The Art of Bespoke Tailoring

Many younger men have a growing interest in ordering their first bespoke suit due to the burgeoning #menswear scene online with websites like tumblr.com showcasing a selection of impeccably cut suits worn by gentlemen in the European fashion capitals such as Florence, Milan and London. I say European, because broadly, I believe European trained tailors (specifically British, Italian and French) are the best tailors. Their nationality does not matter so much as the location of their initial training.

I should say as I write this piece that I am not new to tailoring, having an uncle who is a tailor I’m fortunate enough to have had suits made me for me since I was a teenager. Some of my suits that I still wear today are now over 10 years old then, and have been altered as much as possible (maybe a bit tight now!) but I still love to wear them. I get asked a lot about tailoring by other guys when I am at various fashion industry events as I wear bespoke suits largely so thought I would finally write down my advice on the subject, although I am by no means an expert in the sense that I am not a tailor, so please read this as an offering by an ‘educated customer’. Everything stated below is therefore just my preferences, not necessarily hard and fast rules.

Firstly then, tailoring is a collaborative process. You will get the best results if you engage confidently with your tailor. For example, one tailor I have worked with recently told me: “the jacket I am making for you is based on your personality, the silhouette, it’s all down to how I interact with the client, it could be a completely different cut on another guy with the same build as you”. Interestingly, I have had a few tailors tell me the type of guys they most enjoy working with are not necessarily the wealthy men who come in and order 10 bespoke business suits for work all at once (yes, it really happens) but more the men who are enthusiastic and engaged with the process. They themselves got into this business because they have a genuine passion for suit-making, so naturally, they love to work with clients who have a genuine passion for suiting.

Understanding Bespoke Suits versus Made To Measure

There are some incredible misconceptions about the tailoring process and what it means to get a bespoke suit.

Firstly to define the term ‘bespoke’ or Americans use it ‘custom tailoring’. Bespoke basically means a paper pattern is entirely made uniquely for you and you only.

Made To Measure (MTM) is a different thing entirely and takes existing patterns (or ‘blocks’) and changes them a bit so that they fit you better than an ‘off the peg’ (or ready to wear / RTW) garment would fit you. They can make their existing patterns a bit taller, shorter, wider, slimmer to accommodate your body shape. But these block patterns cannot tolerate someone who has one longer arm or one lower shoulder (both more common than you’d think).

MTM is a close second best to bespoke and almost certainly better than off the peg suits that most gentlemen buy. Why? There is really no such thing as a ‘40-Regular’ guy. You may have a 40” chest and a 32” waist but that same 40R jacket is also meant to fit the man who has a 40” chest and 36” waist – as you can guess that means the same jacket is going to be too baggy around the waist on you.

So, the third option then is to get the RTW garment tailored by a tailor. It will most certainly fit you better than it did before and you will look immediately better than you did before.

With those different terms now clarified, let’s move on to the next stage of why a man might choose to commission a bespoke suit. Here’s what bespoke is and isn’t:

What bespoke tailoring is and can offer you:

• A chance to create a great fitting suit
• A chance to improve your style using your tailor’s expertise
• Create a garment with your personality
• A chance to talk with like-minded people about clothes

What bespoke tailoring is NOT:

• A strict necessity to get a nicely fitted suit in this day and age
• Good value for money when you choose a more expensive ‘brand name’ tailor, all things considered (controversial)
• A magic wand to make you slimmer, taller, more muscular, more handsome

So, let’s start with the “nots”.

There is a common misconception I have often come across online in forums about clothes or even just general conversations with people when the subject of tailoring arises. I think I can understand why, and it’s probably largely due to the way tailoring is portrayed in popular media.

It goes something like this:

“James Bond wears Savile Row suits. If I go to a Savile Row tailor, I will look like James Bond.”

Or:

“This famous person wore a custom made Giorgio Armani or Tom Ford tuxedo on the red carpet. If I go to the same maker and get the same tuxedo I will therefore look as good as Famous Person.”

James Bond, whichever actor you choose, is, unfortunately for us other gentleman who aren’t James Bond, a good-looking guy and typically in good shape. Tailoring can do many things, but sadly, it cannot make someone better looking or give us broader shoulders or a slimmer waist, only give the illusion of these things to a varying degree. In fact most of us would probably be better losing a bit of weight and getting a ready-to-wear suit taken in a bit to look a lot better.

Some get a suit made and expect to feel stardust on them on the final fitting, maybe because they spent a lot of money and visited the same tailor as the actor they hoped to emulate. Unfortunately, ultimately, it still remains… Just a suit.

