Whitcomb & Shaftesbury final suit – gre...
February 10th 2016Back in October there was a lot of interest around my post on the bespoke service at Whitcomb & Shaftesbury. Their ‘classic bespoke’ service, which involves cutting the suit in London (by a very experienced Row cutter), and the...
Whitcomb & Shaftesbury final suit – gre...
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From what I've seen of the Huntsman service it's good, but it is expensive for what it is. I think you'll be absolutely fine if that's what you want. If you want to be safe, try on something they already have and give yo...
Sartoria Dalcuore bespoke, brown high-twist suit
February 8th 2016*London trunk show details: February 18-20 [email protected] +393458404232 32 Royal Crescent, London W11, UK* It’s been interesting to watch in recent years how more and more small tailors have come to prominence, getting coverage an...
Sartoria Dalcuore bespoke, brown high-twist suit
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When your arms are hanging naturally at your sides, the cloth of the sleeve should be smooth. And not look smoother and less wrinkled if you move your arm forward or back...
Edward Sexton flannel – When to wear a suit
December 7th 2015Apparently people are becoming more casual. There are now such things as luxury jogging bottoms. But I’ll put my money on the fact that – even as the fashion wheel turns – the suit will remain the formal attire of cho...
Edward Sexton flannel – When to wear a suit
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Smith's Luxury Flannels...
Final Camps de Luca grey suit
November 23rd 2015My apologies to Philip, who wrote recently that he’s been waiting for my review of this Camps de Luca suit. And to anyone else. The suit was completed a few months ago and we managed to take some photographs last month. But books, polos ...
Final Camps de Luca grey suit
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Hey, It was a tailoring detail that the Parisian school, particularly Camps de Luca and Smalto, were known for and used. The French were always that much more decorative. I'd imagine Zegna took it at one point from there...
Video: How to press suit trousers
November 20th 2015This 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 look after your suit
October 21st 2015This is the first in a series of videos – made in conjunction with Richard Anderson – on maintaining, brushing and pressing a suit. [It’s worth enlarging to full screen if you want to watch it all] They are practical gu...
Video: How to look after your suit
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If you sweat that much you will unfortunately just have to clean them more often, which means dry cleaning or a warm water soak as the tailor suggested. I'd try that on cotton first - linen is where you could get some sh...
Green flannel suit – from Brian Smith
October 2nd 2015Few readers will be surprised to hear that I like a nice green suit. Green is a wonderfully versatile colour, going with every autumnal colour you can think of, plus really strong browns, purples and oranges that few other colours could support. (...
Green flannel suit – from Brian Smith
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I think it's a strong colour, and it would have to be very much your style to wear strong colour like this for it to work. Even as a jacket or trousers on their own, it would be strong and unusual. Unless you wear someth...
Rubinacci linen suit – on Wei
September 9th 2015A couple of weeks ago when we showed the pictures from our Tailoring Symposium at Pitti, a reader asked if there were any images of Wei Koh’s suit. I had mentioned that the founder of The Rake was wearing a Rubinacci-made number in the s...
Rubinacci linen suit – on Wei
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Yes, I'd wear some sort of collar, and probably slip-on shoes, like a loafer or a pair of Sagans for example...
Five tips on suit alterations
July 15th 2015A 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 that's right, if the alterations person is good enough (effectively a tailor themselves) it can be fine. Don't shorten more than that though or it will start to change the shape of the arm...
Almost ready – suits being made for our Tai...
June 12th 2015At our Tailoring Symposium next week in Florence, we have six of the greatest tailors in the world presenting their styles to the audience of press and buyers: Panico, Cifonelli, Edward Sexton, Richard Anderson, Liverano & Liverano, and An...
Almost ready – suits being made for our Tai...
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Sometime in the future it would be interesting to see a range of work from provincial Tailors. Some people who have posted on your Blog have alluded to this subject in the past. There are many talented people out there a...
How to make a cheap suit look good
June 10th 2015Not everyone can afford a bespoke suit, or even a top-end ready-to-wear one. But there are many things you can do on any budget to improve the look of your tailoring. 1. Buy conservative If a suit isn’t of the greatest quality, make sure it d...
Edward Sexton grey flannel suit
June 3rd 2015My apologies to readers that have been waiting for these shots of the Edward Sexton suit. Books, corrupted photos and other things seemed to consistently get in the way. I’ve always wanted a double-breasted mid-grey flannel. I had one m...
Edward Sexton grey flannel suit
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No not really, and 11oz is an OK weight, I've just drifted a little heavier and would go more for 13 these days. It's not a huge difference though, compared to say soft Italian ones at 8/9...
The 1-6 suit rating system
May 11th 2015My interview with Jonathan Clay last week went down well with readers – perhaps because he’s not the kind of person that would normally be interviewed. As the supplier of Italian ready-made suits, he sees all sides of the indust...
The 1-6 suit rating system
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Yes I would Will. A jacket can be incredibly light with a lightweight fabric and lightweight canvas. Usually brands don't want to use the lighter weight canvas though as it can be more expensive....
