Bespoke, Turnbull and Asser OR Emma Willis? And assorted questions

I'm going to take the plunge on going bespoke with one of these later this week. But I'm waay too pathetic to be able to choose which one myself!

I went into Emma Willis today and prices seem to be £200 for the first shirt and £240 for subsequent ones to start with. Making a grand total of £640 for three shirts, at least *heart attack*.

I forgot to go into T and A and enquire but for some reason I think they might be a bit cheaper?

Anyway, without a doubt people who have had bespoke from either or ideally both of these. Which produced the fit you were most pleased with? And what about the quality of fabric and craftmanship? And what about the staff?

Unsuprisingly search doesn't bring up such a comparison, so opinions as always appreciated.

I also enquired about Gieves and Hawkes MTM shirts which are £140 ish I believe. If anyone has an opinion on whether bespoke really does offer that much more (or not as the case may be) in terms of fit that would be cool too.

I'm looking for slim fitting business shirts with french cuffs and a spread collar, if that helps

You might also consider visiting Sean O'Flynn and Robert Whitaker at Dege.

- B

I second Whitaker at Dege.

T&A is likely to be more expensive rather than less.

I don't have any experience with Turnbull & Asser MTM but I would avoid Gieves and Hawkes.

Thanks for all the replies. More research will be done tommorow at the mentioned places.

Originally Posted by PocketCircle

Click to expand...

I don't have any experience with Turnbull & Asser MTM but I would avoid Gieves and Hawkes.

That was my inclination too regarding Gieves and Hawkes. Off-topic but I assume this is just for shirts as I was planning on using their very reasonably priced MTM Suit Service?!?

p.s. is one meant to dress smartly when going into a Savile Row establishment? I felt like a bit of a twat wearing sneakers...

Originally Posted by JammieDodger

Click to expand...

p.s. is one meant to dress smartly when going into a Savile Row establishment? I felt like a bit of a twat wearing sneakers...

Sneakers will make you feel out of place but having said that whatever you wear they can easily spot a new starter from someone with lots of bespoke experience.

Sean O'Flynn makes great shirts!

Turnbull starts around £200 per shirt, minimum first order of six. That's what they quoted me last week. Dege, iirc was an order of four and started a little cheaper.

No minimum order at Sean O'Flynn. Starting price £165 iirc. He has some fantastic Loro Piana linen/cotton mixes at £205.

Another vote for Sean O'Flynn (and another endorsement of the Loro Piana linen/cotton - am hopefully picking up a few new shirts including one of these tomorrow)

I actually used to have my shirts done with Turnbull & Asser (and have posted a few times about the reasons for switching to Sean). Essentially it came down to poor customer service, unreliable fit and finish, and somewhat limited fabric selection (or at least most of the 'bolder' fabrics they had did nothing for me). The good news with T&A is that David Gale has become head of their bespoke department which should result in a better pattern being made quicker (it took quite a while for them to get my first shirt right - though to give them credit they did keep going). Not sure if the reliability is any better, though.

When I started getting shirts at T&A they were £160 for a 'standard' shirt, £190 for Sea Island Quality and about £225 for 2x200s. Now I believe that they start at around £200, and I would assume that for any of the nicer cottons you will be pay closer to £250. As has been stated by others there is a minimum order of six.

Sean O'Flynn charges £160 or so, with Alumo cotton at £170; he is very pleasant; cuts a great shirt; and there is no explicit minimum order.

I recommend Turnbull which I have purchased from the NYC store.

It seems that the workmanship has improved over the years. They now match patterns at the shoulder.

The cloth collection is excellent, and it seems that they have included some new and interesting fabrics in the basic, "Classic", range.

The presentation is also lovely.

Over the course of ten years I have never had issues of fit, service, or delivery time. On my last couple of shirts the turnaround time was 2-3 weeks.

I also tried Mr. O'Flynn, and the fit and quality were excellent. The fit was perfect based on his measurements at the initial meeting There was no need for fittings or adjustments. I also recommend him.

Turnbull has numerous exclusive designs. New ones are introduced each season. Its reputation is built on its exclusive designs which run from the proper and conservative to a country, square dance look. O'Flynn basically works out of the fabric books.

Good luck.

Thanks for all the help everyone, I saw him today and I'll be making an appointment with Mr O'Flynn

Originally Posted by Mark Seitelman

Click to expand...

I recommend Turnbull which I have purchased from the NYC store.

It seems that the workmanship has improved over the years. They now match patterns at the shoulder.

The cloth collection is excellent, and it seems that they have included some new and interesting fabrics in the basic, "Classic", range.

The presentation is also lovely.

Over the course of ten years I have never had issues of fit, service, or delivery time. On my last couple of shirts the turnaround time was 2-3 weeks.

I also tried Mr. O'Flynn, and the fit and quality were excellent. The fit was perfect based on his measurements at the initial meeting There was no need for fittings or adjustments. I also recommend him.

Turnbull has numerous exclusive designs. New ones are introduced each season. Its reputation is built on its exclusive designs which run from the proper and conservative to a country, square dance look. O'Flynn basically works out of the fabric books.

Good luck.
Can we use your name?

Who is the bespoke shirt maker in London who get the shirts made out in Cyprus?

How did you come out on your decision for a shirtmaker? This may not prove helpful, but I had planned to order some shirts thru Emma Willis but had some very specific requests. They emailed me and suggested I give them a few more measurements and they would have the shirts made bespoke for me-- I really liked the "Savile" collar but wanted NO tie space, for example, and to duplicate the kiton-sized cuffs which allow plenty of room for my wrists and wristwatch.

Shirts arrived, looking forward to trying them on when I reach home on May 22nd-- cost was approximately $675 USD, but that included shipping. I imagine they were around 220 £