The London Lounge

The phenomenon of “seen but not seen” characteristic of true elegance has its opposite and contrary state: “seen and quite seen, thank you very much!” Unfortunately it is the latter that is most often “seen” these days.

One of our members sent the following picture of a single breasted peak lapel suit to me for comment. It contains a number of evident imbalances chief among them those of cut, style, cloth design and texture, and accessories mismatching.

An understanding of elegance’s contrary state is a useful and practical tool for those who wish to dress in good taste.

“Without Contraries is no progression. Attraction and Repulsion,
Reason and Energy, Love and Hate, are necessary to Human existence.”

(There is Blake again. What is he doing in an article on elegance?)

Cut and Style imbalance

As many of you who read the LL on a regular basis will know, I am not particularly keen on the SB peak lapel as a model. That preference has nothing to do with the following. The SB peak can be done with great aplomb and taste, and we shall see examples of same later on.



The subject at hand is of Italian manufacture from a very reputable house. The quality of the manufacture is undoubtedly well done. But what appears to be a spalla camicia is out of place in the context of a dressy SB peak lapel style. This imbalance is exacerbated by peak lapels that seem to be grafted onto the trunk of the coat, two immense bat wings glued onto the body. The inordinately straight and wide lapels are complicated further by being too high set and devoid of any roll.

Compare the exaggerated lapels above to those on our two veritable Italian dandies Il Avvocato Angelli and Antonio de Curtis, the most elegant Neapolitan of all time.





Toto, the first and original Tony Curtis, wears a large patterned glencheck suit. He was of minuscule stature, maybe even shorter than Windsor. For all of you who can not imagine wearing a pattern of this kind because of your compact physique, think twice! De Curtis pulls it off with ease.

Study the roll of the lapel, it grows, issues forth from the body of the suit like the branch of an olive tree, naturally, effortlessly. It has always been there or was it sewn? The shape and form of the lapel is contained and understated. The notch is placed perfectly on the chest, in the upper quadrant, but not too high. Even if we appreciate the high set notch on an SB, it has to be avoided or tempered in the peak lapel.

Fabric texture imbalance

Most of you will know how much I favor patterned suitings. The Cloth Club’s major occupation in recent years has been to resurrect these classic styles tossed into the waste bin by Fashion . Windowpanes and large glenchecks, in fact, all large patterns, have to be conceived with a balance of color and one of texture. Using again the example of the Best of Both tweed, the large crimson overcheck is balanced and rendered less visible with respect to the whole through the use of color and texture that surround it harmoniously.



The large windowpane cloth in this example is a clear cut worsted or a worsted flannel in gray with a sky blue window. Executed properly, it is a charming combination, but it cannot be done in a shallow clearcut cloth. The sky blue needs deep texture and color woven into the body background to remain in balance. A woolen flannel, a tweed or a worsted mixed with a tweed would have done the trick.

If you want to wear large and brightly colored patterns, and know that Ringling Bros. Barnum and Bailey is neither a SR house or a law firm, make sure the cloth is designed, conceived, woven and finished properly to render the pleasant special effects “seen but not seen.”

If you ever ask an elegant lady about her dress, she will undoubtedly remark that “its all in the accessories.” Men should learn to keep their use of accessories to a judicious minimum and insure that those worn are seen but unseen. This wisdom is amply illustrated by the profusion of colors and gadgets in the present example. The choice of belt and socks are inconsistent with the tenor and color of the suiting. Jewelry, even if it may seem like a lot of fun, is better off left off.



The present example is clearly targeted at being “fashionable” and destined for a RTW application. The pervasive imbalances described above have been inserted with premeditation to render a “ new”, dynamic and youthful fashion image. Luckily it serves by its errors in taste as a model of “seen, quite seen thank you very much” dressing.

Michael,
I have found this post superb as it, by means of few but paradigmatic negative and positive examples, leads the readers to discovering some basilar secrets of the true elegance . Among these, the rule that fabric pattern , cutting and accessory combination should be aimed to obtaining the result of "less is more" that in my opinion is the equivalent of" seen but not seen" . In this process the adopting of restraint, that suggests using of no more than one smart component in the whole outfit , will be essential as it will represent what is seen within the remaining see of the unseen.

Angelo

I cannot say that I am in agreement with the comments made to this point. I should say with all of the comments made.

1. I also do not like single breasted peak lapels, and see the point about the soft shoulder in conjunction, but the lapels themselves look lovely to my eye. Also, one of the suits most praised on this forum is the same combo of peaked lapels with super natural shoulders and it is combined with a gorge much higher than what is shown here on Mr. Rubinacci. Here is a picture of the suit I mention:



2. I think the shirt, tie and suit combination is inspired. It is very harmonious and has what a lot of us often lack. That would be a sense of fun.

3. I do not like the socks.

4. The bracelets seem like a personal thing. I think they actually look very good with the outfit, but my guess is that they are permanent and not solely to match the pictured ensemble.

5. I love the belt, but not with this particular suit. It would be fantastic with a plain blue or gray worsted or flannel. It might be great with a stripe.

6. The shoes are fantastic with the suit and I like the cloth, although I would like it more in flannel.

7. There are none of the typically self conscious conceits like super short, pegged pants, an overly wide, stiff spread collar or a massive tie knot. All of these features are kept quiet and in proportion.

8. He wears it well. It looks nothing other than natural on him.

I am not sure that I get the allusion to RTW clothing here. He seems comfortable and dressed for his own style. That is not to say that I would wear the same, but if the man makes the clothes, he has certainly made them his own.

Doesn't work for me. The lack of structure in the shoulders runs afoul with the crispness of the lapels. also it seems that the lapel is "lost" as compared to the apparent width of the shoulder as the shirtsleeve shoulder extends the shoulder line as well. Peak, either in SB or even more so in DB portrays a more military crispness to my eye that is incompatible with a shirtsleeve shoulder.
Regarding the first picture, although I'm fearless in wearing bolder patterns, I have to agree that the use of a worsted in that pattern makes it rather "bright" as there is no smoothness on the transition between the pattern and the ground. That said , I could be made to work - more likely as a DB cloth. Still - it's a "look at me" suit- which can be fun and does even have occasional utility.
I have no issue with the lapel width per se, the issue here is that the gorge is too high and the peak too far extended past the collar- the angle is rather extreme and "fashiony" as well.
I do however like the socks- just not in this combination.
I won't even comment about the "doodads" he's wearing- that's just not me.

Of the two suits depicted here, I prefer the cut of the first (the second, while well executed and obviously very soft, looks stiffer and less lively than the first). I agree with Alden that the gorge of the lapels on the subject suit are a bit high. The fabric choice is where it goes wrong, and is too "look at me" in exactly the way Alden describes. It is loud and garish without being beautiful or elegant. But I think the silhouette is beautiful and spot on. The accessories are what they are - the bracelets don't trouble me, if that is what he wears all the time, why not leave them on. The socks and belt both look off, but that is no crime. I often try something new, conclude it doesn't work, but leave it alone and walk out the door anyway. Sometimes I will grow to like it, sometimes not. But not being a professional dresser or having an adoring audience I am afraid to let down, there really is no harm.

A note on the shirt-sleeve shoulders, I don't like them as used in the first suit, but not for the exact same reason as Alden - I just don't like the way they look with a sleek worsted. On that sort of cloth they are, to invoke Alden's phrasing again again, a bit too "look at me." I am coming to appreciate that style of shoulder on any suit, regardless of the formality, as long as the cloth is right - I will try it on flannel, business suit or not. Saxony too. In those cases, the softness of the cloth muffles the stitching's shouts.

Mr Niven has decided to sport the new Coops 2 tweed in this picture. Seventy-five years later, the suit still looks great. The SB peak has lapels that are a bit wider than those of Agnelli or De Curtis, but they remain harmonious and understated given their rounded shape and position in the upper quadrant of the chest. I suppose this elegant pose supports the view that neither SB peaks nor large patterns need appear garish.

I do not like the socks

I love the belt, but not with this particular suit

“The choice of belt and socks are inconsistent with the tenor and color of the suiting.”

It appears we agree on these two points.

I like the cloth, although I would like it more in flannel

"Executed properly, it is a charming combination..."

“A woolen flannel, a tweed or a worsted mixed with a tweed would have done the trick.”

Excuse me for pointing out that we agree again.

I cannot say that I am in agreement with the comments made to this point.I should say with ALL of the comments made.

Matt, we'll have to agree to disagree on this one.

I am not sure that I get the allusion to RTW clothing here

The garb looks like fashion oriented RTW. This is due in large part to the lack of quality in the cloth, not the tailoring. And it is an important lesson. If you are going to employ a great tailor to do quality work, then choose a fabric with merit. It seems a great waste of time and energy to employ talent with anything less than the superior.

I think you’ll find in subsequent SB peaks worn by the elegant young man in blue, the peak lapels are cut lower on the chest.

I agree entirely with Mr. Alden. My first reaction when I saw this photograph posted on the commendable Sartorialist website was "Goodness, why does Rubinacci fall for such a clownish ensemble?" And I use the term "ensemble" deliberately, as this is an excellent illustration how all the elements of one's dress (with the exception of the cloth as such, I guess, in this case) can be alright, even beautiful, but they don't work together, ensemble.

I also disagree with the notion that this looks "natural" on him and therefore works - of course, this will always be a subjective point, but to mee at least this looks very studied, carefully chosen to convey a message of "I am not the old fashioned, stiff upper lip tailoring czar with a distinct British leaning but, hey, I am cool, funny and oh so individual".

I have nothing against bright colours, pattern mix, mix of formal and informal elements etc etc - in fact, I like them all a lot for myself. I had a very nice peak lapel single-breasted coat in a PoW cloth with a rather striking yellowis overcheck made for me a while ago, which is not quite the most understated coat in my humble collection. I would, however, pair it with rather restrained trousers, shirt, tie and other accessories, so as not to create this impression of "just too much" I find in the Rubbinacci photograph.

But then, chacun a son gout.

dE

I agree wholeheartedly with the point about the peaks on the first suit. There is nothing wrong with single breasted peaks per se, but to my eye they don't work on that suit, particularly when set that high.

I am also rather surprised that the suit is apparently the product of a large and reputable Italian house. Do Italian tailors not advise their clients on these things?

One reason I am happy paying for SR bespoke is that whilst I have my own ideas about the design of my suits, I am not a professional designer. I am relying on my tailor to advise and guide me, and that includes discouraging my more ill considered ideas. One of my tailor's most valuable skills is his ability to discourage without offending, to draw out ideas which will work and subtlely to cast aside those which won't. If he simply produced whatever I asked for, my wardrobe would be an expensive disaster.

sartorius wrote:. . . I am also rather surprised that the suit is apparently the product of a large and reputable Italian house. Do Italian tailors not advise their clients on these things?
. . .

Scion, not client.

I agree with iammat that the man makes the clothes, with the corollary that they are a pretty good indication of what one can expect to find inside the wrapping.

I hope my naïve metaphor won’t distract much from the instructive value of Mr. Alden’s post:

Understated, useful, full of character, in harmony with its environment: outstanding

mmm… and tasty!

I am pretty, colourful and I like to and stand out: “Beware!”


The latest in fashion: the DESIGNER mushroom!


Not everyone can be outstanding. Some think they can make up for it by deliberately standing out: the vanity of originality at any cost. We see it in art, we see it in social life, we inevitably see it in dress.
Unlike “the brute” who covers himself without giving a thought to what he wears, “the vain anarchist” deliberately dresses oddly for the sake of being matchless. He is not genuinely original because he does not create anything new; instead he plays ineptly with established elements of dress, putting together striking “ensembles” (thank you for the word, Des Esseintes) with the determination to be conspicuous. Why?...

Designed by Walt Disney Studios?

Costi wrote: ...<snipped>...
The latest in fashion: the DESIGNER mushroom!

I had a suit made from what I am quite certain is the same cloth as pictured in the first suit. It is Escorial wool from Holland and Sherry. Very high quality. I could not imagine a wool of that quality (and relative scarcity) and with that pattern sold as RTW. In person the wool has a bit less "pop" than suggested by the close-up shots, but it is certainly bold.

I agree with some of the critiques of the look as a whole...with a suit so wonderful but bold I wear it with conservative accessories. A white shirt, dark green tie, charcoal socks, and dark brown shoes. My suit is single breated with standard notch lapels.

Dear Gefinzi

Thanks for the note about your experience with the H&S cloth. Can we be sure it is the same cloth? Next time I am in at H&S I will stop and have a look. What is the reference number for the cloth?

As you rightly point out in your example, there is no reason why a bold fabric cannot be balanced by sober tailoring and dressing to achieve a handsome result.

Thanks

Michael

alden wrote:Dear Gefinzi

Thanks for the note about your experience with the H&S cloth. Can we be sure it is the same cloth? Next time I am in at H&S I will stop and have a look. What is the reference number for the cloth?

As you rightly point out in your example, there is no reason why a bold fabric cannot be balanced by sober tailoring and dressing to achieve a handsome result.

Thanks

Michael

Dear Mr. Alden,

I'm afraid I don't have the reference number. The fabric was found in a swatch book from Oxxford clothes. Apparently Holland and Sherry makes their Escorial wool available to only a select group of tailoring firms, Oxxford being one. The swatch book was from one year ago and so I cannot be certain the fabric is still available. The overall pattern and color of the pictures you posted are so close to my suit I can't imagine it isn't the same wool! The hand is wonderful...feels much like cashmere but without any sponginess. A finish that allowed the windowpane to blend a bit more into the gray "around the edges" would have been a small step up aesthetically, but there would have been an associated step down in other areas where flannel has some weakness.

Best,
Matt