When acquiring a blazer there are a number of important things to consider. The quality of the tailoring, the fabric, the colour and the style. However above all these consideration is the question of fit. A great fitting Blazer looks a million dollars. A poor fitting one, whatever it cost, looks a bit shabby.
See my previous post: How you can Tell if Your suit is a Perfect Fit.
There are two ways to achieve the perfect fit. By far the best option is to have a blazer tailored for you by a skilled craftsman. This way you can get a blazer that meets your particular needs and preferences. However, this is an expensive option and requires a great tailor.
A second option is to purchase a blazer from your favourite retailer and then have it adjusted. Many of the better retailers will offer that service so that you get a great fit. This is less expensive than bespoke tailoring but will also achieve a less impressive fit.
However, there is a third option. It will not achieve quite as effective results as the previous two but it is much more accessible. Option 3 is to find a retailer whose blazers are a great fit for you so that you can get away with not needing to have it adjusted.
For me M&S blazers fall into that category. Their blazers in 38 long are almost perfectly fitted to my size, shape and preferences. Without doubt there are more prestigious tailors from which I might source a blazer. However, there are few which fit as well straight off the rack. As a consequence I have a number in my collection.
M&S have a great range of blazers in a variety of styles and fabrics. Their prices typically range between £99 and £199. Even better they have also have periodic sales which means that I recently saw a great £99 blazer reduced to only £20. This is unusual value for a great fitting blazer.
If there is a downside to M&S is that they are on every high street. The chance of running into someone who is also wearing your blazer is unfortunately pretty high. At least you can take refuge in the fact that theirs is unlikely to be as great fitting as yours….
5 Year Project 
Good evening, I was hoping that you might be able to help me find out what blazer that is at the top of this blog – it is delightful with its almost pink check really making it stand out. Any help in locating such a garment would be most appreciated! Best, Ged.
Thanks for the comment Ged. I believe the blazer to which you refer is in fact from Charles Tyrwhitt. I agree it is stunning.
Regrettably, this is from their AW season 2013-14 so they are unlikely still to have it in stock. I had a look through my archives to see if I recorded the product code of that particular blazer. Regrettably, I did not. if you have access to a Charles Tyrwhitt store you might like to show them the pic to see if they have anything similar in stock or are likely to in the future. For similar types of Blazers try Cordings.co.uk They are at a higher price point than Tyrwhitt however. Less good but less expensive would be Joseph Turner.
Thank you kindly for your reply. Extremely useful, the delightful and endless hunt for the prefect jacket continues!