London Invisible Mending: Preserving a Dying Art
By Manish Puri As the seasons change, it’s become something of a Sunday ritual for me to be paid a visit at home by Michael Norman (below). Long-time readers may recall that Michael runs a dry cleaning business specialising in bespoke and hig...
London Invisible Mending: Preserving a Dying Art
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I remember using British Invisible Mending Services decades ago, a very quaint business that could pass as a front for a Kingsman-type secret service agency and who seemed to delight in turning away business rather than ...
New York clothing resources: Places to clean, alt...
Looking after your clothes well has always been central to the PS philosophy - it’s not enough to buy better things, they need to be cleaned, altered and maintained. This requires time that many of us seem to have precious little of these days...
New York clothing resources: Places to clean, alt...
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Thank you Robert!...
The Valet: Becoming a one-stop shop for clothing ...
The Valet has become an all-round care and repair location in the past couple of years, which is great for our general push to encourage readers to look after their clothes better. Having started with pressing, then adding dry cleaning and shoe care...
The Valet: Becoming a one-stop shop for clothing ...
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Thanks!...
Reader Profile: Ben (and the community of menswear)
I met Ben at our recent pop-up party, and liked what he was wearing (first outfit below). We got to talking and I discovered his interesting background - always good, as I’d like these profiles to explore different types of PS reader - and his...
Reader Profile: Ben (and the community of menswear)
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Every time I read one of these, I learn something new. He’s got a phenomenal command of color and proportion. Really sharp dresser....
How to correct a flattened lapel
Sometimes the lapels of a jacket can get squashed in the wardrobe, making them fold at a point they’re not supposed to (the ‘break point’). It happens particularly with jackets that have more intentional roll, such as a ‘thr...
How to correct a flattened lapel
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I'm not sure anything can be done on a finished jacket just with an iron unfortunately - with the work I've seen, it's done before the collar is set by stitching it all together...
How to hand wash knitwear: Video
The clothing care I’ve always been worst at is washing knitwear. But I have got better in recent years, in part as I’ve become more used to the process and it’s felt more reliable, more predictable. Over time...
How to hand wash knitwear: Video
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Perhaps wait a little longer, just because it will be a pain...
Bespoke basted alterations: Chittleborough &...
One of the biggest things that affects how great clothing ages, is the extent to which it can be altered and repaired. The best things for repairs are often casual clothes, like jeans, where visible repairs can even be seen to add to their character...
Bespoke basted alterations: Chittleborough &...
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I haven't, but Joe is usually there working away when I walk past. I can certainly understand the point about establishing a relationship - Joe won't be working for years and years to come I wouldn't worry so much on the...
Video: How to deal with stains on tailoring
This video, the latest in our series on how to care for your tailoring at home, looks at stains. Cutter Ben Clarke, from Richard James in London, suggested this as a topic a while ago, but I wasn't sure. I thought we'd want to talk to a dry cleaner ...
Video: How to deal with stains on tailoring
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Thank you for this comment. Saved me going out trying to find elusive French chalk and just grabbing the talcum powder I already had....
Video: How to hem trousers, like a Savile Row tailor
Fixing the hem on trousers is a fairly easy - and satisfying - thing to do at home. It also enables you, should you want to, to alter the length of trousers (though it's much easier without cuffs). In this video I talk to Ben Clarke, cutter at Richa...
Video: How to hem trousers, like a Savile Row tailor
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Thank you. From Jean-Manuel Moreau, reviewed here...
How to sew a button – like a Savile Row tailor
Dressing well is not just about buying clothes, but about looking after them well, and responsibly. Caring for things so that they last longer, and you need less. In the past we’ve covered quite a few aspects about caring for clothes, includi...
How to sew a button – like a Savile Row tailor
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Many thanks Lindsay...
How to darn socks and knitwear
On Permanent Style we often recommend to buy less, but buy better. Just as important, however, is to recycle well (finding a good home for things you don’t wear) and to look after clothes well. They are three sides of the same ap...
How to darn socks and knitwear
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I'm afraid I don't Kate, no. Have fun with the repairs though!...
How I store my clothes
Being at home more has given me time to write about something readers frequently ask about: how I store my clothes. The short answer is, with difficulty, particularly given how much I care about looking after them. Tailoring cannot be too cramped, l...
How I store my clothes
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- Trousers retain a crease a tiny bit more if hung full length, but I don't think you really need to - No rubber strip, works fine - Tips: -- Have a section for coats, they'll always hang longer -- Don't overstuff, it ru...
How to deal with moths: Cleaning and smoke bombs
This is a personal article about the journey I’ve been on to counter clothes moths, and the regimen I’ve found that works. For anyone that would like a quick summary, it comprises: Fumigating at least once a year, using something like Pe...
