The first serious step in bespoke

"The brute covers himself, the rich man and the fop adorn themselves, the elegant man dresses!"

-Honore de Balzac

Costi
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Thu Oct 06, 2011 10:55 am

uppercase wrote:Indeed, my ideal would be to find a provincial Italian tailor who would suit me beautifully while I pleasantly occupy myself elsewhere with choosing the perfect local red wine to accompany my bistecca fiorentina. To be followed by purple figs and a super espresso and a visit later in the early evening, after a restorative siesta, to my tailor to check on progress.
Michael? - that sounds like a great idea, let's do something about it :wink:
uppercase wrote:The world is full of wonderful tailors, modest tailors, with modest prices and a real sense of artisanship.
Indeed... I like this view.
yialabis
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Thu Oct 06, 2011 11:04 am

The world is full of wonderful tailors, modest tailors, with modest prices and a real sense of artisanship.
well said uppercase .
bond_and_beyond
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Sun Oct 09, 2011 6:36 pm

uppercase wrote:
bond_and_beyond wrote:
uppercase wrote: This too is a reasonable approach though I don't understand why in the world you would want to move to Savile Row if you are satisfied with your existing tailor?

I place no stock in high end addresses, big name tailors, panelled fitting rooms, nor exorbitant pricing: they won't guarantee you a good result. You can take my word on that.

Local tailors need not be a stepping stone to the big names.

Indeed, my ideal would be to find a provincial Italian tailor who would suit me beautifully while I pleasantly occupy myself elsewhere with choosing the perfect local red wine to accompany my bistecca fiorentina. To be followed by purple figs and a super espresso and a visit later in the early evening, after a restorative siesta, to my tailor to check on progress.

What is the purpose of bespoke other than to enhance the important experiences in life? Otherwise, they are just rags.

Don't you think that there are wonderful tailors in Greece, Turkey, India, Lebanon, Bulgaria, Hongkong? There are. And many other addresses. Members here know secret tailors. The world is full of wonderful tailors, modest tailors, with modest prices and a real sense of artisanship.

One of the most pleasant bespoke experiences I had was visiting Loris in the suburbs of Florence and, though I didn't have a suit made, I could just tell from the time spent with him and trying on his coats that the workmanship, the styling, the sense of pride was something from another era completely, a rare experience, so far from what commercial tailors provide today. These special artisans are just much less accessible to us than are the tailors on SR and Via Montenapoleone.

But they represent true bespoke luxury.

A toast to Graham Browne!
Indeed you are right! I did not mean that Graham Browne or others like them should be seen as merely "stepping stones", as they are indeed artisans in their own right. Another advantage (for those of us who do not own an oil rich Gulf state) is that their price point allows for more commissions over a shorter time period than would be possible with SR, and thus one can learn more and get closer to that ever elusive "perfect fit" (perfect imperfection) and get to know one self as a bespeaker faster.

So here's to Graham Browne and other like them!

S
Rowly
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Sun Oct 09, 2011 7:00 pm

Don't you think that there are wonderful tailors in Greece, Turkey, India, Lebanon, Bulgaria, Hongkong? There are. And many other addresses. Members here know secret tailors. The world is full of wonderful tailors, modest tailors, with modest prices and a real sense of artisanship.

One of the most pleasant bespoke experiences I had was visiting Loris in the suburbs of Florence and, though I didn't have a suit made, I could just tell from the time spent with him and trying on his coats that the workmanship, the styling, the sense of pride was something from another era completely, a rare experience, so far from what commercial tailors provide today. These special artisans are just much less accessible to us than are the tailors on SR and Via Montenapoleone.

But they represent true bespoke luxury.
If I won the lottery 100 times over..I would spend my time finding these hidden tailors, many of whom would be ashamed to let out of their shop products that top S.R. names have seen fit to decorate their window displays with. It would not be to save money, but to support them and to respect their artistry. I am hoping to do the same with shoes. These men live in small communities where their customers are locals, and span generations. They know that if the work is poor they will be ridiculed, not by some faceless tourist, but by someone whose first suit probably had short trousers. They have integrity and a pride in their name and it reflects in their work. It is very unlikely that you will get this personal service and continuity from a big S.R. house, who like a football team, has a famous name under which the players are constantly changing.
cathach
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Tue Oct 11, 2011 12:49 am

Rowly wrote: If I won the lottery 100 times over..I would spend my time finding these hidden tailors, many of whom would be ashamed to let out of their shop products that top S.R. names have seen fit to decorate their window displays with. It would not be to save money, but to support them and to respect their artistry. I am hoping to do the same with shoes. These men live in small communities where their customers are locals, and span generations. They know that if the work is poor they will be ridiculed, not by some faceless tourist, but by someone whose first suit probably had short trousers. They have integrity and a pride in their name and it reflects in their work. It is very unlikely that you will get this personal service and continuity from a big S.R. house, who like a football team, has a famous name under which the players are constantly changing.
Is fíor dhuit a mhic, aontaím leat, ach n'fheadar a rá is dóigh gurbh na hainm mór a gheobhas an clú is mhó sa saol.
davidhuh
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Tue Oct 11, 2011 7:28 am

cathach wrote: Is fíor dhuit a mhic, aontaím leat, ach n'fheadar a rá is dóigh gurbh na hainm mór a gheobhas an clú is mhó sa saol.
Gökgözlü gavurlar - can we discuss this in Turkish? :D

David
alden
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Thu Oct 13, 2011 12:13 pm

uppercase wrote:Indeed, my ideal would be to find a provincial Italian tailor who would suit me beautifully while I pleasantly occupy myself elsewhere with choosing the perfect local red wine to accompany my bistecca fiorentina. To be followed by purple figs and a super espresso and a visit later in the early evening, after a restorative siesta, to my tailor to check on progress.


Michael? - that sounds like a great idea, let's do something about it :wink:
Yes that sounds very much like an SV except an SV is even better cause I have already picked out the Red(s)! :D
uppercase
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Thu Oct 13, 2011 11:32 pm

I'll only come for the reds, the figs, the chocolate, and the company.

The rest is all ephemeral. Mere vanity.
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