The London Lounge

Hello everyone, I am going to see a tailor in June and would like to bring along some nice french blue/ light navy wool with me. Being this will happen soon my options are limited. I have looked at Dugdale but I dont believe anything there is open weave. Can anyone suggest what they prefer. BTW it has to be something I can purchase online. thanks

Dugdale's New Fine Worsted bunch is open weave wool, 9 oz.

Dugdale/Fisher also have a 70 wool/30 mohair blend that wears cool (8 oz).

After that, the obvious online buy is Minnis Fresco (go to hfwltd.com)

Dear Habanos,
you might try the Minni's Fresco:
http://www.hdwltd.com/bobb.php?b=jjm&c=8&p=1
it comes in different weights. Weight changes little about breathability, so you might try at least the two-ply if you fear the 3-ply is too much
It's a rough hand, but it's good and you can buy it online,
Regards
M.

Obviously, there's LL Brisa, but that's no target for instant gratification (although some lengths are still available, I believe). Furthermore, I have bought Lesser Tropicals directly from Harrison's, and they have been quite the pleasure to deal with.

You could try Smiths Finmeresco. http://www.thelondonlounge.net/forum/vi ... 31&t=10065

If you fax them, you can probably arrange purchase directly.
Smith & Co. (Woollens) Ltd
16a Dufours Place
London
W1F 7SP
Tel: 020 74376226
Fax: 020 72875324

Try look for some Halstead. The Explorer book has some porous weave wool and wool/mohair from 8oz to about 12oz.

Dugdale New Fine Worsted is a plain weave, but it's not nearly as open as Minnis Fresco. Harrison's Frontier is a similar cloth, and it's somewhere in between the two for breathability. They are all available in the 10oz (300g) range, which is substantial enough to avoid the fine ripples that can form around seams on lighter (8oz) plain weaves.

The Dugdale range has many more colors and styles available, especially compared to Fresco which seems to be pretty conservative. The french blue from Dugdale is a very nice color. It was much brighter than I expected from the picture on their website. Here's myself in a New Fine Worsted, french blue coat that I made.

Thanks for the advice so far. What do you think of the Dugdale super 100's at 11oz. 340 gr Is that a good cloth or should I avoid any and all super cloths?

I've used Dugdale S100s as well. It's a joy to work with and wear, but it does not breath at all. Definitely avoid Supers or any sort of twill-based weave if you're looking for breathability.

If you are really looking for comfort (breathability) and crease-resistance, I would recommend the Harrison's Frontier or Minnis Fresco. The Frontier has a softer feel, the Fresco being more crisp and almost coarse. If you can't find your desired color/style in either of those bunches, go with the New Fine Worsted.

I believe with the 8oz cloths (Mohair blends, etc.) you may be sacrificing some of the appearance and not gaining much in the comfort department. The heavier cloth, 3-ply Fresco at 15oz, is probably very comfortable to wear and drapes well, but it looks like a potato sack up close. The aficionado might appreciate it, but most people will think it looks bad. (I have some of this cloth and can't wait to make it up).

If you live in North America Andrew Rogers can help you get ahold of some Frontier. Minnis and Dugdale sell from their websites.

Thanks DKST, you know your stuff sir.I have decided to pick something out of the Minnis Catalog. I hope to post pics when I have it made up.

dkst wrote:I've used Dugdale S100s as well. It's a joy to work with and wear, but it does not breath at all. Definitely avoid Supers or any sort of twill-based weave if you're looking for breathability.

If you are really looking for comfort (breathability) and crease-resistance, I would recommend the Harrison's Frontier or Minnis Fresco. The Frontier has a softer feel, the Fresco being more crisp and almost coarse. If you can't find your desired color/style in either of those bunches, go with the New Fine Worsted.

I believe with the 8oz cloths (Mohair blends, etc.) you may be sacrificing some of the appearance and not gaining much in the comfort department. The heavier cloth, 3-ply Fresco at 15oz, is probably very comfortable to wear and drapes well, but it looks like a potato sack up close. The aficionado might appreciate it, but most people will think it looks bad. (I have some of this cloth and can't wait to make it up).

If you live in North America Andrew Rogers can help you get ahold of some Frontier. Minnis and Dugdale sell from their websites.

In my experience, a mohair wool wears cooler than all wool, porosity and weight being equal. The issue with mohair wool is that some can be shiny. The Halstead ones are matte like all wool.

dkst, My compliments. Do you find that the DB coat wears warm for summer? I am considering a summer DB suit in a darker version of the same cloth. I live and work in Pennsylvania where summers can get hot.

I consider this DB one of my cooler wearing coats, and I'm quite sensitive to heat. I'm sure being double breasted makes a small difference in warmth, but it's a compromise I'm willing to make for the style.

New Fine Worsted is my go-to cloth. I have another single breasted coat in navy puppytooth, and two more lengths in shades of green waiting to be made up. There's a good in-depth look at the cloth in this thread over at the Cutter & Tailor forum:
http://www.cutterandtailor.com/forum/in ... wtopic=537

I'm currently making up a brown coat in the Thomas Fisher Cape Breeze mohair blend. It's not particularly shiny. I'll reserve judgement on the cloth until the coat is done... A good review of the cloth here:
http://www.cutterandtailor.com/forum/in ... wtopic=564

That is indeed a wonderful coat, dkst. Would you also have pictures of the puppytooth one?

Thanks. The puppytooth is a more casual jacket intended to be worn with jeans. It's got a contrasting grey flannel collar and elbow patches.





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Buttonholes in progress: