Everyone gets stuff wrong. We all have outfits we look back on years later, and cringe.  Fortunately, I believe this is something where you learn and progress. It is not a cycle of fashions, where every few years you we...

This post was originally written in 2012: a breakdown of all the tailors I have tried personally (rather than just written about), split into different countries. It was updated in 2016, and I have updated it again now i...

Here is the final video in our series on how a jacket should fit. The first looked at the basics of fit, while the second was on the length of a suit jacket. In this third one, we look at how much the fit of a suit is a ...

This is the second in a series of videos in which we're looking at how a jacket should fit. The first one, here, was a summary of the basics on fit. In this second one, we look at the length of a jacket. This is the kind...

This is the first in a series of three videos in which I look at how a jacket should fit. In this first one, we cover the basics around the jacket - front, back and side. It's a useful summary of the main points, and app...

The Campaign for Wool recently asked me to help them with a series of videos educating people on caring for wool products. Chaired by HRH Prince Charles, the Campaign is a charity that communicates how environmentally fr...

A nice thing about our Finest Tailors series is that, as we add more tailors to it, each becomes a reference for the next, making comparisons easier. This Henry Poole suit, then, makes an interesting comparison to the Ri...

Last month we talked about how small changes in the proportions of a double-breasted jacket can have a radical effect on its style - and therefore on the people or situations it suits.  This week I've used five of my ow...

One of the nicest aspects of the Bespoke Tailors Benevolent Association dinner every year is the evening wear. Although most cutters and tailors aren’t actually into clothes and style, they are all wearing something be...

I’ve had quite a few requests by readers over the past year for city guides, so this is the first in a series.  In London, there are so many options that it makes sense to group some together. Also, if I leave too man...

Bespoke driving jackets designed by Dege & Skinner, Henry Poole, Gieves & Hawkes and Huntsman.  Which is your favourite? ( Worth expanding to full screen)...

This year Savile Row tailors Dege & Skinner are 150 years old – pretty impressive for any business, but particularly one that is still family owned. In fact, the house has done rather well in the last couple because o...

Since I wrote a post at the beginning of the month urging readers to comment and ask questions on Permanent Style, quite a few have asked about different ready-to-wear and made-to-measure brands. I’d like to explain ho...

This past weekend saw the Coronation Festival in the gardens of Buckingham Palace, at which holders of royal warrants exhibited.  The royal warrant is not exactly the mark of quality that some might assume, given that i...

I first met James two years ago while following the making of my DB Prince of Wales suit at Henry Poole. ( You can see that full series here.) As with most the Row’s apprentices, he has a passion for clothing that exte...

Normal.dotm 0 0 1 424 2417 Euromoney PLC 20 4 2968 12.0 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false Incotex trousers Dear Simon, I have a couple of questions on trousers which I haven’t seen you address. First, you said ...

Last week I wrote about Claire Barrett of Hawthorne & Heaney, who does fine embroidery on livery, shirts and slippers for the bespoke menswear trade, as well as working with fashion designers in London. I came to her to ...

I do love learning about other crafts. There’s nothing like the series of ‘how’ and ‘why’ questions that takes you deeper, step by step, into understanding the way quality things are made, as well as the commer...

Normal.dotm 0 0 1 273 1559 Euromoney PLC 12 3 1914 12.0 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false A couple of weeks ago I had the eye-opening experience of attending the fashion degree show at the Royal College of Art in...

Henry Poole cutter Craig Featherstone marks out my Prince-of-Wales suit Last week a reader asked me who the various people were in a bespoke tailoring house, and it occurred to me that this is one area I have never offer...

The inside pockets of a jacket can be fairly dull. I went through a phase of having the inbreast pockets made to perfectly fit my wallet (which is rather long) and my iPhone (which is rather narrow and short). But I neve...

A reader commented that the way he spots a good bespoke suit is to look under the lapel and look for the little pinpricks that betray hand padding. This does indeed show where the tailor has come through the suit cloth a...

The final part this, in the series on having a Prince of Wales suit made at Henry Poole. In the end we went with a 4×4 finish on the front, with grey buttons instead of brown. I decided 2×2 would be a little too flashy...

A second forward fitting on the Henry Poole double-breasted last week, with Craig hoping that this would be ready to finish off and deliver. A few last tweaks were required, however. The chest still needed more clearing ...

The Henry Poole burgundy that was seen as the lining and overcheck on my DB suit has always been used as the colour for the Sam Cundey special red tie. This year that is being expanded into a full range of ties on the s...