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new york, final update

Published: Friday, October 27th 2006

Well, here it is, my last entry before I have the big swim across the Atlantic. I am really looking forward to his trip, I have had a lot of positive enquiries from potential new clients, so it could be a good trip. If I can break even, I will be happy, any more is a bonus.

If anyone would like see me whilst I am in New York, it will probably be easiest to try my mobile/cell telephone, 07980541235. I am staying at the Benjamin Hotel.

I am also hoping to have a look around whilst I am in New York. My visit has fallen over the Halloween period, so I may be taking a look at the parade. If anyone has any other suggestions for me, places to eat, or drink, please let me know, you cannot beat local knowledge.

I would like to thank everyone that is calling to see me and for having a little faith, it is much appreciated. It is because of you this trip can take place. Yorkshire folk like me, are straight forward, honest and reliable.

I would also like to thank all the people that have sent emails wishing me good luck, thankyou. 

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america, anyone in atlanta?

Published: Wednesday, October 25th 2006

I have my first New York visit this Saturday, 28th October - 1st November. This is a big step for me but, I am looking forward to hopefully meeting new clients.

I arrive 12.45pm all things permitting. So should be sorted in my hotel for 4pm, hopefully. 

I am limited with the amount of work I can take on and my appointments are filling up, if you would like to meet me over the period in question, please email me. 

I have had some enquiries to visit other parts of the USA, namely Atlanta. If anyone in Atlanta would be interested in meeting me, please email me and I can look at adding it to my schedule when I return on my next visit, around end of January/ beginning of February 2007.

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how do I stay so slim?

Published: Friday, October 20th 2006

Breakfast Yorkshire style! I don't know how I stay so slim.

My wife Julie, even though I do not ask her brings me my breakfast, usually a mug of tea and toast.

I must have been in the good books the other day, she brought me a great bacon sandwich!

Julie had been out early that morning with our 6 month old daughter and called to the local bakery on her way returning home.

Buying a few fresh baked loaves of bread, we already had the Yorkshire bacon at home so she cut two nice 'door stops' of bread and made me a great bacon sandwich to go with my mug of tea. 

I thought it was so good looking it deserved an entry on the blog! 

Thanks Julie!

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more pictures - unusual jackets

Published: Friday, October 20th 2006

These are a few odd pictures of the unusual style jackets I am making for two of my customers.

Both these jackets are made to measure, not bespoke. I also make all my made to measure garments personally, even though the sewing machine is used much more in the making, there is quite a lot of hand work involved. These pictures show some of the handwork. For a start, there is all the hand basting that is used for the jacket, which is no small amount. The collar to facing seam on these jackets has been hand drawn. I also hand stitched the dommette for the sleeve head roll into these sleeves, there is a lot of fullness in the sleeves, so it made sense. I made the piping for around the collar edge with spare lining, cut on the bias to enable it to go around the curve smoothly. It is hand stitched in place.  The other picture shows how I have done the bottom of the vent, a mitre seam. This type of seam keeps the lining away from the bottom of the jacket and is a good method, very clean and thin.

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new sleeves

Published: Tuesday, October 17th 2006

UPDATE:- I am in New York 28th October - 1st November and staying at the Benjamin Hotel. Please email me if you would like to meet during the period in question. 

I finished one of the unusual style jackets yesterday, the one with the orange lining. I did not touch it today, I was out running around.

I got back around 4pm and the jacket was on the dummy, it just did not look right on the sleeves. It was not pressed, but fully finished ( except buttons and holes ) including the hand felling.

My customer has quite a bend in his arms and I think I have overdone it from the fitting, putting too much curve on the sleeves. Even though I have not seen it on him finished, my mind was made up, I have taken the sleeves out and re ordered enough cloth to make some more.

Tailoring is fickle, you get a feeling something is wrong, it may, or may not be in truth, but, it is not worth the risk with customers. So you remake, or replace. This is one of these situations. The sleeve below is one I have removed.

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reply to questions

Published: Saturday, October 14th 2006

UPDATE :- I am in New York 28th October - 1st November and staying at the Benjamin Hotel. Please email me if you would like to see me during the period in question. Please select 'America' on menu for more information. 

