I’ve linked this video before, but here it is again. Sometimes promotional material can push the envelope a bit in order to look good, and I admit that a few moments during this video I found myself thinking “Oh, really?” Well, yes. Really. Thanks go out to Des Esseintes for donating this coat from Francesco Smalto. A few posts back I remember lamenting the fact that certain houses get way overhyped and others don’t haveRead More
Year: 2011
If you happen to be in Chicago, I highly recommend the Festival des métiers, or celebration of craftsmanship, going on at Hermès on Oak Street until Wednesday March 16 (right across the street from Despos *ahem*). A craftsperson representing each of the product categories is on hand, making their product, largely by hand. A leatherworker sits making a Kelly bag, whose handle alone requires 4 hours of work, and 18 hours in all to hand-craftRead More
The latest sample I purchased on ebay thanks to a tip from RJMan. Maurice Sedwell enjoys an excellent reputation and its proprietor, Andrew Ramroop, is very keen on explaining the many reasons why. Of course, one of the first things I look at when examining a garment are the buttonholes and buttons, and these are very good. The buttons have been beautifully shanked and stand up to attention like a row of horn soldiers. IRead More
I am beginning to wonder if the 1980’s were just dark years for West-End tailors. The latest dissection candidate, (donated by mack11211, thank you) is a piece by London’s Fallan and Harvey, dating to 1984 and it is, at best, underwhelming, coming from one of a group of tailors who are supposed to be the finest in the world. Let’s assume, however, that the garment fit and the customer was pleased and that the nit-pickingRead More
For the buttonholes on the cashmere jacket I settled on a taupy shade from my stash of vintage twist, in this case Rice’s. I prefer a finer thread, but it works. Things that are in the pipeline- dissections of Savile Row houses Fallan & Harvey and Maurice Sedwell, a vintage dinner jacket from a Havana tailor, and a very interesting coat from French house Smalto. Also on their way- I just bought four lengths ofRead More
I’ve ranted a few times about the many reasons I dislike the use of steamers on tailored clothing, but one of the reasons which I failed to fully explain was ironwork. Tailors use heat and steam to transform a flat piece of cloth into a 3-dimensional shape, only some of which occurs due to seams and darts, the rest is worked up with the iron (thus, ironwork). Here’s a look at what goes into theRead More
I’m nearing completion of a sportcoat made out of a somewhat unusual piece of cashmere from Johnstons of Elgin, so I am beginning to think about buttonhole thread. A check of this nature is sometimes challenging when the buttonholes sit on different area of colour; the normal practice of matching one colour of buttonhole thread might go out the window in favor of matching whatever stripe the buttonhole happens to sit on. I am evenRead More
In the world of tailored clothing, there are houses that are, in my opinion, seriously overhyped, and others who deserve a lot more attention than they get. Chris Despos falls into the latter category. Based now in Chicago, Chris once operated out of Dallas, a city he frequently travels to, in addition to others, so if you are looking for one of the country’s (perhaps one of the world’s) top tailors outside of the ManhattanRead More
The next suit to be dissected is an old bespoke number; made back in 1992, it has clearly been worn. Hard. There is evidence of the waist having been let out but more telling is this- the owner wore right through the knee lining. If I look at the areas of the garment which show the most stress, namely the hem of the trouser (including the inside), the sleeve hem and the seat area, thisRead More
As promised, a vintage Chester Barrie coat courtesy of RSS. Thank you. In the previous dissection we looked at a garment made in Italy by D’Avenza, a shop that was set up by Chester Barrie and thus has certain similarities in make. They are not the same age so some of the differences might be attributed to changes in production methods, but it is interesting (to me) nonetheless. Right off the bat, the un-jetted pocketRead More