We Got It For Free: Anderson & Sheppard’s A Style is Born
Anderson & Sheppard’s new book, A Style is Born, is being released today. The 296-page volume is special in that it’s part of Anderson & Sheppard’s evolutionary shift, but to understand that, we should start with some history.
The company was founded in 1906, and originally called Anderson & Simmons. It changed to its current name, however, when Mr. Simmons sold his stake to Sidney Horatio Sheppard, a trouser cutter at the firm. Per Anderson, one of the original co-founders, was a Swedish expatriate who learned his trade from an innovative Dutch tailor named Frederick Scholte. Scholte is credited with creating the London cut (also known as the English drape), which is a term that refers to the way a jacket hangs (or “drapes”) from the shoulders. There is more room over the chest and shoulder blades, which results in conspicuous, but graceful, folds of cloth that gently descend from the collarbone. The uppersleeves are built generously, but the armholes are cut high, so that that jacket’s collar never lifts off of the wearer’s neck. The shoulders are also unpadded, which leaves them to slope naturally along the body’s lines. The combination of all these things make the English drape cut extremely comfortable and easy to move around in, but still adheres to many of the basic standards of fit that make a suit well tailored.
This cut was popularized by the Duke of Windsor, who wanted to rebel against his “buttoned up” childhood. The Duke longed for a more comfortable way of dressing - he often found himself removing his coat, ripping off his tie, loosening his collar, and rolling up his sleeves. It was a gesture not just for comfort, but also, in a symbolic sense, freedom. In Scholte, he found the perfect simpatico - a man who would make him a softly constructed jacket that would be as much about comfort as it would be about elegance.
Since the Duke set much of the early- to mid-20th century mens’ fashion trends, his implicit endorsement led to a boom in the cut’s popularity, which reached all the way across the Atlantic. Many Hollywood stars became enamored with the look, and since Per Anderson trained under Scholte, they naturally went to Anderson & Sheppard.
While Per Anderson built the house’s silhouette, his partner, Sidney Horatio Sheppard (better known as SHS), set its tone. In his introduction to the book, David Kamp uses a line from American satirist and Anglophile SJ Peterman. Peterman said of the British: “The expression ‘It’s not done’ pretty well sums up not only the state of mind of the more solvent class, but the attitude of people in shops and businesses.” SHS was apparently an “it’s not done” kind of fellow. He was a schoolmaster’s son, well educated, socially connected, and somewhat of a country squire. He was said to be very autocratic, not one to mix with the tailoring fraternity, and worked hard to build the firm’s reputation, but without making it seemed like the firm sought attention to itself. In fact, this was done to such an extent that the firm seemed almost secretive. While other tailors such as Henry Poole and Kilgour joined associations and guilds, Anderson & Sheppard never joined anything at all. Save for a single advertisement published once in an outdoorsman magazine, the firm also never advertised. SHS eschewed publicity of any sort and thought it was vulgar.
SHS’s reticence and strict sense of propriety filtered down to the staff, and this transmuted into a kind of hardedge severity. Women weren’t allowed into the fitting areas, unless they promised to keep quiet. Cutters were known to storm out of rooms if wives offered a suggestion or critiqued a husband’s suit-in-progress. They also refused to deviate from the house’s famous English-drape style. One cutter, Mr. Hallbury, would respond to such requests by saying, “Are you asking me to make a Rolls-Royce with the front of a Mercedes, sir?” A fierier cutter, Mr. Cameron, would simply show customers the door, saying, “You’re in the wrong shop!”
In 2004, Anda Rowland became Anderson & Sheppard’s vice chairman, and now manages it along with John Hitchcock. She has overseen somewhat of a glasnost there. The famously secretive house, once closed to writers and journalists, is now opening up. There is a website, a blog, and cutters and tailors who don’t mind your paying them a visit in the back rooms. The tailors are much friendlier, and no one is ever thrown out anymore (though they still won’t deviate from their cut). This book, then, is part of that evolution. The handsome photographs give a glimpse into inner workings and everyday details of life at Anderson & Sheppard, from the sturdily woven fabrics to the tailors’ and cutters’ workrooms. There are also sublime archival images of legendary clients of yore, not least of which includes Fred Astaire, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Gary Cooper, and Laurence Oliver. Nearly all of these men are photographed in their natural settings, and the elegance they portray is quite inspiring.
The volume is available for purchase on Amazon’s UK site, and I think it makes for a great addition to any library. It is part fashion history and part social history, and gives a near tactile immersion in one of the best tailoring shops in the world. I strongly recommend getting a copy.
![Here’s an old article I’ve been meaning to post. John Hitchcock, the managing director of one of Savile Row’s best tailoring houses, Anderson & Sheppard, talks about the five bespoke items that every man should have in their closet. Assuming, of course, that you’re even the kind of many who would have bespoke items in your closet. Nonetheless, I think it’s a good checklist to have, client of bespoke tailoring or not.
A navy pinstripe double-breasted suit: A fine navy pinstripe avoids the louder gangster look that some people associate with the double-breasted suit. The double-breasted suit is one of the most flattering garments that a man can wear as it creates a longer line and more defined waist. This hides the stomach and accentuates the chest and shoulders.
A herringbone tweed jacket in brown, blue or gray: Tweed is the easiest and most classic way for a man to bring color into his wardrobe. Depending on the color and pattern, the jacket can be worn in the town or in the country; with gray flannel trousers or with jeans; with a shirt and with a sweater, and throughout autumn and winter. [Good tweeds are] hard wearing and get better with age.
Mid-gray flannel trousers with turn-ups: Gray flannel continues to be a favorite with our customers in the creative industry as it has a relaxed feel. These trousers work with most jackets and even just with a shirt and sweater. Avoid belt loops and choose side tabs or brace buttons and a buttonfly. The width of the turn-ups is important, as it is better not to have any rather than thin ones.
A classic white cotton shirt: Gary Cooper and Cary Grant were champions of the white shirt, as it always looks fresh and elegant. I prefer mine with a semi-cutaway collar, double cuffs and mother-of-pearl buttons. [However] always [get one] without a breast pocket or a button down collar.
A single-breasted Chesterfield-style navy-blue herringbone overcoat with a matching velvet collar: You can put this over whatever you are wearing; even pajamas, and you will instantly look smart. The real tastemakers in the 1920s and ’30s wore theirs very fitted as they knew that the overcoat creates an immediate impression.
Kind of puts my 10 essentials list to shame. Note: that list is more about what personal items I have that get me through a typical day, and was written when the weather was still very cold in the Bay Area. Jesse also wrote two similar lists - The Essential Men’s Wardrobe, and a more personal one here.](http://29.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lmkieeH0uE1qa2j8co1_500.jpg)