On page 3 of my blog, I have been asked by Medwards several questions. 

1:- what do I see as the future of bespoke tailoring in the UK?.

I think bespoke tailoring will grow in the UK. I believe the customer is becoming a lot more savvier regarding the purchase of expensive, or luxury goods, including suits. This is because todays client has more information at the fingertips now than ever before, the AAAC forum and others are a prime example. Clients are now through the power of the internet, able to see that expensive MTM or designer off the peg clothing are simply 'a label' and offer little in the way of individuality, exclusiveness or craftmanship. Clients with the ability to afford bespoke, or good MTM are turning away from the RTW and expressing themselves in bespoke garments imbued with their own individual style.

2:- can Savile Row survive? Does it matter.

I have no experience whatoever of Savile Row. I attended a trip to Henry Poole's whilst I was at college. I was so impressed, upon my return I applied for a job there.  I was beyond apprentice and below tailor, married with a mortgage and three children to support in Yorkshire. We agreed it was impossibe financially. That was the end of that. Can SR survive? I think yes, but maybe not in the form it is now. Maybe there will be more companies working from one premises, sharing rent and overheads. There has been a steady decline due to high rents, but that is life. I would not agree to rent assistance. These are first and foremost a business and if a business cannot afford the overheads of a prime location, why should someone else subsidise you? Is Savile Row the tailoring, or the premises? Surely the inside ornamentation moves with a business?.

Savile Row takes a fair chunk of the bespoke trade and always will, it is a 'mecca', even though many establishments are branching out into the RTW market whilst at the same time complaining of the retail companies moving onto the Row doing the same. You can't have it both ways. It is also unclear to me why people 'rave' over Savile Row when they only have a minimal involvement in the garment. The rest being done by at least 6 other people and most not even on site, it IS sub division, albeit on a small scale. Granted, the quality is better than most other tailors, but, not all other tailors and the out worker scenario is exactly the same as most other tailoring establishments. Is the quality better than the many suits the world famous Montague Burton's factory at Hudson Road, Leeds made for Prince Phillip in the 50's through to the 80's and other members of the Royal Family?. All full bespoke, but, on a larger sub division system. Montague Burton's held and still do I believe, the Royal Warrant for tailoring.

Is it the prestige of having a Savile Row label inside your garment?.

I do believe if you have the iconic ' Savile Row trained' on your letterheads, your future business path IS easier and more guaranteed, people are more prepared to give you a chance, why? I don't know. Is it 'all singing and dancing'?. Are there no unhappy clients that leave Savile Row?

Surely it does not have ALL the best tailors in the world?. 

I think price will become an issue, if not already. Overheads and costs have to be factored into any product. Savile Row occupies some of the most expensive 'retail' space in the world, if customers want it, they have to pay for it. 

Does it matter? Even though I have made clear my personal opinion, I think it does matter!.

3:- What will be the impact of Savile Row's future on other English tailors?

I don't think any. A craft that is as personal as tailoring maintains and services customers, many for decades, if the product is good. If I keep my prices fair, if people give you a chance and look further than Savile Row, I am able to compete. Not purely on price, but as a tailor.

I look forward to my questions answered!. 

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a busy week

Published: Friday, October 13th 2006

UPDATE:- I am in New York 28 th October -1 st November. Please email me if you would like to see during the period in question. 

These are the last orders I have taken before my New York visit, part are from last week and some are from this week, there is also a couple more suits lengths and a single jacket to be added.

There are about 11 suits and two jackets in total here.

Every fabric ordered is from one of my Yorkshire cloth merchants. These new orders are on top of the work 'in progress', which is similar to a 'round robin', work to cut and fit up, work at fitting stage to try-on, work to finish and work to deliver.

I will not be taking any more orders now until I return from New York.

The way I work is not like most other tailors because I do all the work from start to finish, I have to be careful with how much I take on to ensure I am reliable for my customers.

I will not take order after order, it would be a disaster. I could make more money putting my work out, but, that does not sit easy with me.

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unusual style jacket

Published: Wednesday, October 11th 2006

UPDATE:- I am in New York 28th October - 1st November. I am staying at the Benjamin Hotel. Please email me if you would like to see me during the period in question.

