The Tailors' Thread: Fit Feedback and Alteration Suggestions

[OTCtailor]

Here are some pictures of me in an undershirt. I tried to be as relaxed as possible. Any insight as to what type of posture i have will be a big help. Thanks!

Your posture is stoop-ed with forward neck and what we call sway back. If you look at your body from the side, you can see how your body is kindof "swaying backwards". This makes the back of almost everything you wear a little too long. You can see it in the pants you're wearing. The back rise is too high.
When you button the jacket, it just looks like it's falling because it is. Fixing that is a little more complicated because of the stoop-ed posture. The back of the jacket may have to be shortened and squared from the top then raised upwards and lowered at the hem to compensate.
Fixing the gaping when opened is a separate operation entirely that involves squaring the fronts at the shoulder line. That will raise the gorge slightly, decrease the opening of the neckhole, and likely involve a collar recut.
This is a complicated diagnosis/fix even for me and I could be somewhat inaccurate in it. Please wait for Despos to agree, amend, or add to what I'm saying.

 

[hipslap]

Your posture is stoop-ed with forward neck and what we call sway back. If you look at your body from the side, you can see how your body is kindof "swaying backwards". This makes the back of almost everything you wear a little too long. You can see it in the pants you're wearing. The back rise is too high.
When you button the jacket, it just looks like it's falling because it is. Fixing that is a little more complicated because of the stoop-ed posture. The back of the jacket may have to be shortened and squared from the top then raised upwards and lowered at the hem to compensate.
Fixing the gaping when opened is a separate operation entirely that involves squaring the fronts at the shoulder line. That will raise the gorge slightly, decrease the opening of the neckhole, and likely involve a collar recut.
This is a complicated diagnosis/fix even for me and I could be somewhat inaccurate in it. Please wait for Despos to agree, amend, or add to what I'm saying.

Thank you OTCtailor! I really appreciate the help!

So, if I order a shirt from one of these online tailors, would I tell them I have a stoop-ed body type to get the best fit?

I am trying to make sense of this and I think I have it figured out. Stoop-ed back is my body type and can't be corrected. Forward neck and sway back are forms of bad posture which can be corrected.The combination of these 2 things makes me awkward and gives me a quasi-erect appearance due to the way clothes drape on me. Well, at least I don't have AIDS.

 

[Despos]



Here are some pictures of me in an undershirt. I tried to be as relaxed as possible. Any insight as to what type of posture i have will be a big help. Thanks!

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

Would describe your posture as erect, head forward, half high to high shoulders (can't tell specifically from these pictures) Forward hip/flat seat. If you say stooped you will get a longer back than front so don't say you are stooped. This explains the disparity of the jacket fit. This combination is one of the trickiest to cut for because each adjustment counters another. You need a shorter back/ longer front balance to compensate for an erect posture but you have to add length at the top of the back for a head forward and at the same time square the shoulder to match your shoulder line. You have to square the shoulder by adding cloth at the shoulder point because you take away necessary length if you square down at the neck. This all has to be done by cutting because it is almost impossible to adjust a finished garment. Very complicated fitting issues here with no easy solution.

 

[AdamWill]

What do you think?

The picture is awful: read the instructions on the first page and post a better one.

 

[OTCtailor]

Would describe your posture as erect, head forward, half high to high shoulders (can't tell specifically from these pictures) Forward hip/flat seat. If you say stooped you will get a longer back than front so don't say you are stooped. This explains the disparity of the jacket fit.

This combination is one of the trickiest to cut for because each adjustment counters another. You need a shorter back/ longer front balance to compensate for an erect posture but you have to add length at the top of the back for a head forward and at the same time square the shoulder to match your shoulder line. You have to square the shoulder by adding cloth at the shoulder point because you take away necessary length if you square down at the neck. This all has to be done by cutting because it is almost impossible to adjust a finished garment. Very complicated fitting issues here with no easy solution.