Grey shirts with grey suits, at Milan launch
May 5th 2015Last week was the official launch of the Permanent Style book, with an event in Milan hosted by Vitale Barberis Canonico and A Caraceni. I was interviewed by the fashion editor of La Repubblica, Simone Marchetti, about my history and views on cont...
Grey shirts with grey suits, at Milan launch
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They remind me of school uniform but I have several now including a French cuffed Etro number and a button down from Santillo, both of which work well as suggested with a vintage grey tie from Hardy Amies in wool or a kn...
Interview: Jonathan Clay and the story of Italian...
April 27th 2015Jonathan Clay runs a suit-making facility in Italy, supplying high-end English and foreign retailers. His father did too – d’Avenza – and here Jonathan explains that story: how Italians learnt manufacturing from the Engli...
Interview: Jonathan Clay and the story of Italian...
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If you can afford bespoke, I'd always do that from a craft perspective. D'Avenza is good, and bear in mind that the same factory will often do slightly different quality levels for different customers....
A green cotton suit?
January 12th 2015In my review of Spanish tailor Reillo’s cotton suit last week, there proved to be only room to analyse the fit and make. Yet a reader rightly pointed out that green cotton-gabardine is hardly an everyday cloth option. I’ll expla...
A green cotton suit?
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It would have both those advantages, yes. And I'd imagine it would be suited to the kind of person that liked the look and line of hopsack, but didn't live somewhere particularly hot...
Reillo, Madrid: Bespoke cotton suit
January 5th 2015This suit is from Jose Maria Reilo, the second of the three Spanish tailors I commissioned from in 2014. The make is good, although there are one or two issues with the fit that I’ll come to in a moment. The suit is green cotton gabardine &nd...
Reillo, Madrid: Bespoke cotton suit
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Simon thanks for the clarification. Actually are details that I look, important to define the class and the authentic craftsmanship. On the other hand I am aware that they are details that do not affect the line, the cut...
Linen suit from Langa: details
September 18th 2014Some close-up details here on the linen suit from Sastreria Langa that we featured earlier in the week. You can see a few of the tailoring idiosyncrasies, as well as the cloth and work itself in more detail. Langa include both a label for their own...
Linen suit from Langa: details
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What a lovely story Robert. And lovely to hear the archives are proving so fruitful...
Linen suit from Langa, Madrid
September 16th 2014Tobacco brown’s a nice colour, isn’t it? Definitely informal – due to its lightness and saturation – yet with a quiet sophistication. Colonial, particularly in linen, but without the baggage of cream or tan. This is 8-ounce ...
Linen suit from Langa, Madrid
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There isn't, but Manish did a nice piece in the magazine on Madrid style which talks about a few places...
Five tips on bespoke suits
June 23rd 2014The process of commissioning a bespoke suit is a nerve-wracking and, of course, expensive one. Permanent Style has provided extensive advice on this process over the years, particularly in posts covering suits from more than 20 tailors. But a reade...
Camps de Luca suit: fitting
June 2nd 2014I’m getting pretty excited about this Camps de Luca suit now. Not only will it be one of the most beautifully made suits I own – coming from a Parisian tailor – but also one of the most versatile. In both those ways it is similar ...
Camps de Luca suit: fitting
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That's standard, and absolutely fine....
Camps de Luca suit, Paris
April 30th 2014I’ve known the De Luca family for a while now – particularly since Julien rejoined the business a few years ago. Julien was English-educated and worked in the City before going back to join Camps de Luca, and somehow the English connectio...
Camps de Luca suit, Paris
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One tip for cloth-hunters: If you live in a center of textile or clothing design, there are usually cloth merchants selling odds and ends that were designed for fashion houses. On ebay and elsewhere, I've seen unusual sh...
How to compare RTW and MTM suits
February 21st 2014Since 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 how to compare RTW, and why ...
How to compare RTW and MTM suits
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I think you're right to be cautious - and I don't cover much MTM partly because it can be unreliable. But I'd have no hesitation recommending Saman Amel. I suggest starting there. And start with a conservative suit rathe...
How to buy my first bespoke suit – reader q...
February 3rd 2014Dear Simon, In a couple of months time I will be 21. This is clearly an important time in one’s life, in my case particularly as I will also be undertaking the purchase of my first bespoke suit. As a regular reader of your blog I’...
How to buy my first bespoke suit – reader q...
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Thanks Sam, great update, and great knowing how timeless this advice has been...
How to buy a suit
December 9th 2013A colleague recently asked me for advice on buying a suit – probably navy, certainly single-breasted, possibly three-button. It’s the kind of everyday question that I get asked a lot, and probably concerns far more people than &am...
How to buy a suit
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Hi Michael, Certainly, you don't want to consistently clean only one half of a suit. They will age differently. However, as a one-off it should be fine, and if you do notice any difference afterwards between the two halv...
