SPIER & MACKAY - Official Affiliate Thread

[LoKey]

Good afternoon! My first custom ordered shirt from Spier and Mackay arrived last week and I finally got a chance to wash and wear. I'm really happy with the construction and adjustments that I requested for the collar. I have a few more shirts waiting to be cut and wanted to make some additional adjustments to improve the fit. I wanted to see if anyone here had suggestions on tweaks to make.










The areas I'd like to improve are:

1. creases above the chest. Not sure if I need to just expand the chest measurements or adjust for shoulder sloping. I'm worried about increasing the bunching of fabric behind the shoulders if I add to the chest measurement. Perhaps I just request adding to the front panel of the shirt and reduce the back panel? (not sure if they can accommodate it, but I can ask)

2. Extra fabric behind the rear shoulders/armpits area.


3. Bunching of fabric around the waist. Most noticeable from the rear profile.

Any suggestions to help clean things up would be greatly appreciated. Overall, I'm very pleased with the order and will give updates once the next round arrives with updated measurements.

 

[zinc2162]

Good afternoon! My first custom ordered shirt from Spier and Mackay arrived last week and I finally got a chance to wash and wear. I'm really happy with the construction and adjustments that I requested for the collar. I have a few more shirts waiting to be cut and wanted to make some additional adjustments to improve the fit. I wanted to see if anyone here had suggestions on tweaks to make.

The areas I'd like to improve are:

1. creases above the chest. Not sure if I need to just expand the chest measurements or adjust for shoulder sloping. I'm worried about increasing the bunching of fabric behind the shoulders if I add to the chest measurement. Perhaps I just request adding to the front panel of the shirt and reduce the back panel? (not sure if they can accommodate it, but I can ask)

2. Extra fabric behind the rear shoulders/armpits area.


3. Bunching of fabric around the waist. Most noticeable from the rear profile.

Any suggestions to help clean things up would be greatly appreciated. Overall, I'm very pleased with the order and will give updates once the next round arrives with updated measurements.

I think these three improvements will be great. I am interested to know the cause of the creases above the chest. How do you like the sleeves length? Looks like your right arm is a little longer. Maybe you want to lengthen the right sleeves a bit? Just my two cents.

I am waiting for my first custom shirt from Spier and MacKay and will post pics once I get it.

 

[Burzan]

When can we expect some restocks of staple oxford fabrics for the MTM shirts?

Or even the OTR fits?

Just curious because I have been itching to try out your shirts

 

[LoKey]

I think these three improvements will be great. I am interested to know the cause of the creases above the chest. How do you like the sleeves length? Looks like your right arm is a little longer. Maybe you want to lengthen the right sleeves a bit? Just my two cents.

I am waiting for my first custom shirt from Spier and MacKay and will post pics once I get it.

I'm actually adding a quarter inch to the sleeve length. There was minimal shrinkage after the first wash, so I'm not sure I'll need to add much more than that. The picture does make it seem that my right arm is longer, but I think that's just placement of my hand. I'm discussing the changes with Ricky on email now and it appears that minimizing the armhole width and adjusting for slight shoulder sloping and forward curvature of the shoulders may help with the excess in fabric. He's been great to communicate with throughout the process.

Any other feedback/suggestions would be appreciated as well.

 

[spiermackay]

When can we expect some restocks of staple oxford fabrics for the MTM shirts?

Or even the OTR fits?

Just curious because I have been itching to try out your shirts

New group of Custom fabrics will arrive in August. We have a small group of new cloth arriving next week as well in the meantime.

OTR will arrive end of August for Fall. We're currently in summer clearances right now.

Best,
Rick

 

[CousinDonuts]



Good afternoon!  My first custom ordered shirt from Spier and Mackay arrived last week and I finally got a chance to wash and wear.  I'm really happy with the construction and adjustments that I requested for the collar.  I have a few more shirts waiting to be cut and wanted to make some additional adjustments to improve the fit.  I wanted to see if anyone here had suggestions on tweaks to make.  


The areas I'd like to improve are:

1. creases above the chest.  Not sure if I need to just expand the chest measurements or adjust for shoulder sloping.  I'm worried about increasing the bunching of fabric behind the shoulders if I add to the chest measurement.  Perhaps I just request adding to the front panel of the shirt and reduce the back panel? (not sure if they can accommodate it, but I can ask)

2. Extra fabric behind the rear shoulders/armpits area.  

3.  Bunching of fabric around the waist.  Most noticeable from the rear profile.  

Any suggestions to help clean things up would be greatly appreciated.  Overall, I'm very pleased with the order and will give updates once the next round arrives with updated measurements. 

#1 - do you just need to iron it so it draped properly.

#3 - I don't think the bunching is awful. I have personally accepted that there things you can't control 100%, like how the shirt stays tucked. I have a few shirts that are nearly skin tight around the hips, and they still blouse out a smidge. Probably based on where/how you wear your pants, what sort of movement you do, etc.