I figured I'd take a stab at it. I can see the complications as well and I've had at least one client like this. He had very high shoulder, erect posture, yeah a very forward and sunken neck. The shoulders of every jacket he owned stood up a solid 1.5" off his shoulder and the collar stood at least 2" away from his neck. When I put him in MTM, I had to use "stoop-ed" in the posture description even though I knew it wasn't quite right. I had to make adjustments on the final product but it was way closer than anything OTR he ever had and he was ultimately happy. Glad I put it out there that in this case my lack of experience wouldn't make my diagnosis entirely certain.
Would you not say there is swayback posture, as well? If so, that doesn't necessarily affect the upper portion of the body in the shoulders/neck so much, does it?

By the way, I

 

[OTCtailor]

No, I didn't miss anything in my last post.

FYI to anyone reading this thread, I am primarily an alterations tailor who supplies MTM clothing to my clients. I have my own business and i am completely self-taught. I've been in business just over a year with about another year of experimentation before that. I have an ever growing list of clients for each service and I devote A LOT of time to doing this. It's certainly not just a hobby.
I may have an unusually high comprehension ability for what i do and I won't sell myself short on my skill and ability, but I am no Despos, a tailor, or jefferyd. I'm not a true cutter...yet.
Just being transparent in case my diagnosis in the thread differ from someone else with greater experience.

PM me anytime if you're ever looking for clarification on something I've commented on.

 

[romancommander]

Hey OTCtailor, thanks for the insight. I download the TimerCam App for my iphone so I can take pictures of myself in the proper posture.. After looking at these new pictures it looks as though the lower back is brought in too tight. Never noticed that before. My tailor has done that in both jackets. Not sure why. Both jackets have been heavily altered by the way. The shoulders were brought up, sides taken in, sleeves taken in and shortened, and I think he did something around the armholes to make them less baggy. Anyway, hope they help.

Does the tailor that altered these suits know what he is doing? He does alterations for a bunch of high end stores and seems really knowledgeable....










The picture below shows the back when my suit is buttoned up.



The picture below is my other gray jacket done from the same tailor.





Picture of the back of the grey jacket when the suit is buttoned up.



Picture of the back of the grey jacket when the buttons are undone.



Picture of the back of the navy jacket when the buttons are undone.

 

[sugarbutch]

Thanks, OTCt. Net-net, I think you've added to the discussion.

 

[sleepyjack]

Hi there, I'm new to tailoring, but my question is about button detailing rather than fit. I was wondering if someone could please answer a question about colourful suit buttons — yea or nay?

I recently had a blue plaid (with some red stripes) three-piece suit made. It's my first "fun" (i.e. not work or professional attire) suit.

However, I thought it would be cool to have some odd/contrasting buttons on the suit rather than the standard black buttons that came on the surgeon's cuffs, vest and front of the blazer.

I'm wondering if it's a bad idea to get some coloured buttons to replace the black buttons on the suit right now. I was thinking something red, or mother of pearl, or kind of a brown horn/tortoise shell kind of thing. Would this just look hideous? Would it just ruin the look of the suit if it doesn't match?

Sorry I don't have a photo since the suit is still being altered, but the pattern is similar to this:



And for a couple examples of the contrast buttons that I thought looked pretty good:





If you guys have any advice, I'd appreciate it!

 

[otc]

Hey guys-- thanks for everything you have already done for this forum

I've got something to throw in the ring. Is this salvagable? I've been looking for a cotton khaki suit for a while and this was marked down super cheap so I'm willing to throw some money at tailoring it, but otherwise, I can still return it to the store.

I am kind of hard to fit into clothing (I met Despos at a dinner a while back and he made some comment as to that the minute I stood up). My shoulders are pretty square and I am barrel chested so things tend to either pull in the chest or be too big everywhere else...and my outer quads are relatively large which makes pants fit funny (usually the pockets pull open and they are pretty taught across the front)

Buttoned up:

Arms out:

Button open

Button Open Side:

Button Open Back:

Just the pants:

Pants and sleeve ends are unfinished so those can be put to any length (I just folded the pants in to an approximate hem). There is a fold across the back behind the neck that I usually have to have fixed by taking in fabric at the collar. The lapels start to bend a little bit but it is not horrible (and may be acceptable to me in a casual cotton suit).