I mention this because if you are going in some way come out of the tailoring store looking like the red-carpet personified, you will probably come out slightly disappointed. This is also a common theme on many #menswear related websites – “it just didn’t turn out quite how I expected it to!” So the key is to have realistic expectations of what a bespoke suit can do for you.

Choosing A Good Tailor

In all major British and Italian cities there are good tailors. Unfortunately many websites that discuss tailoring in the UK focus on London only. Savile Row has almost become a ‘brand name’ and although it’s reputation is much deserved, to say Savile Row is the only place to get a good suit made is like saying the only good doctors are based in Harley Street, London. But yes, the training and apprenticeships offered on Savile Row are excellent as is the handwork. Of courses the prices match and if you can comfortably afford a Savile Row tailor, it is certainly an enjoyable indulgence to use one. If you are on a lesser budget, do some research in your local city – I believe in most British cities you can get a bespoke suit made for approx. £1200 as a starting point with a good quality, basic made in Britain (Leeds, Yorkshire or Edinburgh, Scotland) cloth. In Italy the prices are equivalent in Euros, but like London, will get more expensive if you choose a brand-name tailor in Naples or Rome.

Fabric Selection

If this is your first suit (and not for a wedding) you should choose a solid, plain grey or navy fabric. These colours are the most versatile and you will be able to make the most outfit combinations with these suits, with blue, white or pink shirts for example. Any other colour suit and the versatility of the suit lessens.

Do not choose a black fabric for a complete suit. Black suits should really only be worn for funerals or black tie events. It really only looks good against non-Caucasian skin (e.g. non European descent). Even then, black fabric, under certain light, can look shiny and cheap – it doesn’t matter how expensive the fabric actually is. If you want something super dark, ask your tailor to show you midnight blue fabrics, which are near to black (navy) but much better on all skin tones. Similarly, there are colours that do not work so well on darker or Oriental skin making you look washed out or tired. A navy or grey suit will work no matter what your ethnicity.

Prince of Wales and large overcheck suits are for advanced dressers only. At this stage, and starting out with bespoke, you are not an advanced dresser.

Fabric Composition

If you are British or Northern European, go for something which is either 100% wool or mixed with cashmere on your first suit, due to the climate.

Do not go for anything that contains synthetic content (nylon, polyester etc) they may be cheaper fabrics than those that are 100% wool, but honestly, they will look like your old school pants did after a few months with a shiny backside and heavily bobbled. 100% wool fabrics will not bobble.

Do not be fooled by price, this is one area of menswear where the price doesn’t really indicate quality. Maybe up until this point in your life you have always bought high quality brand name clothing and seen this as a mark of quality. You may bring this attitude to your first bespoke suit and think ‘the more expensive the fabric, the better the quality’ – strangely, this is not really true. As long as it is all wool, you can get some very hardy cheap and cheerful wool fabrics which will really stand the test of time. The fabric patterns may not be so elaborate at the lower price points, but because it is your first suit and you’re buying a plain design anyway, this is not an issue.

About linen: although a good quality natural material, is a more temperamental fabric and most British and American men are conditioned to not like creases in their clothes. Linen creases terribly and can also ‘bag out’ over time. For example, I have 100% linen trousers which are technically slim fit but look baggy after a few wears and washes. Linen suits basically looks best on Italian gentlemen who get to sip espressos and eat fresh pasta in the grand palazzos of Florence, Rome and Naples. It may not translate so well if you live elsewhere.

Fabric Weight

If you are British or Northern European, I recommend the cloth be at least 10oz – 12oz. This is a reference to how heavy the fabric is. Personally I feel this weight works best for our climates. Lighter weight fabrics are great for Italy etc but you will really ‘feel’ your suit best when it’s a sturdier cloth.

If you live in Europe’s warmer climates then we are jealous of you and you can certainly opt for a lighter weight fabric. Although of course, be aware, that lighter weight fabrics appear to ripple a lot more. If for example your shirt is heavily rippled or creased underneath your suit, you may see the ripples appear also in your lightweight fabric jacket. Similarly with very lightweight fabric trousers you may be able to see your underwear lines against your trousers when you sit down.

What To Do At Your First Tailor’s Appointment (Fabric Selection and Measurement Stage)

You should not feel rushed in any way. If you feel rushed, this is a bad sign. No matter what you spend on a bespoke suit, you should be given time to consider your style options and fabric choices.