Post this in the tailors thread and see what sort of responses you get. There are some old timer shirt makers on that forum.

 

[spiermackay]

I think these three improvements will be great. I am interested to know the cause of the creases above the chest. How do you like the sleeves length? Looks like your right arm is a little longer. Maybe you want to lengthen the right sleeves a bit? Just my two cents.

I am waiting for my first custom shirt from Spier and MacKay and will post pics once I get it.

In addition to my suggestions via email, I will forward the images to my tailors. They will give additional feedback.

 

[LoKey]

#1 - do you just need to iron it so it draped properly.

#3 - I don't think the bunching is awful. I have personally accepted that there things you can't control 100%, like how the shirt stays tucked. I have a few shirts that are nearly skin tight around the hips, and they still blouse out a smidge. Probably based on where/how you wear your pants, what sort of movement you do, etc.

Post this in the tailors thread and see what sort of responses you get. There are some old timer shirt makers on that forum.

Thanks for the suggestion. I was going to post it there, but it seems that the responses to questions are pretty limited. I may still post it just to see if I get lucky.

Also, I could definitely iron the shirt better. It's high up on the list of things I do poorly. Nevertheless, the creases remain and Rickky and I are figuring out adjustments that might address it. I agree that there needs to be some restraint to avoid obsessing over minor details. After a couple of iterations, I'll be satisfied knowing that what can be addressed (without going bespoke) has been.

 

[zinc2162]

Just recently bought three 15 1/2 slim fit **** dress shirts from Spier & Mackay. Capitalized on their current 3 for $120 promo. Must say that I'm quite pleased with the fit and quality of the fabric. Great selection as well.

However, I've recently been looking to buy a navy suit. I've been on their site to check out their suits. Can anybody give me any feedback regarding their experience with their suits? I've checked out other sites like Suit Supply and J Crew's ludlow suit. How does it compare to these companies? Is it worth the purchase?

Nice shirts. I missed the sales. By the time I checked the site, there were only limited selections for my size. I have ordered custom instead.

I am interested to know about their suits too. I am interested in the medium grey.

 

[spiermackay]

However, I've recently been looking to buy a navy suit. I've been on their site to check out their suits. Can anybody give me any feedback regarding their experience with their suits? I've checked out other sites like Suit Supply and J Crew's ludlow suit. How does it compare to these companies? Is it worth the purchase?

Our suits are Half-Canvas Construction, Bemberg Lining, Genuine Nut Buttons. Lots of little details like Demi-Luna stitch on pockets, subtle pick-stitching, Hand finished lining, Layered collar felt, curved chest (barchetta) pocket, rear sloped shoulder seams. The cut has proven to be a big hit for us. Price cannot be beat. Introductory sale price of $318. Prices will go up in fall as we roll out the full suit line.

Fit compares to SuitSupply Havana or Madison Fit. Customers who have tried both say ours drapes a bit better and our sleeve pitch is cleaner. It's just a smidge bigger than the ludlow through the waist.

If you are in the GTA, we encourage you to drop by the shop to try one on and have a look at the details in person!

Cheers,
Rick

 

[fleming]

Our suits are Half-Canvas Construction, Bemberg Lining, Genuine Nut Buttons. Lots of little details like Demi-Luna stitch on pockets, subtle pick-stitching, Hand finished lining, Layered collar felt, curved chest (barchetta) pocket, rear sloped shoulder seams. The cut has proven to be a big hit for us. Price cannot be beat. Introductory sale price of $318. Prices will go up in fall as we roll out the full suit line.

Fit compares to SuitSupply Havana or Madison Fit. Customers who have tried both say ours drapes a bit better and our sleeve pitch is cleaner. It's just a smidge bigger than the ludlow through the waist.

If you are in the GTA, we encourage you to drop by the shop to try one on and have a look at the details in person!

Cheers,
Rick

Appreciate the feedback Rick. I will certainly pay you guys a visit if I'm in and around the area. Thanks again!

 

[scurvyfreedman]

Anyone have any experience or fit pics with the polos? Price seems too hard not to try one.

 

[MSchapiro]

If I were to send you guys a shirt could you copy it exactly?

 

[mister_nostyle]



Anyone have any experience or fit pics with the polos? Price seems too hard not to try one.

I tried it out instore and I'd say the fit is not tight and not baggy. The end of the sleeves have a somewhat tight ribbing that will grip onto your arm and hold them in place. I'm 5'8" and average build.

Their dress shirts are definitely targetted toward the slimmer type of build, but this bias isn't as strong with the polos.

I should mention that I prefer a more athletic style polo without the grippy sleeves so the Spier & Mackay style is not for me both in terms of sleeves and fabric, but I'm sure other people love it.

 

[spiermackay]



If I were to send you guys a shirt could you copy it exactly?

Yes. We haven't seen a shirt that we couldn't so far.