wearing them a ton all summer long. These are a year-round shoe. I love the grey which is almost a washed grey – very versatile.
He also has a pair of black Eccos that we got on deep sale — he says the Magnannis are night and day better. The Eccos are tight, not comfortable for long periods of time, and are not nearly as stylish. So he wears the Eccos only if he doesn’t want to wear his “nice” shoes…he’s all about keeping his stuff in perfect condition. These are true to size for him — he always wears size 13.
His exact shoes are not available at Nordstrom at the moment, nor on sale, but they are really great, and available at Zappos.com.
Here are the similar Magnanni shoes included in the Anniversary sale.
Oooh, HUGE SALE alert! I saw this slightly different style JUST went on sale…$199 down from $325.
Zappos.com sale shoes (TTS)
top (XL) | jeans (36) | shoes (13)
Paige and Frame Jeans
Jeans are one of those things he likes to try on in person vs ordering online, because he shops so rarely he doesn’t know the cut and style well enough. He is a true 36 in pants and he does get his jeans tailored right at Nordstrom as they are always too long.
In the past, he has favored AG and Rag & Bone, but this time, surprisingly, he went home with Paige and Frame.
It looks like one of the Paige jeans he bought (Paige Lennox in colorway Giles) were on sale but not part of the anniversary sale…they are also a much better wash in person than online! These are the three jeans he bought, all in size 36, all had to be hemmed by Nordstrom (alterations included).
A Golf Outfit (with sun protection)!
He’s actually golfing this week so he needed something new. The tops are by Peter Millar (of all things, I had heard this brand advertised on XM radio!) and the pants are by Travis Matthew (same as the shorts above).
He had to size down to L in the tops, as the XL was swimming on him. We brought home both of these, and they are both rated for UPF 50+ sun protection. We didn’t realize this until we got home – bonus for sure!
He is a true 36 in these pants and they fit similarly to the shorts in that they stretch beautifully with you. He bought these in navy.
That completes Evan’s top menswear picks in the Nordstrom sale, and at that point, he was DONE. He was hot, tired, and hungry (hangry?!) But he was a trooper and he did well. Now he says he won’t be shopping again for another two years, oh boy!
