Converting belt loops to side adjusters

[Julian]

I've had a couple of bespoke pairs of trousers made and one of the things that I'm beginning to really like about them is the fact that I specified buckle-type side adjusters rather than belt loops. A view expressed in many places on the internet is that not wearing a belt can help a short-ish person look taller and my experience seems to bear this out.

I have recently picked up a couple of pairs or RTW casual trousers in the London sales that fit me very well and are in fabrics that I like. I'm now wondering whether it is practical to take them to a local tailor to get the belt loops removed and replaced by side adjusters. The belt loops seem to be sewn on in a fairly straightforward fashion so should come off easily and I will need at least 2 or 3 inches taken off the length of the trouser legs which should provide plenty of spare cloth to use to make up the side adjusters.

Has anyone had such a modification done on a pair of RTW trousers? Is some sort of interface or interlining material used to thicken up the structure of the side adjuster cloth so that the buckles get a better grip? Is there anything else I should consider?

- Julian

[Costi]

If you have enough cloth, your tailor can do this easily, no interlining needed.

[hectorm]

No LL member left behind unattended. Good job, Costi.

If I may add: even if you don´t have the same cloth, adjusters on a matching fabric would look good on a pair of odd sport trousers. I have a pair of light brown moleskins with darker chamois adjusters that were done on purpose.

[Costi]

Better late than never

Another point is the placement of the adjusters: in my experience, they work best if placed just below the waistband. Their main purpose, for me, is not so much to take up slack in the waistband - bespoke trousers are cut to size and with beltless and braceless trousers the waistband should fit a bit more snugly anyway; their main function is to extend the waistband, so that it hugs the waist better, keeping the trousers firmly in place.

[rodes]

Julian,
This seems like a good idea to me. Anytime I can go without a belt, I try to do it.

[Julian]

Thanks everyone, and especially Costi for kicking my thread into life.

Side adjusters vs a belt is currently serving as yet another example of a class of problem that I've encountered on a few occasions during my first steps into bespoke. Another example for me is jacket length.

The type of issue that I've been encountering might be particularly bad for me because I started commissioning bespoke items late in life at 53 years old and have always had problems getting RTW that was anywhere close to a decent fit. This means that I have had about 40 years of dressing myself as an adult using what was available to me in RTW and my eye has become conditioned by what was available to me in terms of the look of my clothing. As an example of how this has affected my bespoke experiences, initially I was having my sports coats cut very slightly too long simply because all of my jackets for the last 40 years had been too long for me and so that was the way that I had become accustomed to seeing a jacket on myself. I now far prefer a jacket cut to sit at what I believe is traditionally considered to be the correct length but it took a while for my eye to adjust.

I am currently going through a similar experience with side adjusters. I have had a couple of bespoke trousers made up with side adjusters but have spent so many years of my life becoming accustomed to seeing myself with belts that I am having trouble coming to terms with the beltless-trouser look. This is probably another case of past familiarities overly influencing my current perceptions but right now I am leaving a bit of time to let my opinions change, or perhaps not change, before going ahead with any modifications on existing trousers.

- Julian

[davidhuh]

Dear Julian,

it makes perfect sense to move slowly. Most important in the end is that you feel at ease and comfortable with what you are wearing. This is what people meeting you will notice most. You want to be Julian, not a two-feeted hanger for bespoke items

Cheers, David

[Julian]

Dear Julian,

it makes perfect sense to move slowly. Most important in the end is that you feel at ease and comfortable with what you are wearing. This is what people meeting you will notice most. You want to be Julian, not a two-feeted hanger for bespoke items

Cheers, David

Thanks for the advice and reassurance David, I agree entirely.

I learn things with every new commission and so far have been able to use that experience to gradually improve each subsequent commission and avoid small mistakes and oversights that I have made in the past. A "one thing at a time" slow and steady approach feels right to me at this stage although I admit that I do experience a bit of envy towards people who started their bespoke journey so much earlier in life than I have. At this rate I suspect that it'll be at least another 5 years before I have a reasonably well filled-out wardrobe but I'd rather accept that time-scale and be happy with the results rather than going out and commissioning three of something all at the same time and find that I've overlooked or mis-specified the same thing on all three of my commissions (for example).

I just wish that I could go back and tell my 30-year-old self that, for the money that I was spending at that time on designer clothing, I could have been buying clothes that actually fitted me, looked better, and for an off-row tailor even cost less than the designer stuff that I was buying at the time. I can't believe how awful some of my previous wardrobe looks on me now that I have seen myself in clothes that actually fit. Most of my existing wardrobe is now lying on the floor in a spare room waiting to be bagged up for delivery to a charity shop.

- Julian

[Luca]

I second your thoughts but, after all, you are still at the early end of middle age.

You have several decades ahead of you, statistically, in which to enjoy your stylish MtM threads!

[Jay Dowle]

I was in DAKS in Jermyn Street yesterday and asked one of the salesmen why so few (hardly any) of their trousers had Daks tops (side adjusters). He said it was because side adjusters were bulky and these days people preferred to wear a belt. Unconvincing I thought.

[Costi]

Unlike sewn-on side adjusters with a buckle, Daks tops do tend to be somewhat bulky with all those layers in the waistband.

[couch]

But less bulky than a belt.

I continue to believe that, at least in the States, it's the lingering associations with Sansabelt slacks wearers that killed more elegant versions of the DAKS top.

My various DAKS top trousers are quite streamlined on the exterior compared to strap-and-buckle adjusters, and little thicker than a normal ban-rol waistband.