One reason men shy away from showing an interest in tailored clothing is due to the perceived pretentiousness surrounding the craft. Though we at the shop reject any such self-aggrandizement around clothing, society reinforces it by way of insider-y jargon and esoteric rules. The exact differences between suit jackets, sport coats, and blazers are common offenders.
With that, we’ve prepared this guide. We’ll explain what separates each garment, when to wear it, and how Philadelphia’s own dress codes — from Union League events to Main Line weddings — factor into the choice.
In this guide:
What Is A Suit?
We’ll start our discussion with the suit jacket. The defining characteristic of a suit jacket is that it’s part of a suit. That’s it. Manufactured with a matching pair of trousers in the same color, fabrication, and weight, it may have a vest or even an additional pair of pants to go with it.
In the made-to-measure and custom world, you can theoretically make a suit out of any material and in any color. Whether it’s a good idea or not to make a suit out of, say, bright yellow lambswool is beyond the scope of this blog post. Just know that the industry makes worsted wool in weights ranging from about seven ounces up to about twelve ounces. You can learn more about fabric weights and their properties here.
Still, you can find suits in cotton, linen, cashmere, bamboo, and plenty of other materials. Worsted wool is simply the most common textile. If you’re deciding how much to invest, our breakdown of what actually separates a $500 suit from a $5,000 suit is worth a read before you shop.
Suit jackets are available in single- and double-breasted models, with side or center vents, and with either notch or peak lapels.
Suit History
The word “suit” comes from the French verb suite, which means “to follow.” Suits as we know them have been around in some form since the late 19th century. Though we now wear them mostly as business attire, the original term for the garment was actually “lounge suit.” This is because men wore striped trousers and solid morning coats for business, but would change into a lounge suit when relaxing at home.
How to Wear a Suit Jacket
There are two ways to wear your suit jacket: with its matching pants, or with differently-colored pants of a similar fabrication and weight, which effectively turns it into a sport jacket. A navy suit jacket with medium grey pants is a perfect example of the sport coat-ification of a suit jacket. This versatility is one reason that men building the foundations of their professional wardrobe should start with a solid navy suit and a solid grey suit. Explore more about wardrobe building here.
It is generally not advisable to pair a suit jacket with jeans or chinos. This is what sport coats are for.
For the past ten to fifteen years continuing through today, the most common suits are two-button single-breasted models with notch lapels, side vents, and four buttons on each sleeve. Still, “correct” suit jackets are available in three-button models, double-breasted models, with peak lapels, and various front pocket styles, such as ticket pockets. If you’re weighing tuxedos against suits for a formal occasion, see our full breakdown of suits vs. tuxedos.
Whether it’s advantageous to wear one of these models is for you and your image consultant to determine — or start by browsing our custom suit program to see the options.
What Is A Blazer?
The modern blazer is just a solid-colored tailored jacket with metal buttons sewn to the jacket via a shank instead of standard “sew-through” buttons made of horn, mother-of-pearl, or plastic. This allows you to remove the buttons before dry cleaning, a practice still common for modern military dress uniforms.
The buttons can be various types of metal such as brass, pewter, gold, or sterling silver. Sold as solids or engraved with any design imaginable — fraternal organizations, alma maters, professional and personal interest symbols, and family crests — there’s something for everyone. The use of metal buttons with a shank is the most important defining feature of a blazer.
The classic “correct” blazer is solid navy blue with a 6×2 double-breasted stance. It has side vents, peak lapels, and gold buttons throughout — six on the front and four on each sleeve. Plenty of variants exist, the most common of which is a solid navy two-button single-breasted model.
Blazer History
One commonly discussed origin story of the blazer is that the captain of the British Navy’s HMS Blazer dressed his men in dark blue double-breasted jackets to impress Queen Victoria during an official visit. She liked it, and the term “blazer” stuck.
The true origin story also comes from 19th-century England, but from the civilian side. University rowing crews traditionally wore dark, flannel coats. A crew at St. John’s College, Cambridge called the Lady Margaret Boat Club decided to start decking themselves out in bright crimson ones instead. The term “blazer” was born after these jackets due to their association with their “blaze” of color.
How to Wear a Blazer
A blazer is one of the most versatile pieces of tailored clothing a man can own. The classic navy model can be paired with trousers in various shades of grey, cream, taupe, tan, and olive, then finished off with a shirt and tie for a dressed-up-but-still-casual look. Throwing one on with a pair of well-fitted chinos, boat shoes, and a polo is almost a caricature of preppy dress — though we admit that it’s a hell of a summer look.
Lots of men eschew blazers because the metal buttons turn them off. Still, we encourage men of all ages to give the well-constructed, properly fitted blazer a chance — and a properly fitted one is really the whole game. See our notes on how to tell if a jacket is genuinely well made.
