|
 |
|
A column by Peter Chong |
In this column, we will be brought into the fascinating world of bespoke couture, an industry where the concept of customer service has remained unchanged through the centuries. This issue, Peter introduces to the uninitiated the finer points of making a bespoke suit. |
|
The term ‘bespoke’ – derived from the word ‘bespeak’, refers to the act of the customer speaking for a bolt of cloth (i.e. the cloth is now ‘spoken for’) and specifying his requirements to his cutter. Everything can be specified. This is a dialogue between the customer and his cutter, and ensures that the suit is made to fit the individual and not the other way round.
A bespoke suit is to be contrasted with Ready to Wear, and Made to Measure suits, and a brief description of the latter two will be given by way of comparison.
Suits available ready-to-wear, i.e. off the rack, are made in sizes determined by the chest diameter, and also typically available in lengths ‘regular’ and ‘long’. For example, a coat with a chest size of 44 inches will typically measure 46 inches diameter under the armpit. For regular length coats, the sleeves would be 24.5 to 25.5 inches from shoulder seam to end of sleeve, and the coat would measure 31 to 33 inches from the top of the collar to the bottom of the coat. For long coats, the sleeves and overall coat length will typically be 1.5 to 2 inches longer.
This would typically accompany a pair of trousers with a 38 inch waist (In tailoring parlance,
this is known as a 6 inch drop because the chest measurement is usually 6 inches larger than the waist measurement
), coupled with an inseam length of 31 inches. However, imprecision in the measurements is common, and a size 44 coat from one maker will often differ from a size 44 from another.
But, if you have a 44 inch chest, what are the chances that your arms are of the predetermined proportions ? Would you definitely have a waist 6 inches smaller than your chest?
Probably not. The coat is cut to fit the proportions of the hypothetical everyman, and of course,
according to the whims of the designer.
[Pullout: There are broadly two types of tailoring approaches which are referred to as ‘Made to Measure’. There is one where alterations are made to nearly finished suits hanging on the rack by an alterations tailor, and another where a sales person would first take your measurements before sending it to a factory for cutting and sewing.
In the first type, the suits are made in the factory with allowances for small adjustments in length of sleeve, size of waist, length of trouser legs and even slight adjustments to coat length (typically the balance of the coat is affected when one adjusts the coat length once the pockets are cut). At the store, an alterations tailor will take your measurements, and subsequently finish your suit by adjusting the suit to your measurements as far as the allowances permit.
In the second type, your measurements are transmitted to the factory, where small adjustments can be made to the generic pattern to accommodate your features. In both cases, all suits of the same size will be made from a generic pattern, and cannot be adjusted for details like button stance, notch height, crutch measurement, etc.
Next Page: True Bespoke
1 2 >>
|
|
