Bespoke tailored suit in your favourite color
Wedding suit
Ladies Tailored Suits
A Suit That Fits Blog
The Number One Suiting Resource
Tag >> tailored fashion
|
Apr 28
2010
|
|
 |
Richard Anderson can write. This quickly becomes apparent as the reader embarks on the story of his time on Savile Row – from dishevelled apprentice to Huntsman’s youngest-ever head cutter. The realisation that a book is to be chronological, and start at the very beginning, is normally accompanied by a long intake of breath. Fortunately, even the description of Anderson’s father taking his 17-year old to the job interview is entertaining.It helps that the story of Huntsman’s takeover reads like a genuine thriller, with high stakes, espionage and betrayal. And throughout the 20-odd years described, characters such as Colin Hammick, Brian Hall and Dick Lakey necessarily breed amusing anecdotes. Such as the time Lakey tried to rescue 10 pairs of white trousers by washing them at home, only for the zips to stain the crotch; then adding lemon, only for it to add its own mark; and then successfully washing them clean, only for foxes to tear them off the washing line and eat them.
But Anderson’s writing has its own rhythm and pathos. A liking for short, one-sentence paragraphs and chapter-ending cliff hangers means the story tumbles along.
The latter sections on Richard Anderson Ltd, after the fall of Huntsman, are nowhere near as self-serving as I had been led to believe. The style switches from chronology to analysis, enabling short sections on women in the industry, a day in the life and ready-to-wear clothing in Japan. The second of these three chapters is particularly interesting for an insight into the running of a bespoke firm, and the challenges in figuration, for example, that come up every day. Such as the wadding, canvas, styrofoam and even plasticine used to try and deal with James Fox’s tricky shoulders.
And while some will bemoan the fact that suits under Savile Row names are made in Japanese factories for local clients, the description of how this functions is fascinating.
For tailoring enthusiasts there are several insightful sections on the practice of cutting. The description of how Anderson learned to cut trousers for the first time, for example, and then later how to take measurements ahead of his first trip to the US. Indeed, for those not enthused by technical detail the passages where Hall describes the chalking of back and foreparts could even be too much.
There is, finally, a surprisingly in-depth glossary. I can now identify a bar tack, describe the nap on various cloths and relate the origins of Silesia (named after a region of Poland because of the inventor’s wife’s sympathies for a country being partitioned between Germany, Austria and Russia. The descriptions only suffer from the inevitable difficulty in describing the look and feel of different cloths without imagery.
Highly recommended.
|
May 01
2009
|
|
 |
Your employment probably denotes a more traditional style of tailoring; navy and charcoal hues, jacket lengths falling to meet the last knuckle on the thumb, standard width lapels and herringbone and bird’s-eye weaves revealed as the most adventurous fabrics. The typical business suit will always have a place within the modern man’s wardrobe and will remain an essential part of the sartorial arsenal. These traditional garments hold centuries of fashion history within their cut, silhouette and detailed styling.
Equally, the shifting trends within current catwalk tailoring hold resonance within a gentleman’s social attire. Whereas the business suit should adhere to British tailoring standard, social occasions necessitate individuality, an opportunity to reflect fashion trend and a desire to distinguish oneself from others.
Tailored fashion could distinguish itself from business tailoring by simply raising the length of the jacket, slightly shortening the sleeves of both shirt and jacket, opting for more luxurious fabrics and flamboyant style details or simply choosing separate fabrics for individual garments.
Tailoring worn outside the safe, traditional confines of office wear can be fraught with style blunders. Teaming the business jacket with jeans and t-shirt will not cut it any longer. Tailored clothes that tip their hat to modern trend whilst maintaining the essentials of precision cutting techniques will constantly be the bastion of social tailoring.
