DB jacket proportions - lapel width & button position

Hi

I am thinking of getting a DB jacket made of VBC flannel to match the trousers I got made of the same material recently. My tailor has a bolt of the stuff so matching the cloth should not be a problem.

I want my jacket to look the jacket in the pic below. I am 6 feet tall and the length of my jacket is 31" from back of collar. FWIW, 42R fits me in most brands.

So, in order to get this silhouette what should be the

1. Width of the lapels
2. How far should the bottom 2 buttons be from the hem of the jacket
3. Distance between the first and second row of buttons.

Also any comments why the breast jacket is not partially covered by the lapel. There was a recent thread in which some members preferred to have the lapel of SB jacket cover a portion of the breast pocket. Here even with the broader lapel of a DB the breast pocket is not covered. I can only think that it is due to the position of the breast pocket since the width of the lape looks OK in the pic.

BTW, I understand that the jacket is most likely pinned in the back and it would look the same when made and worn by me. But I want to get the buttoning stance and lape width similar to this.

I also welcome any other comments you might have.

Thanks for reading.

If you want to duplicate those proportions exactly, why not simply measure the picture, find the ratios, and apply them to your measurements (or have your tailor do same).

^^ Thought of doing that but the picture is very small and I am afraid I would muck it by enlarging with all the detail getting lost. BTW, I dont have PS.

Originally Posted by aj_del

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Hi

I am thinking of getting a DB jacket made of VBC flannel to match the trousers I got made of the same material recently. My tailor has a bolt of the stuff so matching the cloth should not be a problem.

I want my jacket to look the jacket in the pic below. I am 6 feet tall and the length of my jacket is 31" from back of collar. FWIW, 42R fits me in most brands.

So, in order to get this silhouette what should be the

1. Width of the lapels
2. How far should the bottom 2 buttons be from the hem of the jacket
3. Distance between the first and second row of buttons.

Also any comments why the breast jacket is not partially covered by the lapel. There was a recent thread in which some members preferred to have the lapel of SB jacket cover a portion of the breast pocket. Here even with the broader lapel of a DB the breast pocket is not covered. I can only think that it is due to the position of the breast pocket since the width of the lape looks OK in the pic.

BTW, I understand that the jacket is most likely pinned in the back and it would look the same when made and worn by me. But I want to get the buttoning stance and lape width similar to this.

I also welcome any other comments you might have.

Thanks for reading.

That's a fairly 'standard' set-up for a 6x2 (or 3-show-2, depending on who you ask, the way of describing it differs) double-breasted jacket, which most competent tailors will be capable of producing quite easily. The problem with following too closely to the proportions of the picture, is that you may find it does not sit too well with your look in reality. Rather, I would take the picture to your tailor as a reference, but let your tailor give you some guidance to the finer points of proportion and buttoning stance (assuming your tailor is worth his or her salt).

But if you persist on following the picture to a T, you can always email Simon Crompton (who is the author of Permanent Style and whose blog I assume you obtained the picture from) directly and ask for a larger sized image?

I got the pic from Simon's website but I think the picture is from the Paul Stuart lookbook though I am not sure

I think you need to be more specific about how you want your jacket to look "like" the one in the picture. You say you like the silhouette, but lapel width and button placement don't really affect silhouette.

At any rate, I'd be very wary of making precise specifications with respect to button placement. Double-breasted jackets are harder to fit, and harder to do well in ready-to-wear, exactly because a good tailor needs to position the buttons right on your body for the best results. Whatever you see in the picture may not apply to you. Unless you are a very experienced bespoke client, you'd probably do well to pick a tailor you trust and let him handle the button placement.

That said, the buttons on the jacket in the picture appear to be spread relatively wide apart horizontally, creating a somewhat broad overlap. I think that's a matter of style, not so much fit. So, if that's something you like, it can't hurt to point out you want a wider, rather than narrower, overlap--there's no doubt your tailor has a range of correctness in mind within which he'd be happy to oblige you.

As for silhouette, I think you might want to note that the jacket in the picture has a relatively long skirt. The vertical distance between the shoulder points and the fastening button is actually somewhat shorter than it is between the fastening button and the bottom hem.

