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Tag >> shirt collar
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All comic book fans have been spoilt for choice this year with the release of such films as 'The Avengers, Avengers Assemble', 'Men In Black 3', and most recently 'The Amazing Spider-Man'. And with every great film comes a glamorous premiere providing a super sartorial spectacle! I was particularly impressed when leafing through the photographs from the event, to find such a variation of suit customisations.
Even with a dangerously daring plunge neckline everything is secure, adding the perfect amount of glamour to the ensemble. Spider-Man himself, Andrew Garfield, was looking sharp in a simple black single breasted two button suit. A little controversial going for a navy tie with a black suit but that's just personal taste!
Next we have villain and infamous Welshman Rhys Ifans with girlfriend Anna Friel, wearing a fabulously green suit, definitely in keeping with his character, The Lizard. Green might seem quite a bright colour but as long as you keep it rich and dark you can really make a statement, a flannel in forest green would be perfect.
And finally we have director Marc Webb, who has also chosen a classic black single breasted suit. Webb is wearing another example of a half-width notched lapel. He's extended the theme to his tie and shirt collar to ensure the whole outfit is balanced.
Attention to detail: Hand stitched lapels Similar to the ticket pocket, hand-stitching on the Lapels isn't a feature you'd necessarily think about when designing a suit but once you've had it brought to your attention it's a subtle detail you'll notice on every other jacket from then on!
Some people love it, some people hate it, but on a simple suit such as Marc Webb's it adds a little something to make the outfit all the more distinctive. I would certainly recommend using hand-stitching on lightweight cloths verses thicker ones as it is less likely to sink in and will stand out. You can choose to have hand-stitching on any of our jacket lapels at A Suit That Fits so if you love it - we'll make it happen!
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Here at A Suit That Fits.com we are always working to improve our products and services - at the moment, our IT manager Vitaly is hard at work on a new-and-improved version of our clever suit designing tool, the suit wizard.
Last Thursday, Product Development Manager Mighel and myself were discussing potential improvements to the wizard. Mighel, high on the possibilities that a new wizard could bring, came up with idea for a 'Pimp my Suit' page at the end of the suit wizard. The page would provide options for adding all the little extra details that are often overlooked when going through the existing wizard - pocket options, contrast stitching options, lapel width options and the like. Users could add just a few from a list of extra attributes or simply click a large 'pimp' button at the bottom of the page to add the whole lot in one go.
While it is unlikely the a 'pimp' button is going to make the cut for the beta version of the suit wizard, the existing wizard still contains many little opportunities to make your suit a little more individual and rise it above the suiting norm. Keep reading to find out how. JacketThe first thing to do, if you have not already done it, is to add a rich coloured lining to your jacket. My favourites are those in the mystique range, especially the royal purple (AE106), and the blue paisley jaquard (B1 Navy).Once you've got your coloured lining, you'll definitely want to add a touch of that colour to the exterior of the jacket. Chose from adding colour to cuff buttonholes, lapel button holes or (for ladies), the lapel edge.Next thing to add is some interest to the lapels. For those who want to keep it classic, add a handstitched edge; the more daring could choose a narrow or a wide lapel. For a ladies suit, how about a contrast lapel and collar made out of one of our luxurious velvets?. Then the pockets - we have 8 different options for jacket pockets, from simple flapless to pleated patch to button down.Finally, add an individual lapel, and (of course!) a pocket square of your chosen lining.
WaistcoatI'm a big fan of double breasted waistcoats, especially for ladies. Another great addition to a waistcoat is a lapel - not something commonly found on off-the-peg garments, so going A Suit That Fits bespoke is the perfect opportunity to chose something a little more unusual.
TrousersLike the jacket, the first thing to add is a bit of lining colour stitching - this appears in the bar tacks at the top and bottom of the front pockets, and at the side edges of the back pockets. On trousers, you can also choose options for turn ups, reinforced gusset, front pleats (single or double) or flapped back pockets.
ShirtsThe opportunities for adding a bit of individuality to our shirts are almost endless. My favourite additions are contrasting buttonhole stitching and contrasting undercollar and cuff, which are both great ways to add detail to classic white shirts. You can also choose coloured buttons, contrast cuffs on collars (great on striped and textured shirts), monograms, and lets not forget our myriad of cuff and colour options.
Click here to go the suit wizard and here for the shirt wizard - have a look this time at all the optional extras at the bottom of the page and get designing!
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If you feel like adding a little strength to the stripe in your shirt this summer, the best option is a wider, butcher's stripe.
I particularly recommend a strong stripe like this if you tend to wear your shirt open-necked. There is something a little sad about a shirt that would look so much better with a partnered tie and yet is denied it. Especially if the lack of decoration around the neck is not made up by colour and pattern in a pocket handkerchief.
Not that the butcher's stripe cannot be worn with a tie. As long as it is plain in colour, or the pattern is sufficiently different, that's fine (as in the image where the spots are sufficiently different and an almost equal scale).
You'd struggle to have a pattern with a bigger scale than the shirt, and even if you did (a widely spaced club stripe, for example) the effect may be for the combination to overwhelm everything you included.
By the way, it is consistently surprising the assumptions that Americans make about the traditions of Jermyn Street and how they affect men today. In Esquire's recent Big Black Book, for example, it says: Bolder stripes are rarely seen in the American workplace. In London's financial district, it's the polar opposite. The classic City trader's shirt might carry half-inch stripes of pink, red, yellow or sky blue.
I'm not sure the writer has ever worked in the London's financial district. What he describes may have been the tradition (and how Jermyn Street got started) but it is hardly the case today. Yes, Americans still wear a lot more plain white shirts than us. But there is still a depressing number of Englishmen working in the City that express their personality in their ties and little else.
By the way, because I know you want to know, the butcher's stripe is so named because it recollects the size of stripe traditionally worn on a butcher's apron.
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When looking at shirts with classic, prestigious styles, one thing that will spring to mind will be the shirts that have white collars and cuffs . This look has now become synonymous with high power and wealth- quite a strong 'city slicker' style of shirt.
The reasoning behind it all is that collars and cuffs are obviously the extremities of a shirt and therefore get the most wear. In times gone by, rather than replace the whole shirt, which might not be worn out, the collar and the cuff would be replaced to give the shirt a new lease of life. The white collar and cuff was chosen due to the fact that, even if the tailor had the original shirt material, it may not have married up well due to different rates of wear. Therefore, the white collar and cuff provided a neutral new look. You have now had the benefits of Tom's Tailoring Titbits!
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