Put This On

This, from The Silentist, is a nice illustration of what a little tailoring can do.  The author spent $25 at the tailor and got a whole new pair of pants.  Well done.

Time Out New York is a wonderful publication (I’m particularly a fan of the beautiful and charming Jane Borden’s comedy coverage) , but if they want to run articles about men’s style, maybe they should hire someone to look them over who… you know… knows something about men’s style. 

They just published this piece, about “bespoke” suiting in New York.(1)  The disasters are all over everywhere here.  Frankly, they’re too many to enumerate.  Judging by these photos, at least three, maybe four of these men would have been better suited with a $400 suit from some worst-case-scenario off-the-rack retailer like The Men’s Wearhouse.  This is that bad.

The lesson here is that tailors vary wildly in their abilities, their offerings and particularly in their taste.  You cannot rely upon a tailor to tell you how to style your clothes.  They are craftsmen, skilled at making clothes, not at designing them.  Find a good tailor, learn about clothes, and know what you want before you start ordering purple button holes and black wool.  Furthermore: keep it simple.  Just because you can order white-on-black Al Capone pinstripes doesn’t mean you should.

(A proviso: one of these suits, by Michael Andrews, looks fine.  It’s also possible, even likely, that many of the other problems came from the styling and choices made by the gentlemen featured in the article, rather than by some mistake of the tailors.)

(1) (I would ordinarily use “bespoke” to describe a process in which a tailor creates a pattern specifically for a customer, then makes a garment from that pattern with multiple fittings; it appears they are mostly featuring made-to-measure programs here.)

Q and Answer: Treating Crotch Blowout

“Crotchless in Chicago” writes:  After watching your excellent episode on denim, I decided to try out your recommendations on wearing raw denim jeans.  Six months later, I am having the same problem I have had with many jeans in the past and would like your recommendations on my situation.  The current pair of jeans are Levis 527s which I purchased in early December and have been wearing almost every day since.  They have been hand washed in Woolite Dark exactly three times.  The problem is that two or three months ago I started noticing significant wear in the crotch just behind the seam.  I noticed this morning that this wear has progressed into actual holes.  Just about every pair of jeans I have owned have ended this way.  Is there some way I could prevent this or mend a pair after they begin to show wear?

First of all: let it be said that we do not endorse relaxed boot-cut denim.

OK: that aside, on to the issue of crotch blowout.

By far the biggest problem with rarely-washed raw denim jeans is crotch blowout.  It doesn’t happen to everyone, but for some of us - presumably those of us with meatier thighs or sweatier balls - it is a consistent problem.  The crotch is both the most friction-prone and swampiest area of the jeans, and the combination (dirt and moisture weakening the fabric, friction breaking fibers) can lead to a threadbare patch or even holes.

Patching jeans is easy enough.  Better to catch the problem early, but your tailor can repair the damage largely invisibly for ten dollars or so.  Many denim aficionados appreciate the “hand-made” look of a home patching - you can buy the patch at any fabric store for a couple dollars.  You can also send them to a denim specialist like Denim Therapy in New York, who charge $7/inch of damage, and ship nationwide.  If you want a perfect repair, call your local denim specialist retailer and see who they recommend.

Another option that I’ve used successfully in the past is using a fabric repair glue like Tear Mender.  This stuff is like a weird rubber cement specifically for fabric.  It dries clear and flexible, and does a great job of arresting fraying.  I put some on the seam in my crotch when it looks like it might start to go, and on the inside of my knees when they get dangerously thin, and it’s held quite well.  Be careful not to use too much - if it’s globby, it will attract dirt.

Q and Answer: Can Pleats Be Removed From Pants?

James writes: I have two suits that I bought on sale a few years ago.  I still love the fabric and the cut of the jackets, but the pants are pleated, and I find that I am not wearing them because I don’t enjoy wearing pleated pants anymore.  I feel like if they were flat-front pants I would have two more suits in the closet.  Can a tailor take the pleats out of pants?

Yes, a tailor can take the pleats out of pants.  It’s pretty major surgery, though, so I would only trust it to a solid tailor, not an alterationist. 

For reverse pleats (those whose mouth opens to the outside), this involves removing the waistband, opening the pleat then re-cutting the side seam and pocket.  For forward pleats, it’s even more complicated.  Some tailors will replace the pleat with a dart, which is pretty weird.  We’re not really cool with that, frankly.

Because it’s such a complicated job (you’re essentially having the tailor re-cut the pants), it generally costs about $50-75.

thisfits:

How to Fit a Suit Jacket - How to Fit Mens Pants - Esquire

A very reasonable guide.

With jackets, you should also note whether the lapel is flush against your shirt, and whether the back covers your rear end.  Sleeve length as well, of course, but that is alterable.

Q and Answer: Can A Tailor Make It Bigger?

Mike writes: This week, while doing a little vintage shopping at my local thrift store, I discovered a sharp Harris tweed sport coat among the discarded and otherwise cheap-looking jackets. Although the fit was a little snug, given its condition, I couldn’t turn down the $8 price tag, especially since I’m in the process of losing some extra weight anyway. But pot belly or not, the sleeves are still about an inch too short — something that even the best diet won’t fix. In a typical coat, how much extra fabric is there for a tailor to work with, and is it even possible to lengthen sleeves, or any other part of the garment?

Generally, a tailor can’t do much to make clothes bigger.  Good pants usually have an inch or two in the waist to give, but most coat enlargements are impossible.  Even if there’s a bit of fabric available, it can change the shape of the coat in an undesirable way.

Luckily for you, sometimes letting sleeves out is an exception.  You can roll the fabric at the cuff between your fingers to feel whether there’s any extra fabric in there.  Remember that you can only extend it by whatever fabric is folded back inside the lining - the stuff immediately inside the cuff, before the lining starts, needs to be there.  If you’re not sure, you can always take it to the tailor and ask.  Usually half an inch or even an inch is available.

One pitfall to be aware of when trying this maneuver: older coats can get wear at the very end of their sleeves.  This changes the texture of the fabric, and results in a visual line.  Shorten the sleeves, and this line is on the inside where it’s invisible.  Lengthen the sleeve, and the line creeps up the sleeve (relatively) and starts to look like some sort of military insignia.  Make sure there isn’t major wear along that edge before you try anything.