The London Lounge

Has anyone had any experience of having a local tailor replicate a Savile Row bespoke suit, or are there members with views on pros and cons of such an enterprise?

A facsimile will always be , just that.

Many tailors would be capable of replicating the external style features of a SR suit or a Neapolitan suit etc.,however, it is the internal integrity , nuance of cut , balance and finesse of finish that will always distinguish an original from a copy.

The importance of the (unseen) internal structure in a jacket should not to be underestimated. In my view THE most important element in the building of a garment of elegance,integrity,correct fit , comfort and longevity.

bluscuro

Anonymous wrote:A facsimile will always be , just that.

Many tailors would be capable of replicating the external style features of a SR suit or a Neapolitan suit etc.,however, it is the internal integrity , nuance of cut , balance and finesse of finish that will always distinguish an original from a copy.

The importance of the (unseen) internal structure in a jacket should not to be underestimated. In my view THE most important element in the building of a garment of elegance,integrity,correct fit , comfort and longevity.

bluscuro

I concur.

Surgeon cuffs or pick stitching does not a Savile Row suit make.

It will be an immitation.

The two posts above seem to address replication of the coat, and the points are well made. In particular:

The importance of the (unseen) internal structure in a jacket should not to be underestimated. In my view THE most important element in the building of a garment of elegance,integrity,correct fit , comfort and longevity.

How about replicating the trousers. Would replication of the trousers' style and measurements also present a problem?

How about replicating the trousers. Would replication of the trousers' style and measurements also present a problem?[/quote]


This presents much less of a problem but is still not as straight forward as one might imagine.
The gross measurements are easy enough to replicate e.g waist , inleg and outleg (giving the "rise") , pocket style , size etc. etc. A little more difficult to establish are, back rise and degree of slope at the front( to accomodate abdominal prominence )etc. Also, during the making of a bench made pair of trousers there is a fair amount of shaping accomplished with the use of a fifteen pound iron.This is used to stretch and shape, particularly of the seat line.Ipso facto it is well nigh impossible to replicate the exact fit , although one can get pretty close.


bluscuro

I absolutely agree that SR style CAN be replicated.

If one has access to a good tailor, using good materials, certainly the SR style can be replicated.

But be reasonable. Even the soft London tailors such as Steven Hitchcock and Mahon do not replicate A&S. But they are absolutely fine at what they produce; they have their own individual signature style. A good tailor will not COPY a style; he will interpret it.

There is too much mumo jumbo about tailoring, for my taste. Let's not confuse or delude ourselves: any style, be it SR, Milan, Naples, or NYC can be successfully interpreted by a half way decent tailor at 1/3 the cost in those areas where skilled tailors are available and labor is cheaper. Let us strip away some of the self imposted mystique about the big name tailors.

If you are about pride of ownership and authenticity then by all means go to A&S, Rubinacci and Caraceni. Do not go to Mahon because he will not affix the A&S label to his suit nor make a copy; he is a skilled tailor and artist in his own right. Do not go to Merrion to make you a Neapolitan coat; it will not be a Rubinacci. Do not go to Shattuck for a SR knock-off. But each I am sure will produce work with great integrity in their own style, interpreting, not replicating or copying, the great mens' traditional styles.

I personally don't care much for buying names though I do appreciate the styles and silhouettes which have been refined and produced over the years. Still, I am more than happy to have a Hongkong tailor replicate an SR style which, while not the original, still has its many virtues and there is no reason why it cannot be fully satisfactory because it was made in Tsim Sa Tsui and not Savile Row.

If you brought a SR suit to, say, Hong Kong, to be copied, it can be done. However, the end product will not be identical even if the cloth is the same. Most handmade suits are never identical even if they are made by the same tailor to your personal pattern using the same cloth. Such is the nature of a handmade garment, not to mention construction etc that can further alter the look and feel of a garment.

There is a lot of value to be had if you can find a good tailor in a low labour cost environment to work with. Hong Kong is one such place, but one must know the ropes. With some guidance, these tailors can do a lot of justice to a piece of cloth. Handwork is also not second to SR.

i thought that Savile handowrk was generally considered good but not great. Why would that specific aspect be so hard to replicate?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A facsimile will always be , just that.

Many tailors would be capable of replicating the external style features of a SR suit or a Neapolitan suit etc.,however, it is the internal integrity , nuance of cut , balance and finesse of finish that will always distinguish an original from a copy.

The importance of the (unseen) internal structure in a jacket should not to be underestimated. In my view THE most important element in the building of a garment of elegance,integrity,correct fit , comfort and longevity.

bluscuro

I concur.

Surgeon cuffs or pick stitching does not a Savile Row suit make.

It will be an immitation.

What is this Savile Row suit I keep hearing so much about?

If I'm not mistaken, you'll be hard pressed these days to find more than a firm or two that has a "house style" so how is it that you can claim there is such a thing as generic as a Savile Row suit.

Savile Row is about buying something that is of the upmost quality, comes with a bit of history, is exclusive, and is unique to you. Any three of these four characteristics can be found in many other places around the world, but although places other than SR do indeed exist, to find all four is rare.

The thing with buying suits is that most things that determine their quality are all locked up inside and so we have to depend on reputation and/or experience to determine the quality of any given tailor's garments.

Given that for most people - even those who are very well off - a £2,500+ mistake is a hard pill to swallow, we must usually depend on reputation. It is the reputation that Savile Row has built up over many years of passing expertise from one generation to another that makes buying a Savile Row suit so special. Not simply the particular way it is cut and finished or the fact that it is of great quality. Quality is quality no matter where it comes from. It is this reputation and being a part of Savile Row that cannot be replicated.

WBP

To start with: I'm a tailor.
From what I have learned from the photos displayed here and on other sites is:
SR tailoring is slightly overrated. I have seen so many flaws in the making, it's hard to fit them all in here.
So, why go for a SR replica, if you can have an original?
And besides:
Asking a qualified and skilled tailor to do a copy of another tailor's work is at least embarassing if not worse!
Just keep in mind: Skills differ a lot, even on SR. And even the best tailor or cutter might have had a bad day when making your suit. So maybe the suit you want to have copied was made by one of the less talented tailors and your new tailor knows at first glance, that he can do better! So, just let him know what you want, but please allow him to show his skills and do it his way and you'll get a real piece of art! It may not be true SR, but the replica would be neither!

SG