Magee 1866 have been specialising in tailoring and luxury fabrics for over 150 years. We have always been renowned for our durable, hard-wearing suits – namely the original thorn-proof. This heavy, worsted woollen suit, made in the Convoy woollen mills in Donegal, simply didn’t wear out – the story goes that you could push a pencil through the cloth and then give the cloth a quick rub and one would never have known a pencil or said pencil hole had been there.

Fast forward to today and we are still producing sophisticated and beautifully tailored suits. Fabrics have developed over the years and have become much more lightweight and functional for today’s needs. The world is becoming a more casual place, but we strongly believe there will always be a place for a well-cut suit.

Here are a few of my favourite looks and outfits for the 9 – 5 week day wardrobe that work within the hectic lifestyle we all juggle today.

The Donegal tweed suit – drawing on our heritage we have adapted the original, rustic, (and a little bit rough) Donegal tweed and developed a fine, lambswool quality with the distinctive salt & pepper fleck. This season you can purchase this unique suit as a Mix & Match – i.e the jacket, trouser and waistcoat separately – this works really well if you are a. not a standard 6-inch drop (all our ‘nested suits’ are designed with a 6-inch drop – i.e. the difference between the jacket and trousers, e.g. a size 40R jacket will carry a 34R trouser) and b. you might not want the waistcoat but it does make for a lovely option on it’s own without a jacket, in case you are tempted! Here are four ways to wear your Donegal suit.

The classic pure new wool ‘business’ suit – new for this season, a luxury fine worsted wool featuring a subtle check with blue and on-trend brown. This luxurious fabric is designed and woven in England by Alfred Brown. Style with one of our luxury cotton white twill shirts and knit tie.

The Travel suit – this lightweight, stretch suit does exactly what is says on the tin – a durable, functional and yet very smart wool blend suit is a must for your work wardrobe. The fabric is designed to wear exceptionally well; travel – cars, trains and planes, it withstands long days in the office and it looks pretty good out of a suitcase. The added stretch makes this a really comfy suit. We do offer a waistcoat in this style but we also recommend the Kilgole knit waistcoat – a slightly more casual alternative to the classic suit waistcoat. This suit is available in black, navy or grey – and in two fits – classic & tailored.

Dress down options – while there will always be a place for a beautiful suit, we know there is an increasing need for a casual office look. Think comfortable chinos, (ours have 2% stretch = added comfort), a casual check shirt and cotton knitwear. If you need to dress it up a little, try one of our lightweight wool jackets – a great early fall/mid-season jacket.

The City Coat – all our coats are designed to wear over a suit jacket or standard blazer. This Autumn Winter the collection includes functional, shower-proof, lightweight Macs, cashmere blend classic wool car coats and my favourite – the Erne, a Donegal tweed raglan sleeve mid-length overcoat. (Available end September)

Finishing touches –

We have a unique collection of luxury accessories – English bridle leather belts – made in the UK, tweed and leather bags – the tweed is designed and woven by us in Donegal, Ireland. We also have a beautiful collection of ties and pocket hankies.

The Magee Made to Measure service is also worth remembering if you are looking for a suit for the office that fits you perfectly and features design details that you have chosen from our extensive collection – e.g. buttons, linings, collar meltons, piping and perhaps you initials embroidered on the inside left or under the collar.

Find out more – Made to Measure – own stores and selected stockists in the UK and Ireland.