Pants look pretty bad though....seem so full in the top block and yet the pockets still pull open. Can this be fixed? I suck at pants

 

[daizawaguy]

otc, I`d approach it from this perspective - if you are looking for a casual everyday suit and you paid $200-300 for it, live with it. If thats a $500 investment and you have the possibility to return it, get your $ back. So many comments here are on fine details, which is fine, but it`s also a question of convenience and cost...

 

[daizawaguy]

OTCtailor - my advice would be with your posture to go for bigger collars and more classic cuts and your posture (quite like mine) will be masked....enjoy!

 

[daizawaguy]

Hi again,

Another suit from Ah Loke, KL, Malaysia. Just the jacket here (forward fitting) :



Overall happy (shoulders, where divots are a particular problems on most suits turned out well). To me the lapels appear skimpy, even though I made sure they extended half way (3.5-4inches) to the shoulder seem. Is it the lack of curvature that make them appear so? It also feels quite full in the chest, even though it fits well in arm holes and waist.

I making him square off the neck to take away the horizontal crease between the shoulder blades, and let out the lower back just a bit. Other thoughts?

And a baste fitting for another tweed jacket. Will pitch sleevehead forward and some other changes Ah Loke helped me identified, but overall thinks it will be nice, despite the puckering in front now visible.


This is btw I have been debating whether to have hacking + ticket pockets on in this thread
http://www.styleforum.net/t/326623/igent-approval-for-hacking-pockets-needed
Still haven't decided what I'll go with.

From my experience with Asian tailors (mainly Hong Kong) this guy knows his stuff and you have found a great tailor!

 

[otc]



otc, I`d approach it from this perspective - if you are looking for a casual everyday suit and you paid $200-300 for it, live with it. If thats a $500 investment and you have the possibility to return it, get your $ back. So many comments here are on fine details, which is fine, but it`s also a question of convenience and cost...

Well, I paid more like $50-60 for it so even with some alterations, it is well below $500. Unfortunately, it really doesn't seem flattering as it is....and obviously I can't return after having it altered if the changes can't make it look nice.

 

[hipslap]

I figured I'd take a stab at it. I can see the complications as well and I've had at least one client like this. He had very high shoulder, erect posture, yeah a very forward and sunken neck. The shoulders of every jacket he owned stood up a solid 1.5" off his shoulder and the collar stood at least 2" away from his neck. When I put him in MTM, I had to use "stoop-ed" in the posture description even though I knew it wasn't quite right. I had to make adjustments on the final product but it was way closer than anything OTR he ever had and he was ultimately happy. Glad I put it out there that in this case my lack of experience wouldn't make my diagnosis entirely certain.
Would you not say there is swayback posture, as well? If so, that doesn't necessarily affect the upper portion of the body in the shoulders/neck so much, does it?

By the way, I

Would describe your posture as erect, head forward, half high to high shoulders (can't tell specifically from these pictures) Forward hip/flat seat. If you say stooped you will get a longer back than front so don't say you are stooped. This explains the disparity of the jacket fit.

This combination is one of the trickiest to cut for because each adjustment counters another. You need a shorter back/ longer front balance to compensate for an erect posture but you have to add length at the top of the back for a head forward and at the same time square the shoulder to match your shoulder line. You have to square the shoulder by adding cloth at the shoulder point because you take away necessary length if you square down at the neck. This all has to be done by cutting because it is almost impossible to adjust a finished garment. Very complicated fitting issues here with no easy solution.

Thanks for the consulting, guys. I'll look for a suit with the least-bad fit and stick to more casual clothes whenever I can get away with it. Since MTM won't work, I will put those pennies toward a bespoke a few years down the road.