Vittorio Lemmi, Perugia, July, 2008

[tteplitzmd]

Athough I have been to Perugia many times, I had never explored bespoke there. I had read about Augusto Lemmi, whom I will post about separately. His son, Vittorio, is the shirtmaker in the family, with a shop around the corner from his father's tradittional tailoring shop. The via Marconi address and phone is the shirting shop.

The shirtmaking, follows the usual protocol. Vittorio cuts and fits, and Raffaello, also a shirtmaker, helped with measurements, as well as English. There is an ample inventory of shirting cloths from the usual mills. They have a very large swatch box of Bonfanti, with some cloths I had not seen before, e.g. Bonfanti's 'Soho.' There were several tryons, and pinnings from the try ons, and then the first shirt cut, and fit. There is a paper pattern, and the work is done 'upstairs' with several ladies dutifully working. The usual options of handmade or machine buttonholes, and so on. Pleasantly, there is no minimum, and minimal upcharge for the more expensive Bonfanti cloths, e.g. cotton-linen blends. Parcels were awaiting dispatch to Frankfurt and Holland. Very nice people, very accomodating given my limited time in Perugia. I await the finishing of the first shirt, then laundering, etc. I am cautiously optimistic.

Rafaello would be the guy to speak with for English. email is not their first choice for communications.

[Degendorff]

Thank you for this intesting report!

I'm especially interested in shops in Perugia, because after finishing my studies I will go to the università per stranieri di Perugia (or Siena) for a half year or year (hopefully '09). Furthermore I will be in Tuscany and Umbria in a few weeks and will visit Perugia. So if you can recommend more tailorshops et. al. I would appreciate it!

[tteplitzmd]

When I have a chance I will add the photos of Augusto Lemmi's tailoring shop in Perugia, around the corner from his son, the shirtmaker. There is a nice article in Monsieur magazine about Augusto Lemmi, Aznavour's tailor, amongst others.

[uppercase]

Very nice.

It appears that they have quite a thriving shirt business in Perugia.

That's the nice thing about Italy: bespoke is done everywhere, there is still a clientele and demand for bespoke, and prices are usually reasonable when makers depend on the locals.

It's interesting that they have such a big Bonfanti selection. Hard to beat Bonfanti for featherlight, hot weather shirting.

[tteplitzmd]

Yes, Mr. Uppercase, the pricing is very reasonable. They have this big blue box of Bonfantii swatches, many I had not seen before. The minimal upcharge was the most pleasant part, Euro 10-15 at the most. They get the cloth in 24 hours!

I will receive my first shirt soon, before the August holiday period. I am cautiously optimistic. What was very nice is their ease in sending and receiving the goods. The secret is to use regular airmail priority posting, with minimal valuation for customs, to the USA. I have learned to send "gifts" of modest value, when I use US Global Express mail. You can track it and nothing is lost or sitting in Italian customs.

I would agree, nothing beats the Bonfanti lightweight shirtings, especially the cotton/linen blends in their two weights.

I will post some photos and information on Vittorio's father, Ausgusto shortly. He's the tailoring wing of the family.

[tteplitzmd]

vittorio.lemmi@tiscali.it

If you telephone, and require an English speaker, ask for Rafaelli who is also a shirtmaker and works with Vittorio. They will re-open the first week in September.

[radicaldog]

I have in my closet two-piece suit Augusto Lemmi cut in the seventies (!) for my Father. It's a very English and rather rigid/military silhouette (no drape, and most importantly no concession to 70's aberrations!), beatifully executed. I had it altered, and it fits me well -- sort of. The cloth, however, is somewhat unusual (at least for a relatively inexperienced bespoke customer like myself): it's a heavy, dark brown chalk-stripe worsted by Keith & Richardson, Savile Row. I'd never heard of this maker, but the cloth seems of excellent quality, if not exactly to my taste. And there's nother oddity, come to think of it: the trousers have no side pockets. I asked my father why on earth he chose this detail (or lack thereof), and he maintains that it gave the trousers a trimmer fit. But he hasn't replicated it on any of his other trousers, so I suppose that was a one-off experiment.

I have also seen two Italian Army officer's uniforms Lemmi cut for my father: truly masterful pieces. Moreover, if I recall correctly, my father told me that the second of these uniforms was cut by Lemmi and sent to him to without need for a fitting! And, judging from the pictures, it fit perfectly.

[tteplitzmd]

After some adjustment, these are crude photos of my trial shirt from Vittorio Lemmi (Perugia) which isn't bad. The sleeves will need some shortening but otherwise, not bad:





[IMG]http://img9.imageshack
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Since I won't be back in Perugia until next year, could anyone tell me if they know why the bottom buttonhole was sewn horizontally?

[Guest]

the collar looks small, worn with the jacket. or it isn't? but the color looks beautiful.

[tteplitzmd]

I am not happy with the collar, this is the second revision. It has a bit more spread than I would like, but that is reduced from the first version, which had a much wider spread. I did not exercise due diligence in Perugia when choosing the collar to begin with. I am going to wash it a few more times and consider the options.

Were you thinking too small in point length, spread or both?

[mafoofan]

I don't think the collar is too small; the points are neatly tucked under your jacket. But I think it calls for a smaller tie knot. Yours is crowding things up.

Were the buttonholes first machine sewn and then cut? They look similar to the ones on my Brooks Brothers OCBDs. Maybe the picture is just blurry

[dopey]

. . .
Since I won't be back in Perugia until next year, could anyone tell me if they know why the bottom buttonhole was sewn horizontally?

That is a not uncommon quirk. The idea is that it keeps the two halves of the shirt from getting too much out of synch as they slide around and, more importantly, permits some horizontal slippage at the bottom. You should always see it on formal shirts with a bib, since it is supposed to help keep the curves of the bib in alignment. Otherwise, not so much.
I can't imagine that it has any real utility, but it is a nice touch.

[tteplitzmd]

The tie is a heavy wool and silk, rather bulky. The shirting cloth is a lovely voile with a linen like texture (non Bonfanti). Sorry for the crude photo but perhaps the collar is not so bad:



I don't know the answer on the button holes. My Bugelli shirts are hand made/stitched, but I have never really appreciated this. I am from the school of indifference on the handmade vs. machine made buttonholes.

One of the big attractions of Lemmi is the vast number of Bonfanti sample cards and cloths on hand.

[charle22]

I think the collar style is fine, particularly when paired with the blazer. I would rethink shortening the sleeves before making your final request.

The waist band of your trouser is done well. I'll have to follow up with you in the near future.

Cheers

[tteplitzmd]

Thanks. I will get the sleeves shortened a bit.