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 learn about the process and wit...

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 commercial reasons that aspects of i...

Following my first project with Claire Barrett, who founded embroidery company Hawthorne & Heaney last year, this was a follow-up to decorate the lapel of my Timothy Everest smoking jacket. I wasn’t entirely sure whether I liked the look of the emb...

  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 bespoke - so the fit is good - ...

 The bespoke pea coat had many inspirations. Among its foremost influences were the personal creations of Davide (Taub, Gieves & Hawkes head cutter); the Gieves military and naval archive; and the embroidery designs of lovely Claire (Barrett) at...

This post could come under the ‘How great things age’ or the ‘Reflections on bespoke’ heading. Whatever the category, readers have asked frequently about this pea coat, how it has held up and - more specifically - whether I ever changed t...

 A few more details on the bespoke pea coat from Gieves & Hawkes, as promised. (By the way, isn't the pitch of the sleeve above gorgeous? Easier with a heavy cloth of course, but it is a uniquely pleasurable sight.)So, the last post showed the ...

Trying to look natural while eating. Which is impossibleThe linen suit shown here is my most recent commission, from the sterling outfit that is now Kent Haste & Lachter. There is a blog; there is a group photo on the wall; there is a real spirit of ...

 Earlier this year I helped write the Gieves & Hawkes book, One Savile Row: The Invention of the English Gentleman, contributing the bespoke chapter. It came out a couple of weeks ago, and I highly recommend it – not for my small section, ob...

 These are the first pictures from our first Permanent Style dinner, which was co-hosted with Essence Lifestyle on Monday at Club Cafe Royal - part of a series we are creating called The Gathering.It was a really lovely event, bringing together so...

  Last week was the summer party of the Bespoke Tailors Benevolent Association, which is always a nice affair. There's a mix of cutters, coatmakers and cloth merchants, as well as the friends and family of apprentices receiving their Savile Row Be...

By Tony Sylvester. “On the pleasant shore of the French Riviera, about half way between Marseilles and the Italian border, stands a large, proud, rose-colored hotel. Deferential palms cool its flushed façade, and before it stretches a short dazzli...

Zenith: I need to expand my wardrobe for a new job in London. I own a light charcoal, faintly blue-pinstriped French Connection suit, and a solid beige Ted Baker suit, but need:A traditional navy-blue single-breasted suitA trusted location to take my...

  Hong Kong has long been a centre for international commerce, driven by its location as a port and later by its strategic importance to the British Empire. When it was handed back to China in 1997, the city retained its vibrancy and ...

  It is rare these days that I cover someone for the first time who is genuinely a step above their peers. Yet such is the case with Lavabre Cadet. I had known of the French glove maker for several years, but never met and talked to them in pers...

A friend of mine started investing in good shoes around six months ago. I find it reassuring that I get such vicarious pleasure out of it: perhaps I’m not as self-centred as all that. His first pair was a lovely set of mid-brown, cap-toe Derbys (ab...

A typical ensemble at Trunk ClothiersDear Simon,My name is David and I have been a fan of your work for quite a while now. As an undergraduate business student at Northeastern University (Boston, MA), I have gradually realised a passion for good styl...

Two weeks ago, I chaired a discussion in the Private White VC shop in Mayfair around the topic of British manufacturing.It turned out to be one of the most enjoyable such talks I’ve ever done. The speakers were great, with both young and old; style...

Stivaleria Savoia is an old Milanese bespoke bootmaker (stivaleria means bootmaker, and the company was founded by craftsmen who made for the Savoia, or Savoy, cavalry). The designs are classic and practical, and unlikely to set any Instagram feeds...

I am aware that as my interest in fine men’s clothes progresses, and my education improves, the subjects on which I write can become more esoteric, even academic. Witness recent posts on the Blake construction of shoes and the minutiae of darts in ...

John Rushton shoes is an oasis of personal and professional service. At the very least, it seemed like an oasis to me last Saturday. I had spent a hellish three hours in the shoe department of Selfridge’s, in the middle of the January sales. Rack u...

About four years ago I did a series of visits to Edward Green, which were reproduced in The Rake and in the How Great Things Age series here on the blog. One of my favourite people I met in that time was the head pattern cutter, John Garner. John had...

It was effing freezing in Paris two weeks ago: officially minus five, felt like minus ten. I know that’s not extreme if you live in Sweden or North Dakota, but it’s not the kind of weather you’re used to in London, I can tell you. It was bitter...

It may still be cold outside (in the UK), but it’s late April and time for a write-up of the Spring/Summer pieces I’ve liked from our favourite brands.  If you have any questions about other releases from these brands (or indeed brands not featu...

In recent years I've been wearing more belts with tailoring, as I've worn other accessories such as ties and handkerchiefs less.  That's meant me upping my belt game, with a couple of commissions from Tightly Stitched, some great belts from Rubato, ...