When Saman Amel introduced overshirts - or shirt-jackets as they call them - a couple of years ago I was interested to try one. Not many people do made-to-measure for simpler things like overshirts, and so for the more luxe-oriented customer there was an opportunity there to get something better fitted and a little personalised.

Saman and Dag apparently resisted the category for quite a while. To them, focused for so long on tailoring, an overshirt seemed like a lazy alternative to a jacket - the kind of thing someone wore when they didn’t really understand how comfortable and elegant a blazer could be. 

But they saw their customers wearing them a lot, and eventually found a producer that was making more casual pieces like this at a particularly high level. Although, talking to them, it actually feels like the main thing that sold them was the materials - there’s a lot of potential with something unstructured like a shirt jacket, and the brand now offer everything from brushed cashmere to heavy silk, high-twist wool to textured linen. It's a distinctive and unusual range - that's the linen and a baby cord below.

One thing that’s actually changed quite quietly in recent years is that the guys now develop far more of their own materials. They used to be heavily Loro Piana-focused, but as their ideas have grown they've put time and money into developing exclusives. The heavy silk and brushed cashmere are both part of that. 

There are lots of options to explore with the overshirts, but they essentially have the same sleek, minimalist look. This is very Saman Amel of course, but it's also something they wanted to emphasise so that the shirts would move far away from more casual or workwear connotations. 

They wanted a black-cashmere overshirt, for example, to be something a customer would feel comfortable wearing at a smart evening event, perhaps with a fine knit underneath. That’s how I’ve found my brown one works best too - with things like the black knit and charcoal trousers pictured. 

The fit of my overshirt I’d describe as good if you have issues with body length and sleeve length. But it’s not really similar to the fit of a made-to-measure jacket, or a bespoke shirt. 

For example with mine, I tried on a size and we made small tweaks to the waist, the body length and sleeve length. We then had a fitting where the shoulders were lifted up slightly, to deal a little with how much mine slope. 

But the shirt still has a lot of wrinkling and folds going on - compared to say a bespoke shirt. 

I have really adored wearing it however. The cashmere feels incredible, probably the nicest I’ve ever tried, and in that way is similar to the hand-framed sweater I had from them a few years ago. It's pricey, but you're reminded of the quality every time you put it on. 

It's a 300g cashmere, but feels thicker and warmer because of the finish, which involves washing and brushing the fabric repeatedly. The result has a subtle lustre, which was again deliberate - it means the shirt feels that much dressier, a little like the deerskin used on their City Mocs. Not super shiny, but a long way from a more casual shoe or shirt material. 

I've found the overshirt works well as a jacket alternative in my ‘casual-chic’ mode of dressing - in town during the week, but not necessarily smart for a meeting. 

I usually layer it over a knit or knitted T-shirt, ranging in weight from an Anthology cotton one, to a Finest Crewneck, to the two-ply Cashmere Crewneck pictured. That plus a cashmere watch cap is warm enough for a lot of weather, and it still feels dressed up. 

The choices on design are largely about collar, hem shape and pocket style. You can have a regular turn-down collar or a little stand one; one or two chest pockets; patches, welts or flaps; and a hem that’s curved or straight. 

I went for a regular collar and two flapped pockets, with a straight hem. You can also have one or two internal pockets on the reverse of the chest ones, buttoned or not. 

I was a little unsure on the flapped pockets, as the flaps are quite large, and bulkier in this cashmere.  But on reflection I think it was the right choice: welts would have been too unusual and patches too simple. 

I was equally unsure about the hem, and even when I received the shirt I thought a curved one would have been better. But I think now the straight hem helps it feel more jacket-like. In a lighter material I would probably have it curved. 

The only thing I remain unsure of is the buttons. These are small, grey mother-of-pearl, and although very elegant, they're a little hard to fasten with the thick cashmere. Perhaps a slightly chunkier button would be an interesting alternative. 

Prices range from €900 to €2500, with cashmere the most expensive and linen and cotton the cheapest. High-twist wool and silk are €1200 and €1500 respectively. If anyone's interested in the direction of the company as a whole, which of course reflects on the pricing, the interview I did with Dag last year might be helpful. 

I think while some might have to control expectations around fit, the overshirts are quite an interesting option for readers - a way into Saman Amel as a brand, and with quite a few interesting personalisation options. 

My other clothes pictured are Edward Green loafers - the Piccadilly in black London Grain leather - worn with a PS cashmere crewneck, a Rubato belt and trousers made by Whitcomb & Shaftesbury in Universal wool from Harrison's.