Cloth advice for new bespoke jacket and suit

[Yale Cameron]

I will be commissioning a new suit and sport coat in a couple weeks when I go visit my tailor Len Logsdail in New York. I am looking to get a double breasted prince of Wales check suit and a great sport coat. I live in Arizona so obviously I need to skew more towards lighter weight fabrics. I was thinking the h. Lesser 8/9 book is a good place to start for the pow check suiting as I have seen some nice checks in that book. For the jacket I would love to get a green based check tweed, but that is obviously not practical for me in Arizona. Hoping to find something with a similar look (a nice interesting green based check jacket basically) but in a more practical fabric. I have ordered multiple suits in smith woolens fabric in the past, and always seem to really like smith's fabrics when I go through books. Any thoughts on good books to look at for the suiting or jacket in would be much appreciated.

P.s. I used to love the. H. lesser Carlo barbera jacketing fabrics, but is it correct that that book is no longer in production since the sale?

[Concordia]

Have you looked through the Glorious Twelfth book from Porter & Harding/Harrisons? That fabric won't breathe the way a linen or fresco will, but it is on the light side so for Arizona dry weather should be good.

I haven't seen it in person, but the new Harrisons Mirage book might also be promising. Merino Brothers from HK has photos on their Facebook page. A lot depends on just how loud you want this to be.

[hectorm]

This is very good guidance by Concordia. He knows his cloths.
If I may add: the Mirage book is probably the lightest in weight you can go if you want tweed patterns and some texture. At only 10oz and blending wool, linen and silk, it would be wearable year round in Arizona. In that book you even have the green-based checked pattern that you desire.
Meanwhile the Glorious Twelfth -which, granted, has much better tweed patterns- is a pure wool heavier cloth. Something that, I guess, you would not want to wear in Arizona from april to october.

[gegarrenton]

Glorious Twelfth is a faux tweed (ie. worsted made to look like tweed). There is also Josiah France Twister, which is a lighter faux (9/10oz). It would be as cool as any I would imagine. I have a few samples here I can mail you if you want to feel it.

[Concordia]

There is a "Twister" book at Hardy/Minnis, which might or might not be the same thing.

[gegarrenton]

There is a "Twister" book at Hardy/Minnis, which might or might not be the same thing.

The J. France stuff is a brand from the CJ Antich mills. They do have a relationship with Hardy/Minnis, so it could be the same stuff.

[Yale Cameron]

Great replies so far on the tweed like but lighter, more breathable fabrics. The Glorious Twelfth stuff looks great from looking on Harrison's website and the Merino Brothers Facebook. Might work great for me. I am not concerned with it being only an April-October cloth in Arizona because it is not like we're walking around outside in our suit jackets in that time period anyway. Thoughts on have a full suit made up in Glorious Twelfth (or other tweed like looking fabric) and a pair of odd trousers so that it could be used both as a tweed like suit and a tweed like odd coat?

Any thoughts on particularly good books for the classic DB POW check suit I am looking to get also?


Gegarrenton, thanks for the offer on samples, but no need. I will look at the books when I am at Len's shop. Just looking for some advice on books to look at considering what I am hoping to get made up.

[Concordia]

Thoughts on have a full suit made up in Glorious Twelfth (or other tweed like looking fabric) and a pair of odd trousers so that it could be used both as a tweed like suit and a tweed like odd coat?

Some of the patterns are really jacketings, unless you have a taste for race track wear. You may find some of the others flexible enough to go both ways, if you don't fret that they are neither fish nor fowl. The instinct you have in Len's NYC showroom may be different from what you'd take for granted in Phoenix or Tucson. Think hard before you go about how it would look on the ground where you live.

Any thoughts on particularly good books for the classic DB POW check suit I am looking to get also?

Lesser is always a standby, especially if you want it to look like a business suit. Otherwise, Smith, Harrisons Mystique, some of the Frescos. Len said there was a Holland & Sherry book that he now prefers for hot weather. No idea how English it looks. Also, the Huddersfield Cool New Wool (9oz) looks promising, if a tad more rustic than Lesser.

[hectorm]

Thoughts on have a full suit made up in Glorious Twelfth (or other tweed like looking fabric)

Think hard before you go about how it would look on the ground where you live.

Once again, these are words of wisdom.
Around seven years ago I got the tweed renaissance bug and boldly extended from just odd jackets with flannels and cords, to full 3-piece suits. I have always liked the look and I thought I was old enough for them. In a period of 18 months I commissioned a flecked Donegal and two medium scale checked Cheviots. All the 3 suits are wonderful but only the Donegal I wear consistently a few times a year during winter. The Cheviot trousers get (quoting the master) "lots of closet duty". Part of the story is the weight, but there is also the fact I can't ignore that they look undeniably conspicuous in the "grounds where I live".