Be ready for what's about to come here. Just came back from first fitting of my fully-canvassed DB. Pics!

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Added on August 17, 2010, 10:26 pmRU READY?!!

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Added on August 17, 2010, 10:34 pmWe decided on far-reaching changes to the jacket and trousers. The pics to follow depict a suit in a very early stage.

This post has been edited by kotmj: Aug 17 2010, 10:34 PM

i feel so tired. mebbe tmr la.

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Added on August 17, 2010, 10:54 pm



This post has been edited by kotmj: Aug 17 2010, 10:54 PM

So?

I love you guys. So fast.

Calvin: What do you mean by "reducing shoulders"? Do you mean softer or do you mean narrower?

Gshen: Yeah, it's 12 oz. This will be my cold weather suit.


The trousers should be ignored at this point. They were cut for braces, and in the pic they are resting on my hips without braces. We later put safety pins into the trousers to simulate buttons and held it up with braces. Even then it needs to be shortened at the hem by 3/4" and the back balance shortened 1/2" to keep the "line" from breaking at the back.

The buttoning point will be lowered by 1". The top row of buttons will remain though, as will the bottommost row. Just the middle row will move down 1".

AL likes the shirt to just peep out. I will have them moved higher on Saturday.

One side of the jacket will be completely recut to take into account my shoulder drop. It will not be compensated for by more padding in the shoulder.

The feel of the jacket is very different from AL's usual make. There is no stiff haircloth for the chest. The FC sifu was against it, and he says jackets ought to be soft. So there is simply another layer of hymo in the chest. The shoulder pads are also from the sifu, not AL. They feel different on my shoulder (I'm too used to AL stuff).

This post has been edited by kotmj: Aug 17 2010, 11:23 PM

The waist will also be suppressed more.

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Added on August 17, 2010, 11:27 pmAlso, a half-inch dart will be taken out at the gorge/lapel.

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Added on August 17, 2010, 11:32 pmI've never felt a jacket this limp. It's like a cardigan with shoulder pads.

This post has been edited by kotmj: Aug 17 2010, 11:32 PM

I got so excited last night I couldn't sleep. So I just woke up. At 11:30 a.m. Taking a half-day leave.

I am actually very happy with the drape at the back of the armscye. Notice that there is more drape at the right side than left. The left is how it should be, and I do not find that sort of drape offensive. The right side, as previously mentioned, will be recut. The upper sleeves have no drape, which explains their sculptural cleanness. All of it has been packed into the back of armscye. It makes for a jacket which allows for exceptional arm mobility, even with a thick sweater underneath. John Hitchcock wants the effect, but implements it differently, with the drape going to the upper sleeves, which makes things ugly.

The shoulder pads are pre-made ones and are thick (but soft). I think I will get him to make thinner pads.

My instructions were to extend the shoulders 1/4" each side. I think I am right in my suspicion that extended shoulders ONLY WORK if the shoulder seam droops somewhat.

As to the lapel belly: I admire it on gshen's jacket, but there is a school of thought that says there should be no perceptible belly (cf. Whife). I have till Saturday to decide if I want a belly or not.

'("The finished edge will be almost straight.")

I will call him to have it shortened at the front. 1/2".

My jacket will not be like gshen's because mine needs to fit over a sweater and still be comfortable to wear.

Yesterday's fitting session took 1.25 hours and was very intense. I was drained at the end. Indeed, there are more variables in a DB.

This post has been edited by kotmj: Aug 18 2010, 11:49 AM

My previous jackets have spot on shoulder widths. For this DB I asked for them to be extended 1/4" both sides. The pictures already depict this additional width. No more width will be added.

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Added on August 18, 2010, 12:03 pmI dunno, but the mid back (along the back seam) has no drape? I can see none. The cloth seems flat.



The right side has more drape but that's because of my right dropped shoulder. There is a 8.5 degree difference in shoulder slopes (there is a device for measuring this AL used yesterday).

This post has been edited by kotmj: Aug 18 2010, 12:03 PM

Oh, I also told him I want a back which dropped straight down and not follow my lumbar curve. He nailed it, but I think a slight inward curve there would give the back more shape. Just a bit.

On an Italian website that is somehow connected to Rubinacci, there were scanned pages from an old English guide to suits. One of the pages says a back which dropped vertically down is to be preferred for aesthetic reason over one which follows the lumbar curve. Apparently, it gives a man a more upright bearing. I tried implementing this with my beige linen jacket but AL didn't know how to handle it so we did it curved.

I am unconvinced myself, but the other pages in the guide were spot on, so I thought if ever there was a time for blind faith this is it.

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Added on August 18, 2010, 1:11 pmI did, a Tommy Hilfiger no less. I just didn't take pics with it. Will do this Saturday. But the jacket is supposed to look good even without a sweater.

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Added on August 18, 2010, 2:30 pmJust called AL to shrink the shoulders back a tad, to reduce the padding by half, and to shorten the front by 1/2".

This post has been edited by kotmj: Aug 18 2010, 02:30 PM

AL was 100% compliant. It was the smoothest fitting session ever. He let me have my way. (I am surprised myself.)

It may be too late for even me to try to salvage your soul.

That's so fast, it felt almost like yesterday that you commissioned the suit.

Only a Special Customer would be allowed to do that without being shooed out of the shop.

I have been having all my woolen bespoke trousers cut with DOUBLE forward pleats for a while now. I think I have been a drapist/comfort freak all along. The trick to double pleats is to make the thigh roomy. With a tight thigh, the pleats open up and the top blooms. Like a carrot.

I wonder if it's too late for this, but the tailor has not recut the right back panel to compensate for your dropped shoulder. You'll notice the back balance is too long on the right side, which causes more folds in the right lower back. The left panel looks fine.


About choosing tailors: Many people do not interview well. They do not know how to say the right thing, they are totally ignorant of your specific vocabulary, they may not know how to behave in polite company, they have non-symmetrical facial features, etc. The previous mod of the forum rejected Bespoked because the did not use the term MTM the way he understood it. He went to Lord's, with results the Tan Sri and I discuss with much humour during out meetups.

When I interview people, I ask them to bring along a portfolio of their work. It may be design projects they have completed in their previous companies. It may be a thesis they wrote. PowerPoint slides of previous projects. I want to see their results, not only their oral presentation thereof.

With tailors only one thing counts: How their completed suits sit on their customers. Service may be bad (initially). They may be absolutely ignorant of current fora preferences. They may work exclusively with polyester. I overlook all these and concentrate on trying to discern if he is a skillful pattern manipulator and a conscientious fitter. His house cut be damned: none have a fora-approved house cut.

Look, the pool of tailors with real talent, especially in SE Asia, is so shallow you will find no tailor to work with if you concentrate on anything else in your evaluation.

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Added on August 18, 2010, 11:08 pmI feel an urge to unzip it. POV indeed.

This post has been edited by kotmj: Aug 18 2010, 11:08 PM

If you unzip it and let it hang out I'll use it as my avatar immediately.

He's quite a tease.

This Saturday afternoon, anywhere in Malaysia.

yes, give it to your indo maid for ironing before you post pics

http://www.swicofil.com/products/007ramie.html

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Added on August 19, 2010, 7:28 pmyou shouldnt iron it. will ruin it.

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Added on August 19, 2010, 7:29 pmjust let it hang on hangar overnite

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Added on August 19, 2010, 7:37 pmperfect db, this


Lord Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of India

shirt collar plenty soft too

This post has been edited by kotmj: Aug 19 2010, 07:37 PM