Like many Southerners, I look forward to celebrating Easter Sunday, anticipating the Master’s golf tournament and watching the Kentucky Derby. I also anticipate the first opportunity to wear fashionable summer suits. Lightweight cotton fabrics are perfect for the long, dog days of Dixie summers. Let’s take a peek at the history of seersucker and how to wear the South’s classic fabric.
What is Seersucker?
(Haspel in New Orleans is one of the South’s finest men’s clothiers and specializes in seersucker)
Seersucker is a 100 percent cotton fabric known for its puckered texture. It has a slightly rumpled or worn look to it, which is part of its charm. Seersucker can be found in a variety of colors today, although the most popular color is blue and white. Grey is one of my favorite suit colors, and I have several pairs of shorts ranging from blue to green, red, and orange.
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Seersucker’s History
Initially invented in India as a cotton fabric for the working class in the late 1880s, the fabric also became popular with the American working class railroad engineers in the late 19th century.
Railroad workers were some of the first to wear seersucker
New Orleans haberdasher Joseph Haspel, Sr., the founder of Haspel clothiers in New Orleans, is credited with bringing the seersucker (the Persian definition meaning milk and sugar) suit to America in 1909.
Seeking a fabric that was light and cool and could withstand the humidity of southern Louisiana, Haspel’s introduction of seersucker was not an overnight success. Similar to India, the fabric remained a favorite with the working-class folks such as America’s gas station attendants. When worn as a suit, well, it was considered a “poor man’s suit.”
Northerners Take Notice
During the 1920’s Ivy Leaguers donned the “candy stripe” material, and it became vogue with the fashionable east coast preppies. After Brooks Brothers began selling the suits, its popularity skyrocketed. When the Duke of Windsor hid out in the Bahamas during World War II, he often wore the fabric for the reasons intended; it was much cooler than wool or heavy cotton, and he exhibited a “dapper” look. In 1945, columnist Damon Runyon declared the seersucker suit “a badge of affluence.”
In 1977 the company was sold. However, family members reacquired the licensing rights in the mid-1990s, and now Laurie Haspel Aronson, the founder’s great-granddaughter, oversees the company. I recommend that you visit Haspel’s website to see the 2021 line of top-quality seersucker items. I particularly like the purple seersucker addition.
Throughout the 1950s and 60s, the seersucker suit became popular with the southern legal set.
Gregory Peck brought attention to the seersucker suit in his role in “To Kill A Mockingbird.”
For some reason, Gregory Peck, in his role as Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird, immortalized the seersucker suit as something worn by most southern lawyers. I am amazed each time I wear a seersucker suit; people ask if I am an attorney. No, all I can lay claim to is being a politician and a writer.
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Wearing seersucker is as much attitude as fabric.
Let me explain. While some men look great in seersucker, others look foolish. Confidence is a huge factor when donning seersucker.
Maybe legendary GQ fashion editor Bruce Boyer said it best when he used the term “sprezzatura,” defined as “the art of appearing stylish without any appearance of effort,” in describing why some men wear seersucker so well.
The bottom line is if you think you look good and feel comfortable in seersucker, then, by all means, try it out. If you think you look foolish in one, then don’t.
Interestingly, seersucker suits can also be found in navy and as a tuxedo in black.
Wearing a seersucker suit, sportcoat, shirt, or shorts should be both a function of weather and style. It’s light, comfortable, and rarely needs pressing. More importantly, seersucker feels soft on bare skin in 90 plus degree southern heat.
Laurie Haspel Aronson holds one of her family’s classic seersucker suits (Biz New Orleans)
As is the case with every suit, quality, and fit are essential. Haspel still manufactures top-notch jackets and trousers. Quality men’s stores such as Levy’s in Nashville, TN, Brooks Brothers, and other quality local clothiers carry the New Orleans clothier’s line. Jos A. Banks sells several suits, shirts, and short colors. However, their material is not near the quality of Haspel, which I highly recommend.
When Does Seersucker Season Begin and End?
Speaking of gentlemanly southern lawyers, Memphis attorney Bill Haltom is such a seersucker fan he penned a must-read book on the subject, “Milk & Sugar: The Complete Book of Seersucker.” An entire chapter is devoted to parameters such as when to wear it.
“I define the season based on whether you are North or South of the ‘sweet tea’ line,” explained Haltom. “There are three schools of thought on the issue. If you live South of the line, it’s Easter through Labor Day. If you live North of the line, the season typically runs from Memorial Day to Labor Day. I do believe the season is part of the allure of the fabric.”
While Haltom and other purists strictly adhere to the “southern” season, a third group to which I belong will wear seersucker past Labor Day, assuming the temperature exceeds 85 degrees. I’ve worn seersucker on hot October days, and no one arrested me! However, I do agree your white bucks should be retired after Labor Day.
Ways to Accessorize
Shirts – Like most any suit, you can dress this fabric up or down. Haltom commonly refers to seersucker as a “casually elegant suit.” For dressing up, I recommend a high-quality, white cotton shirt. Most any collar style works, but I have to say a button-down collar works well with seersucker. For a slightly more formal look, I recommend a spread collar, but make sure you’re wearing the collar that’s right for you and your body. For a more casual look, you can add some color to your shirt. I have a purple button-down shirt with a minimal windowpane design that I like to wear tieless with my grey seersucker suit.
Shoes – For a more conservative or formal look, I recommend black or brown loafers. Keep in mind seersucker is a more casual look, so lace-up wingtips or cap toes look a bit awkward, at least in my opinion.
These brown and white shoes go well with seersucker
The exception here is a pair of brown and white Oxford Brogues.
For a casual, sophisticated summer look, nothing, and I mean nothing, beats a pair of lace-up white bucks, especially while attending the Iroquois Steeplechase near Nashville, TN, on a warm day in May. On occasion, I’ll wear a pair of dirty bucks too.
White bucks are ideal with summer suits & trousers
Ties – Many tie patterns complement a seersucker suit. I especially like rep (stripped) ties and bow ties (pre-tied not allowed) with seersucker. NOTE: Do Not Wear a seersucker tie with a seersucker suit.
Pocket Squares – Definitely. White linen is a primary go-to but splashes up your look with a colorful silk pocket square. Pre-folded pocket squares are not allowed – anywhere.
Remember, seersucker is a fabric so think of it as such. It’s an excellent warm-weather addition to any wardrobe. Haspel’s 2020 line is geared toward the millennial generation, once again making it a timeless fabric for generations to come.
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