I was discussing techniques with a tailor by email and was having trouble describing something so I thought “blog post”. We typically find two types of tailored sleeve in men’s suiting- English tailors often cut what is known as a 50-50 sleeve, whose under sleeve is roughly the same width as the top sleeve. More common today is a sleeve with what is known as a “false forearm” because the forearm seam is offset fromRead More
The Anatomy of a Suit is an exhibit now showing at the London Museum and apparently dissects suits, some historical, to show the innards. While they sadly did not appear to proof their material, it would still be an interesting thing to see. Running until June 2014 Also, a reader points out a new source for Agreman gimp, my gimp of choice for hand made buttonholes. This can be bought at WAWAK sewing supplies. ThanksRead More
A few years ago I dissected a pair of Henry Poole coats and was somewhat surprised to find that the lapels and collars had been padded by machine. Rory Duffy, who trained in coat making at Poole’s, recently visited with his former master and had some news. Owner and President Angus Cundey has since insisted that all of their garments be hand-padded in order to maintain the traditions of Savile Row tailoring. While I haveRead More
More videos to follow my previous post. Thanks to Andrew Yamato and Rory Duffy The Making of a Coat #7 – Constructing the Chest from Andrew Yamato on Vimeo. The Making of a Coat #8 – Padding the Chest from Andrew Yamato on Vimeo. The Making of a Coat #9 – Making the Collar from Andrew Yamato on Vimeo. The Making of a Coat #10 – Darting the Canvas from Andrew Yamato on Vimeo. TheRead More
Reposting some tailoring porn that I enjoyed, in case readers missed it elsewhere. They’re well-filmed and fun to watch. Andrew Yamato has been producing a series of videos highlighting the work of Rory Duffy, a Henry-Poole trained cutter and winner of the Golden Shears award. I’ll post only the videos here, but if you would like some insight into the filmmaker’s point of view, you can find it at A Suitable Wardbrobe. Sadly, one ofRead More
Claire Shaeffer is one of the most recognized authors on couture sewing so when she contacted me about her latest book, I was excited to see it. Entitled Couture Sewing: The Couture Cardigan Jacket, for legal reasons she probably can’t refer to it as a Chanel jacket, but I can. It arrived this week and while I am not finished reading it, a comment left on another post prompted me to get this out thereRead More
Three weeks ago I was contacted by a retailer. They had a photoshoot planned for this week with one of their vendors, but that vendor had abruptly and unexpectedly pulled out of their stores leaving them with nobody to dress the model. Three weeks is tough when we haven’t yet fit the person, but is doable. Then they dropped a bomb on me. Two, actually. Retailer-He’s a basketball player- he’s 6″11″. Me-Yikes. So how soonRead More
The job sometimes comes with fun little perks. I spent the weekend in New York, fitting the commentators for NBC’s football coverage. They now share studio space with Saturday Night Live so when we were done we got to tour the set, which was really cool. Next week I will be going back, to fit the guys from the EPL and NHL, and also to outfit the Olympics commentators.
I once wrote a rant about the importance of hangers to fine tailored clothing (you can read it here) Like any investment piece, it worth spending a little extra to take care of it, whether it’s a cover for your iPad or a case for your phone or a cover for your boat or classic car. Clothing is no different. Most hangers do not provide adequate support to the shoulder and collar and cause actuallyRead More
The statistics regarding return rates of online clothing purchases are pretty staggering but the reality of the importance of online shopping is such that they need to be addressed. The biggest obstacle is fit; when shopping in a store, you can try a garment on, even in several different sizes, and judge the fit before you buy. Shopping online is a crap-shoot; even if you know your usual size in garments, the garment you areRead More