Equally however, you must listen to your tailor. Do not ask him to do a style he is unfamiliar or uncomfortable in doing. Even if he relents, he will be unlikely to do it well. In which case you have wasted both of your time, and your money.

Ask to see some garments he is currently making. There is no harm in this and most tailors will be glad to show you their work. Again, if they are not, alarm bells should ring. If you don’t see any styles you like the look of, (in terms of detailing, not the fabric colour chosen by other customers) you should probably not use this tailor.

When Getting Measured. Important.

Do not suck in your belly. I repeat, do not suck in your belly. Unless you intend to lose some serious weight between now and the time you collect your suit, there is just no point in pretending to be slimmer than you are. Remember, the tailor will be creating a suit for you based on measurements he takes on this day. If you are holding in your gut 3-4 inches as he measures your waist, you are only going to end up with an uncomfortably slim pair of trousers in a few weeks time which will need to be adjusted, only causing further delay.

Do not stand like a soldier.

This is so tempting to do. We want to show our best posture, shoulders back, head held high. But most of us do not stand like Buckingham Palace Household Guards in our day-to-day lives. The problem in standing like this when being measured and (later when you get to the fitting stages) is that this is not the real you and the tailor will not be able to notice any fitting issues you have in your real day-to-day stance if you stand like a soldier during your fittings. So just stand naturally while being measured. Strangely, that is harder to do than you may think when you feel you are being observed and your body scrutinised. Practice a few times at home before you go in.

The Tailor Is Your Professional Friend, Not Your Best Friend

This is one I struggle with because I love clothes and the process of getting clothes made for me and so I like to talk a lot when I visit my tailors. So typically you will have a lot of interests in common with your tailor and many a time you will become friends with them as you get more items made. So why do I say do not treat the tailor like your best friend?

I have read horror stories online where customers have become too friendly with tailors and as a result, been afraid to raise an issue they were very unhappy with because they did not want to upset the friendship in anyway. So, ultimately, the suit became a waste of money and time in those instances where the suit could not be easily fixed to the customer’s taste (most things can be fixed though – although anything involving the shoulder line is more difficult). Let common sense and good manners prevail here, be friendly with your tailor, but try to keep the relationship professional just in case you need to be bit firm with them on something you are not happy with as the suit nears completion. As you get familiar with the process and maybe get more garments made, you can relax a bit here.

First Suit Fitting and Second Fitting

This is the stage where the canvas unfinished garment is fitted over your body and adjustments are made by the tailor and also according to your taste (for example, how slim do you want it to fit against your torso or how wide do your want your lapels to be). If you have no clue about these issues, that’s ok, it is best to take your tailor’s advice. He has many years experience on what will work best on a man of your frame. You can of course take some pictures in with you to guide the tailor.

Some tailors do more fittings than others, it really doesn’t matter how many they do, if they have a good eye for spotting issues.

When you go to your final fitting (picking up the suit)

I have also noticed a trend while reading others’ experiences to want a ‘perfectly’ fitting suit with zero ripples anywhere and zero movement of structural pieces. I may be about to say something controversial now, but I do not think there is such a thing. I have had suits made by a variety of tailors now, some more expensive and well known, some not so. One thing I have learned – the suit will always move around when you move around. The human body is not perfect. As an example, I have one shoulder quite a bit lower than the other. Also, the same shoulder seems to sit a bit more forward than the other. In other words, my shoulders do not sit square opposite each other. Not that you would ever really see this with the naked eye and to an extent, most people will have the same asymmetry. But what I have found is that there is often a very slight issue around my collar area once I moved around a bit. ‘Issue’ in that, I can never seem to have a suit jacket which sits 100% smoothly on the collar for 100% of the time like it would on a mannequin. Don’t get me wrong, I feel at my best when I wear my bespoke clothes, but I never have that ‘100% flawlessly smooth’ everywhere look that one sees on a tailor’s dummy, after I have been walking around for a bit. Because a tailor’s dummy is perfectly formed, with perfect posture and perfectly symmetrical shoulders and arms. My shoulders seem to pull in almost opposite directions.

A Warning About ‘Bespoke Detailing’

OK, this may not go down well. Many men who get their first bespoke suit are tempted to add ‘bespoke’ detailing to let people know this suit is bespoke or to ‘express their personality’. Example, a single red stitch buttonhole on the cuff, or an eccentrically patterned lining (or worse, football team shirt sewn inside). Or an unusual coloured stitching on the lapel line. This is the height of bad taste. It also shows you do not know what you are really doing to anyone else who is in the know about bespoke tailoring.