^^ Thanks for your comments.

The last time I got a DB made it came out like this. It looks a little rumpled but that's after a full hectic day of use.



I was not very satisfied with the buttoning position, felt that it was too high. At that time I thought the look of RLPL silhouette / style was better with lower buttons resulting in a longer lapel.



Now I think that the style in the pic in the OP is better.

I probably need to decide upon my own style .

Originally Posted by aj_del

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^^ Thanks for your comments. The last time I got a DB made it came out like this. It looks a little rumpled but that's after a full hectic day of use.

To be quite frank, if this is what your tailor made for you last time, maybe the problem is your tailor. It looks no better than a ready-to-wear suit you randomly grabbed off the rack in something close to your size. I don't think telling him to change the button placement is really going to fix matters or get you anywhere near the kind of look you want. Why not pick a tailor who does the style you like rather than try to get your tailor to change his ways? The latter almost never works out well.

Originally Posted by mafoofan

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Why not pick a tailor who does the style you like rather than try to get your tailor to change his ways? The latter almost never works out well.
Just curious foo, have you actually done this, or are you just repeating a sartorial old wives tale?

I mean, come on - the HKG folk here would easily demolish your proposition.

Originally Posted by apropos

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Just curious foo, have you actually done this, or are you just repeating a sartorial old wives tale? I mean, come on - the HKG folk here would easily demolish your proposition.

It's exactly what I did. You think I went to Rubinacci with something in mind other than their house style? The Hong Kong bespoke clients are a terrible example. Chan can obviously make some wonderful stuff, at an amazing price nonetheless, but I remain unconvinced that they can successfully mimic other regional styles or that clients meticulously managing their work yields good results. From what we've seen, quite the contrary is the case.

Before this thread goes where I think it is going, I would like to point out that of all the suits I got made from this tailor the one pictured above fits and looks the worst. Mind you all others are SB. Also the poorness of the suit it greatly exaggerated by the rumpled fabric.

I have decided to hold off getting the DB made and trying on some DBs in Europe when I go there in June. Might as well decide on what I want in a DB and thereafter maybe buy a RTW, or go to a different tailor though I would have to get it done abroad.

As one member said in a recent thread about DBs any tailor can make a SB but making a good looking DB requires some skill. Right now I am inclined to agree with him.

BTW, foo, thanks for your frank comments.

Originally Posted by aj_del

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^^ Thanks for your comments. The last time I got a DB made it came out like this. It looks a little rumpled but that's after a full hectic day of use.

.
I think the fabric has to shoulder some of the blame - a heavier weight would not wrinkle so easily. Those sleeves are just a disaster area. Proportion wise, it appears that the jacket is not very different compared to the white db suit pictured above. Perhaps you should mull over your wish list again.

What, in particular, is so wrong with the sleeves ?

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First things first. See where the RL guy's upper body and lower body bend meet when he walks? That is where his button point is best [the fulcrum].

Also, there is a well fitting look, and there is a stuffed sausage [although leanish one] look.

This tailoring business, it's all organic and not physical chemistry [i.e. a little bit of this and a little bit of that [rather than a microgram of this and that] and voilà ! Sometimes, when it is just right in all facets [color, texture, proportion, identity] it can, dare I say, be orgasmic chemistry ].

- M

P.S. you can always pull down and smooth out your sleeves before picture taking, to avoid those divots comment. Have your camera person do it.

Originally Posted by mafoofan

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It's exactly what I did. You think I went to Rubinacci with something in mind other than their house style?

The Hong Kong bespoke clients are a terrible example. Chan can obviously make some wonderful stuff, at an amazing price nonetheless, but I remain unconvinced that they can successfully mimic other regional styles or that clients meticulously managing their work yields good results. From what we've seen, quite the contrary is the case.

Do you think, if Mariano can get 100 new clients from Hong Kong if only he starts making suits with a Chan cut, that he would succumb to the power of maaaaaarnee? Or are you paying him enough mark ups to keep it strictly regional?