This guide is going to be helpful for the man who has lost a little weight -- not a enormous amount. Men who were severely overweight and dropped a substantial amount of weight will often require a new wardrobe. Items such as suit jackets can be very expensive to alter, as opposed to slacks, and there is only so much you can take in. So, if you went from a size 48 to a size 36, it probably serves you best to get a new a wardrobe. However, if you were only a bit overweight and went down about two sizes, there is no reason to ditch your entire wardrobe and get new clothes. You can get your suit altered and take care of some other minor issues. Here's a brief primer.

Suit Alterations: Taking In The Waist

The trickiest part of the suit to alter is the jacket. Most men who lose significant weight might want to speak with a tailor, like those at Fifi's Tailor & Custom Design, about waist suppression. This can help bring in the suit jacket and make it appear less baggy. The tailor will discuss how much you can alter the jacket. In severe cases, where you have lost significant fat in areas such as your upper back, shoulders, and arms, the jacket will often be too big and need to be replaced. But for a slight weight loss, waist suppression is quite feasible.

The more common suit alteration you will be dealing with is the pants waist. It's perfectly fine to have that taken in two sizes. This will tighten up the slacks and make it so that you don't look like you're wearing baggy slacks at the office. You will have to bring your suit in and stand for the tailor so that they can measure and mark off just exactly where it is you need the slacks to be.

Re-cutting A Belt

Your belt might be too loose now. If you cinch it super tight, you will look like you're wearing clothes that are too big, and it will look odd. Also, don't add extra holes to the belt because it won't look proper. Instead, you will want to have the belt re-cut. Tailors don't handle this, so you should head to your local cobbler or shoe repair store. What they do is open up the buckle area and cut material from the front and then resew the buckle area. This shortens the belt without disturbing the overall appearance of the belt.