Any reviews on Astor & Black shirts?

I own(ed) 6 A&B shirts when I bought a package a few years ago. I picked pretty simple broadcloths and a poplin. They were a touch stiffer than others that I own. Buttons were thick but I've had more of them come off than anything else I've ever owned.

What I found interesting on the shirts compared to the suits was on the arms. The suit arms are nicely fitted. The shirts were billowy in the arms.

I have not used mytailor.
Edited by CousinDonuts - 9/12/11 at 7:20am

I just got four Astor & Black shirts and three 3-pc suits last month.  The shirts were fairly boxy.  The in-house tailor had to take the body in quite a bit, and ended up taking them in too much, now they are too tight, I can't even button the bottom button.  Thankfully its always tucked in.  The sleeves were too full and she didn't take them in enough, and left the seams uneven with hanging threads.  I have another tailor fixing the sleeves and letting the body back out slightly.  The fabrics are okay, nothing fabulous but decent.  I like the collars, nice and high.  I have a stable of moderntailor.com (MT) shirts which I have nailed to a perfect fit.  I should have told the rep just to copy the MT shirt to get the correct fit.  I will not be buying any more AB shirts since I can get a higher-end MT fabric for a lot less, and I know exactly what I am getting in terms of fit.

 

The suits, unlike the shirts, are cut very close-fitting.  They have been through two rounds of final alterations by their tailor.  Overall I am excited about wearing them, since they fit better than anything else I have (OTR), but I am not 100% satisfied to say the least:

 

I got the cheapest Marzoni fabrics they offer.  The fabrics seem nice, no complaints here, but I wish I was better at selecting the colors from the swatches since I thought one would be darker gray and another a lighter gray.  Ended up with two medium grays.  I did get a bright lighter navy blue which looks pretty slick.

 

Like I said the fit is very trim.  The jackets are like second skins, no room anywhere.  I live in Miami and don't wear ties so I want them to be somewhat fashion-fwd.  I'm tall and slender with a muscular build so they look appropriate on me.  The sleeves came too short so they needed to be let out, they're still a little short and the buttons seem kinda high on the sleeve now.  The top front button is a tad high for my liking but again not a big deal.   The arms are very slim, they look good but when I raise my arms to the steering wheel or rest them on the dinner table the sleeves are too tight on my forearms.  Would be nice if I had just a bit more room in the forearms.  The construction seems okay to me but I am no expert, although more knowledgable than most.

 

My biggest complaint is the lapel width, I wanted wider Tom-Ford style peak lapels, and the jackets came with standard-width peak lapels.  Maybe there was some miscommunication somewhere with the rep.  The opportunity to get the wide lapels was what sold me on the package, so not getting them is a big let-down for me.

 

On to the pants -- not satisfied.  Length is good but the waist is high, the crotch hangs ridiculously low and the seat was way too baggy.  So low that the pants are uncomfortable to wear.  Their tailor slimmed up the thighs a bit but the crotch still sucks.  I have my tailor working on them now but the prognosis is not good.  I will be wearing the jackets most of the time so the pants won't be as visible, but since they aren't the most comfortable then it'll bother me a bit.  Again I should have taken a couple of my best-fitting pants and had them copied.

 

The vests seem okay, once they are taken in a couple inches by their tailor, since they were also too boxy and wide.  Weird, since the suits were slim.  I got two double-breasted vests and a traditional 5-button vest.  All the jackets are two-button single-breasted peak lapel.

 

Once everything is back from my tailor I will post pics.

 

 

 

 

^ ^ Is A&B giving you credit for any of these alternations?

I have not discussed it with my AB rep, but I would assume the answer is no, since they have their own seamstress/tailor here at the office.  I just don't think her handiwork is up to snuff.  My tailor won't charge me much so the dollar amount is not nearly as much of an issue as my wanting the damn pants just to fit right.  I haven't been as forthcoming about my frustration to the rep as I should be, so I will try to air myself out the next time I see him, which will be sometime next week when he drops off my vests to me.