A gentleman does not loudly need to tell everyone his suits are bespoke. The cut and cloth should speak for themselves. In fact, it is only until fairly recently that people could “walk in” to a Savile Row tailors – in past generations you had to be “walked in” by someone you knew, so discreet was the process. Use this as your reference point. Everyone has different tastes, but I would always recommend a matching plain lining inside the jacket as more tasteful than shocking reds or bold stripes. You will not get tired of that in the same way you would a shocking red or ostentatious patterned lining.

Some Tips

Here are some of my preferences for wearing suits (and tie) etc. They are definitely not hard and fast, but I think they will certainly help someone who is completely new to bespoke maybe even a younger man who is new to wearing suits but is now wanting to start out with a more formal way of dressing.

• Too much print mixing is vulgar. If you wear a print fabric (prince of wales etc) I do not advise a patterned tie.

• For pocket squares, I prefer plain white, showing just a bit. White goes with everything and it does not draw attention to itself in the same way elaborate patterns do.

• Ignore all of the self proclaimed Instagram ‘style kings’ – a lot of their clothes are simply too tight. The whole point of bespoke is to flatter (or hide) the physique – making clothes so tight that you look like a little boy in last year’s school uniform is not flattering on a man over the age of 25. There is a difference between slim fit and tight. I like slim fit, but if you ‘feel’ your jacket constricting you at any point in your day to day movements (let me speak freely, ladies look away – if you can feel your private parts in your bespoke trousers, they are too tight – if you can feel the jacket cutting under your armpits and when the front button is fastened it feels tight, the jacket is simply too tight – do not ask your tailor to make the suit this tight).

Talking About Your New Bespoke Suit

When you wear your new suit, hopefully you will make a positive impression in the places you choose to wear it. Even more hopefully (not great English I appreciate!) you will receive compliments on what you are wearing. Some may venture to ask you where you got it or what brand it is – at this point, you simply say you had it tailor made for you. If you feel the suit was expensive, do not reveal the price and politely bat away the question if you are asked – to reveal the price is again very bad taste. If you are very tall like me (or a shorter gentleman, or a gym addict with massive shoulders) people will probably understand your only option is to have tailor made suits. If however you are a ‘normal’ build, the majority of people will not tend to look favourably on what is ultimately a luxury purchase when an off-the-peg suit might otherwise suffice.

The only person you should talk about your bespoke suit to is your tailor, significant other, sibling or best friend (assuming they are interested). If not, say nothing.

Now, go forth and bespeak your first bespoke suit.

The Geography Of Tailoring

In terms of tailors I have only ever personally collaborated with British and Italian tailors, as this works with my business schedule, I also prefer ‘old world’ European tailoring and the heritage of these houses and the alumni they produce. This does not mean to say you cannot find highly accomplished tailors in the ‘new world’ of America and Australia. I have seen many on Instagram and tumblr.com etc, but a note of caution now. These ‘Instagram Kings’ (whether they be tailors or their much followed customers) can often tend towards showy, ostentatious style. Unless you are a regular at Fashion Week or Pitti Uomo, this is not the look you should be aiming for as someone new to bespoke clothing. You simply want to look sharp, to look good – not so much that people are looking at you from across the room and trying to understand if you are actually aware that your tie is a mess, or why your handkerchief is spilling out of your breast pocket while you believe you are trying to make some sort of ‘style’ statement mimicking what you saw on Instagram.

I can not recommend any non British or Italian tailors personally in the way I can with the established British and Italian tailors I work with, but much American and Asian work online looks accomplished. Notably they do not seem to have the typical restraints and traditions of British and Italian tailors however, but this may appeal to a younger customer who does not care for tradition of more rules based dressing. There is no right or wrong answer. My personal preference is always for the rigidity of British tailors or the necessary softness of southern Italian tailoring – much modern #Menswear American/Australian modern tailoring seems to mix and match elements to their choosing. (Caveat, there is of course, the preppy East Coast American school of tailoring, but I do not have any personal experience of that).

A Final Warning On ‘Sprezzatura’

Warning and about ‘sprezzatura’: anyone claiming to have or embody ‘sprezzatura’ (the Italian art of looking spontaneous and uncaring about your appearance) does not have this quality. Do not do this. Put your clothes on and forget about them. Do not spend hours trying to look dishevelled or “un-put-together” in an attempt to look ‘careless’ in your approach. Simply tie your tie well and walk out the door. There is no shame in wanting to look like you have made an effort to be smart.

People who spend hours attempting to look like they haven’t made an effort, look like they have spent hours making an effort.

Your personality is your best expression of your style.