How to deal with moths: Cleaning and smoke bombs
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I just found a moth in my clothes (pure coinciddence – I have a cap that I've worn out over the years and wanted to wear it for sentimental reasons, and a moth came flying out). Haven't seen any other yet, but I'm goin...
Shoes in wet weather: How to deal with rain and s...
In the past week, perhaps as it has been particularly wet here, I’ve had three comments from readers on old posts about dealing with soaking-wet shoes. Those old posts were never very comprehensive, so here is something fuller - dealing with ...
Shoes in wet weather: How to deal with rain and s...
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The crepe type I prefer generally...
Video: How much can you alter a suit?
One of the reasons a bespoke suit can last a long time is that it is easier to adjust, and the tailors that made it are better at doing so. It's easier to adjust because more cloth is left in the seams, and in more places, than anything made in a fa...
Video: How much can you alter a suit?
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I don't think that slight difference in the position of the fat/muscle will make much difference to the ease of an alteration...
Video: How a bespoke suit can be repaired
How a suit lasts - and can be repaired over time - doesn't get much focus in bespoke. The craft, the history, the style: they're all talked about more, and understandably so. They're a good deal sexier. But it's a shame, because a benefit of the way...
Video: How a bespoke suit can be repaired
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I see, thanks Dario. No, it is cloth rubbing against itself that usually causes it to wear through. My comment above at the end is in regards to jeans. I'm saying that you can patch on the inside there, because you don't...
Dealing with losing and gaining weight
I've been on holiday for the past two weeks, swimming every day, and have noticeably lost weight. I'm tightening the side adjustors on my trousers where I didn't before. It reminds me how frequently readers ask about such fluctuations in weight, and...
Dealing with losing and gaining weight
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Hey Ryan They may give a little over time but won’t stretch in the same way a t-shirt or piece of knitwear might. Depending on the type of cloth, you might experience a little give there - it’s one of the reasons Sim...
Buttons online – Bernstein & Banleys
It has always surprised me how many Italian tailors say they can’t source good, unpolished horn buttons. Particularly because, since its launch last year, even customers can buy them from UK distributor Bernstein & Banleys ( TheLiningC...
Buttons online – Bernstein & Banleys
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I see. I also wonder what material is used for button threads? Is silk a good material for this purpose?...
Michael Norman dry cleaning (previously Press2Dress)
*Michael now has a basic website with contact details at www.mnbespoke.com* There are precious few dry cleaners out there that understand bespoke tailoring. They are likely to clean suits in bulk, with everything going into the vat together and no a...
Michael Norman dry cleaning (previously Press2Dress)
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Yes, that can be a pain. I'm normally staying in self-catering accommodation, so I don't have that issue. Hotels are usually for shorter trips, where I can take all the shirts I need. But I wouldn't worry about giving so...
Video: How to press suit trousers
This is the last instalment in our series on looking after suits at home. The first showed how to brush and generally maintain suits, and the second how to press a jacket. You can see them at those links. It’s been an interesting process...
Video: How to press suit trousers
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Yes, true. I'd say around super 120s...
Video: How to press a jacket
Our latest video on suit maintenance may be the most useful of the lot: How to press your a jacket at home. In the video, Richard is at pains to point out that a lot of the pressing process cannot be replicated at home. Customers would need a hig...
Video: How to press a jacket
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No...
Five tips on suit alterations
A few weeks ago a reader asked about tips on having a suit altered. As often happens, this came up in the comments to a post – some of the best information is in there! I always recommend having a suit altered of course, if you have boug...
Five tips on suit alterations
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I don't think it's a posture issue Nikolai. But you basically have two choices - move that material up or reduce the seat through the centre seam. Which is better is not an easy thing to judge for a non-professional, eve...
Little things every day: How to maintain clothing
When friends ask me about looking after their clothes, it always strikes me that their questions come too late. They’ve trodden down the heel cup of a shoe, and want to know if it can be repaired; a suit is looking old and grimy and they wan...
Little things every day: How to maintain clothing
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Thanks for the tip, greatly appreciated....
A great suit cleaning option: Press2Dress
In the search for decent sponge-and-press services, I recently tried Press2Dress, a dry cleaner based in south London and run by Michael Norman. Michael is developing an online service that specialises in cleaning and pressing for bespoke clothing. H...
A great suit cleaning option: Press2Dress
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Thanks Michael (& Simon). When I next need to dry clean some of my suits Ill send you a message. Cheers....
Having a suit dry cleaned: Jeeves of Belgravia
Suits should not be dry-cleaned very often. For some I know on and around Savile Row, that means once every six months. For others, it means never. The exact amount, of course, depends also on how often and in what manner you wear your suits. When th...
Having a suit dry cleaned: Jeeves of Belgravia
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Yes, have a look on this post...