I am making an unusual style of jacket for two of my clients. Both are good customers of mine and good friends with each other.

Tailoring is not always about the same run of the mill fabrics and styles, it is about individuals expressing themselves through clothing. These jackets are certainly an expression and a welcome change for me. 

This is one of the reasons why I love my job so much, creating a garment and bringing to life an idea a customer conveys to me that is at this stage merely nothing more than an idea or picture in their head.

Both the jackets will be the same when finished except one is to be made in a blue shadow stripe cloth, the other is a black shadow stripe cloth. Both clients have picked a contrast lining one a turquoise and the other orange. 

The style is unique in its own right but on top of the style features there will be a piping made from the same lining as inside the jacket, which will be fixed to the edge of the finished collar and on the edge of the flared cuffs. 

The forepart ( jacket front ) has a pleat running across the chest about where a top welt pocket would be on a normal jacket, the jacket fronts will be a button 4 and square cut at the bottom.

The side pockets on the jacket are a 'bellows' patch pocket, and identical in style to the ones I normally put on shooting jackets.

This pocket will have a large overcoat style flap above it we have not decided the shape of it yet ( the actual depth ) so here it is below just basted in position.

These jackets are also what I would call 3/4 length or the old car coat length. I am not sure what the buttoning arrangement will be ie, button through fronts or a fly front.

Both these jackets which I think are a bit of fun for my customers, are of a fused front construction with 1/2 chest canvas and NOT fully canvassed bespoke garments.

To be honest this fabric is a super 150s cloth and they did not want to spend a fortune ( even though they both easily can ) and the fusible option is sensible.

Some fabrics particularly light weight cloths look terrible with a full canvas showing fullness and uneven, lumps and bumps all over the place so it is sometime wise to look at construction objectively and not purely from a 'canvas is the ony way ' mindset.

I want to give my clients the best looking garments and if that means deviating from canvas occasionaly and making a rational choice to fuse a particular fabric, I will do so.

I have lots of practical experience with using fusibles, unlike the other cutter/tailors who have non yet can and do claim fusing is useless and rubbish, what a cheek!

There are no chest darts  ( a dart is a cut or seam made in the jacket front to give shape and help slim the waist ) in either of these garments and they both look a little 'flat' at the moment because of this.

That has nothing to do with being fused.

I have also cut both these garments with a lot of front drape for style and comfort.

Drape is an excess amount of cloth that is allowed over and above the actual clients measures, in this case at the chest, and has the benefit of making a garment easier and comfortable to wear.

The canvas chest piece basted underneath this forepart or front of jacket has not had a 'wedge' cut out for the chest yet.

By leaving the chest dart out, I am also able to move the patch pockets to any position my client wants, up, down, back or forward.

I can asses at the fittings the front dart situation when I still have the option to cut the darts into the jacket fronts if I think my clients need them from a fit point of view when I have conducted the fittings. 

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possible apprentice?

Published: Tuesday, October 10th 2006

UPDATE:- I shall be in New York 28th October - 1st November. Please email me if you wish to see me over the period in question.

I have a potential apprentice. This is my second son, James, looking very happy!, who says he fancies training to become a tailor ( thought I'd taught him better than that ) We are going to take it steady, training on his days off from his full time chef's job. He has the potential to do it, being his father I know his character. We shall see how it goes.

It is my intention to expand the business slowly, only with people prepared to embrace my work ethics. I am delighted to possibly have a member of my family involved.

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whisky

Published: Monday, October 9th 2006

UPDATE:- I am in New York from 28th - 1st November and staying at the Benjamin Hotel, please email me if you are interested in seeing me over the period in question.

Around 2 years ago, I saw a feature on BBC television about the possible foundation of a club dedicated to preserving the craft of making traditional whisky. Anything trying to preserve a craft, or art, appeals to me.

I was sold!, paid my money on the Monday morning in 2003/4 and decided to take a chance, have a look,  see what you think, www.whisky.co.uk.

If you are interested and take it further, please mention my name to Mr Thompson, I may receive an extra bottle of whisky!.

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