New Suit at George

[DFR]

Thank you all, once again. I hope if I go back to him on Friday morning, it's not too late!

It's strange that noone has come out in defence of a single vent. I'd instinctively have twin vents with a d/b coat, but does noone have them for a sb here? Why the difference in attitude between a sports coat and a suit coat?

I'm still a little unclear about what to ask for the lining DFR, is that a book of cloth?

I'd be very keen to see your plan for pockets too, are you able to send that by a private message?

Lear Brown and Dunford is a purveyor of linings amongst other cloths and the satin should be in their book amongst the other ranges they do. T328 would appear to suit your requirements for colour and I would especially recommend this group of linings for comfort, durability and appearance. the weight is ideal.

I will endeavour to post the detail privately later on with some explanations of how I use it.

I certainly could NOT recommend a single vent to you. Two is far more preferable.

Regards

[YoungLawyer]

I think George has already cut the cloth, so I'll be limited to changing what I can at the baste fitting. I assume it's far too late to go from single to double vents, so I'll try and make it fit as well as possible. I'll bring a camera, and I hope he'll let me take some pictures of the suit.

[Scot]

A note on fittings - in my experience many tailors, including famous SR firms, will have only one baste fitting then go straight to finish. I suppose, with the first suit, it may depend upon whether they think the pattern is just about there when the baste is tried on. Once the pattern is "right" I am not sure why multiple fittings would be required.

[Costi]

Not all cloth works the same way with the same pattern. Not all tailors sew the same way (every time) given pieces cut on the same pattern. Moreover, not all clothes a man commissions at the same tailor need to follow the same pattern: for instance, a tweed jacket may be more roomy to acommodate a sweater, it may have wider lapels than the coat of a business suit, or a dress shirt may be cut closer to the body than an Oxford button-down.
I think the forward fitting is more important after the first suit - I rarely get a basted fitting anymore (unless I do something out of the ordinary), but I always get one or two forward fittings that help the tailor perfect the fit and allow me to adjust some details.

[Scot]

Not all cloth works the same way with the same pattern. Not all tailors sew the same way (every time) given pieces cut on the same pattern. Moreover, not all clothes a man commissions at the same tailor need to follow the same pattern: for instance, a tweed jacket may be more roomy to acommodate a sweater, it may have wider lapels than tge coat if a business suit, or a dress shirt may be cut closer to the body than an Oxford button-down.
I think the forward fitting is more important after the first suit - I rarely get a basted fitting anymore (unless I do something out of the ordinary), but I always get one or two forward fittings that help the tailor perfect the fit and allow me to adjust some details.

Good answer

[Costi]

Hope it helps
Multiple fittings is one of the luxuries of working with a tailor near you - neither customer nor tailor feel pressured to take risks and move from a fitting straight to finished garment.

[Greger]

Yes there can be some treasure next door without all the popular fan fare that some others get. You will not be with the tailor every day or once or twice a week, but you will with the garments. So, it isn't the tailors charming personality, if he has any, that matters, but the garments he makes for you.

[YoungLawyer]

I'm learning lessons about the bespoke process, slowly, so that I think my next project will be much more successful:

I had the first fitting today. I don't think this will be by any means perfect, although it will be a massive improvement on my previous rtw suits, and I'm pleased so far. I'll dig out the number of the cloth, but it was a slightly lighter shade than I expected. The lesson here is to try and find a larger swatch or see a bolt of the cloth. So the hunt is back on for dark grey cloths. It may have been the snow outside, but 13oz suddenly felt very thin indeed, and for my next commission I'll have at least 14/15oz. The trousers were largely made up, and with a straight, not fishtail back - which was the result of me being unclear when I commissioned it. They were, however, sufficiently high waisted, which was a relief. They sat happily above the hipbone and on my natural waist. I'd asked for a zip fly (I'd have a button fly on more formal clothes), and I was slightly suprised to have a pale metal zip; in future I'll be careful to ask for a dark metal one with a dark cloth. I've decided to ask, when I collect the suit, for a spare pair of trousers with a fishtail back, and I can deal then with any slight issues of hollowing out the back then - but it isn't worth it with these - they obviously fit very well at this stage.

The coat was in a very unfinished stage with only one sleeve attached, but I could already see that the shape seemed to be very good overall. The armholes were a very close fit, which was a relief. The quarters seemed to be cut suitably open. It was impossible to see how wide the lapel would be, or where the buttonholes will be. George had a good idea of what he wanted to adjust, which I had difficulty in following. The waistcoat was rather long, but he immediately marked it to be shortened. I don't know yet whether it'll be by enough.

Conclusion: I don't really feel that I've much influence at this stage, but I'm sure it will fit much better than any previous lounge suit I've worn, and I will be able to use it as a point of comparison for my next suit. So next time, I'll take more care with the cloth, give more clear and comprahensive instructions, and I'll be able to wear a really well-fitting suit next time I commission a suit, so that I can concentrate on more subtle issues of style, than on, as I had to before, more basic issues of fit.

[YoungLawyer]

In fact, can anyone give any guidance on waistcoat length? It obvious that the waistband shouldn't show, but where, in relation to one's natural waist, should the waistcoat end at the sides?

[Doug]

As long as the waistcoat covers the top of the trousers, shorter is usually better. Waistcoats are frequently cut too long, and with an opening at too sharp an angle and points that are too short--at least to my taste. I ask for the bottom of the sides to be just over the hip bone to allow for a bit of V in the look. Waistcoats without some waist tend not to flatter.

I also ask for long points with a relatively narrow opening between them. I ask for the next to last button, the one before the show button, to button just below the waist, roughly at the navel.

The trousers need to rise to the natural waist if not a bit above to accommodate all this.