What Is A Sport Coat?
Lastly, we come to sport coats, or sport jackets. A sport jacket is a tailored jacket without matching garments, such as pants. It’s typical to hear sport coats referred to as blazers; this is incorrect. Technically, every blazer is a sport coat, but not every sport coat is a blazer. This is an example of where knowing the difference between suits, sport coats, and blazers will save you a lot of time looking for the wrong thing.
Sport coats are a more casual garment than a suit jacket or blazer. One can wear it with a tie, but it truly shines when dressed down. Bi-swing backs, belts, elbow patches, and throat latches are sport coat-specific details you won’t typically find elsewhere.
Due to their casual nature, sport coats are available in a wider variety of fabric types and colors than most suits. While solid-colored sport coats are perfectly common, bold plaids in colorways like forest green with burgundy, tan with marine blue, and lavender on steel grey can be found in most well-dressed men’s closets. The world of fabric opens wide here — worsted wool is popular, but flannels, cashmeres, silk, linen, and cotton are all common in modern sport coats.
In recent years, we’ve noticed ourselves making a higher proportion of sport coats rather than suits for our clients, most likely a byproduct of the casualization of the workplace. Explore our full sport coat and trouser program to see fabric options.
History of the Sport Coat
The term “sport jacket” comes from the outdoor sporting traditions of the late-19th-to-early-20th century British aristocracy — horseback riding, fox hunting, and shooting all come to mind. One of the earliest known sport coats is the “Norfolk jacket,” featuring a pleated back and a full or half-belt that expanded so the wearer could fire a shotgun. Custom versions are available with these details today, and many look like suit jackets having more fun than their business-y cousins.
How to Wear Sport Jackets
The key to successfully wearing sport jackets is to have versatile pants and shirts in your closet to complement them. A few pairs in solid dark blue, mid grey, tan, or chocolate will work with many different sport jackets. If you need help working with colors, explore our fundamentals of color coordination.
A modern classic look is to pair a sport jacket with dark jeans and a white dress shirt. The result is effortless style, assuming everything fits well.
Which One Should You Wear? A Philadelphia Occasion Guide
Philadelphia has its own texture of dress codes, and knowing the room matters as much as knowing the garment.
- Center City business meeting or law/finance office: A proper suit, preferably in a conservative navy, grey, or charcoal color.
- Union League lunch: A sport coat, blazer or suit would all do. Most Union League events require a necktie and some are black tie so be sure to check requirements.
- Main Line country club dinner or wedding: Blazer, ideally with a tie, especially for the ceremony portion.
- Rittenhouse Row dinner or date night: Sport coat, paired with dark jeans or chinos.
- Fall gallery opening in Old City: Sport coat in tweed or flannel — this is exactly the kind of relaxed-but-put-together setting a sport coat was made for. If you’re dressing for the season generally, see our guide to Philly fall wedding suits and layering for spring.
- Job interview anywhere in the city: Suit jacket, full suit, no exceptions.
If you’re not sure which category your event falls into, that’s exactly what a consultation with one of our image consultants is for — bring the invitation and we’ll tell you precisely what to wear.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I wear a suit jacket as a blazer? Not recommended. Suit jackets are cut from the same fabric as their matching trousers and will fade unevenly if worn and dry-cleaned separately from the pants over time. If you want a jacket that pairs with different trousers, buy a blazer or sport coat instead of repurposing a suit jacket.
Is a blazer more formal than a sport coat? Yes. A blazer sits between a suit jacket and a sport coat on the formality spectrum — more structured and typically solid-colored, versus the casual fabrics and patterns common in sport coats.
Can a blazer be worn with jeans? Yes, though it leans more casual than its traditional use. A navy blazer with dark, well-fitted jeans and a white shirt is a classic smart-casual look, popularized in part by Andy Warhol.
What’s the main visual difference between a blazer and a sport coat? Buttons are the fastest tell — blazers use metal buttons attached via a shank, while sport coats typically use horn, leather, or plastic buttons. Blazers are also more likely to be solid navy, while sport coats come in a much wider range of patterns.
Do I need all three in my wardrobe? For most Philadelphia professionals, yes eventually — but if you’re building a wardrobe from scratch, start with a versatile suit (navy or grey), add a navy blazer next, and round out with a sport coat once you have the basics covered. Our image consultants can help sequence this based on your actual calendar of events.
In Conclusion
Knowing the difference between suits, sport coats, and blazers will enable you to put forth your most impactful image. If you need help parsing through that aspect of your life, the image consultants at Henry A. Davidsen are here to help.
Request a Complimentary Consultation or call 215-310-0219 to start managing your image.
