Online bespoke shirts

There are a whole host of online bespoke shirt companies

Which ones have a really good interface the makes designing and ordering shirts easy?

Below are a few contenders for the best on-line bespoke shirt web sites

http://www.saintsens.com/en/custom-made-shirts.htm
http://www.bivolino.com/en/default.html
http://www.moderntailor.com/dressshirts
http://propercloth.com/dress-shirts/
http://www.ls-chemise.com/anim/creer-ma-chemise-sur-mesure.php
http://www.mytailor.com/OrderToday.aspx

Apart from obviously product quality what make an on-line bespoke shirt site really good to use?

Isn't 'online bespoke' a contradictio in terminis?

TheTukker said:

Isn't 'online bespoke' a contradictio in terminis?

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Quite. You can't have a shirt fitted online; you can give them your measurements and all that but the chances are you're probably going to be disappointed with the fit when it arrives. If you're going to have anything tailored, do it person. That way you can discuss adjustments and physically show what you want, it's much easier than to try and desribe things over the phone or by email.



TheTukker said:

Isn't 'online bespoke' a contradictio in terminis?

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Yes. As with suits, anything done online is made to measure, not bespoke.

I use ModernTailor and TailorStore.

TheTukker said:

Isn't 'online bespoke' a contradictio in terminis?

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Perhaps with modern equipment that scans the fabric to align the patterns and then use complex formulas (rather than patterns) to CNC laser cut the fabric to match the needs of the individual client is closer to bespoke but could be argued that it is still made to measure.

Sanguis Mortuum said:

Yes. As with suits, anything done online is made to measure, not bespoke.
I use ModernTailor and TailorStore.

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Why do you use these for shirts?



East Coaster said:

Perhaps with modern equipment that scans the fabric to align the patterns and then use complex formulas (rather than patterns) to CNC laser cut the fabric to match the needs of the individual client is closer to bespoke but could be argued that it is still made to measure.

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I don't think that would fit the definition of bespoke that people tend to adhere to around here. In fact, ordering shirts online is not even MTM, it's MTO. Nothing wrong with that - I enjoy it myself at times - just terminology.

I have been singing Proper Cloth's praises. I am very satisfied with their product, though it is not really "bespoke" so much as it is "made-to-measure." (technicalities, I say!)

Use this link to get a 1 time discount if you want to try them out: http://propercloth.com/i/c5uhcy

Daniel Belzil said:

I have been singing Proper Cloth's praises. I am very satisfied with their product

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Is it the product or the ease of selecting the material and ordering?



TheTukker said:

In fact, ordering shirts online is not even MTM, it's MTO.

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Not true, MTO usually means just standard sizes being made to order; though most of the websites do provide that option as well, they mostly also provide true MTM, where each measurement of the shirt is customised to that of the customer.

Regardless of what you want to call these sorts of online services, "bespoke" is most certainly the wrong word for both the process and its result. Instead, I would suggest that you treat these sites for what they are: decent ways to get acceptably customizable shirts at relatively low prices.

Of the sites you've mentioned, I have experience only with MyTailor/Hemrajani and Modern Tailor. MyTailor offers the closest approximation of "bespoke" of any of the sites you've listed, if only because they do take in-person measurements, and develop a personal pattern, if you're able to meet up with them on their tours. And they can customize almost every aspect of the fit and the details of the shirt, provided you develop a good working relationship with them, and are willing to invest the time and energy in having such discussions. (For their online ordering process, you'll need to make judicious use of the Comments field to list any special requests or measurements outside of their standard forms).

Modern Tailor, on the other hand, is pretty suspect. The construction leaves a lot to be desired, and the quality control is slapdash. The prices are lower, but there's a reason for that.

I've heard semi-decent things about Proper Cloth, but have no personal experience with them.

I like mtytailor's site, easy to navigate through.

Jackie Treehorn said:

Regardless of what you want to call these sorts of online services, "bespoke" is most certainly the wrong word for both the process and its result. Instead, I would suggest that you treat these sites for what they are: decent ways to get acceptably customizable shirts at relatively low prices.

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As someone who sells shirts online I agree completely with this and think it's the perfect attitude to have when ordering both suits and shirts online.

I also agree that you certainly can't buy anything like true bespoke online. To completely honest I'd like to ban the word from online tailoring however, as people search for bespoke when they really are looking for MTM, if you don't use it frequently you miss a lot of search engine traffic.

Still with a little time and patience you can get an extremely good fit from online tailoring. I used standard body measurements to order my first shirts. After they arrived I switched to finished measurements using the original shirt as a template and making any necessary adjustments. Shortened the shoulder, lengthened the sleeve, slightly larger at the stomach etc. Each time I tweaked the measurements a little more until now I have a set of finished measurements I can send to any tailor and get back a shirt that fits as close to perfect as I need.

While going to a true bespoke tailor might result in an even better fit, I would have a hard time justifying paying three times as much when the difference would be hardly noticeable. This works for suits as well.

So the advice from someone in the game is that if you're taking the online option for either suits or shirts ask your tailor if they have a finished measurement form. Use an existing suit or shirt as a template and if you take your time you should end up with a better fitting garment

Jackie Treehorn said:

Regardless of what you want to call these sorts of online services, "bespoke" is most certainly the wrong word for both the process and its result. Instead, I would suggest that you treat these sites for what they are: decent ways to get acceptably customizable shirts at relatively low prices.

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This. I have no problem with the way CT shirts fit off the rack so I see no need to go these sites, who are probably more expensive as well!



Sanguis Mortuum said:

Not true, MTO usually means just standard sizes being made to order; though most of the websites do provide that option as well, they mostly also provide true MTM, where each measurement of the shirt is customised to that of the customer.

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Interesting; I always think of MTM as someone measuring you and adjusting a standard size/model.