Identifying a 'good' tailor

[dufferin1]

Hi everyone. Being from Eastern Canada, its very difficult to find decent reliable tailors. We basically have 3 tailors in the province of New Brunswick with one being Greek, Italian and many, many Chinese/Korean's. I've had a negative experience with one tailor here as she ruined my suit jacket sleeve length by not properly aligning the buttons and so forth. The Greek tailor has trouble measuring as my other jacket came out much longer then what was measured. So that leaves me with an Italian tailor an hour away that I've never used or many of the Chinese 'tailors' around. My Baldessarini suit will most likely need to be altered a bit (sleeves,hemmed,taken in) when it arrives and I really, really do not want to have it screwed up. How do I identify a good tailor? I really would like to give this new Italian tailor a shot, but how do I go about seeing if he's any good? I know it sounds a bit amateurish but I rather get it right and let a good tailor/consumer relationship begin that be stuck with nothing. I do go to school in Toronto however I won't be back there until September and it may be a bit too long to wait until then.

If anyone could help/point me in the right direction id appreciate it. It is a learning experience but I think understanding it now at a young age (second year college) will pay dividends in the future. Coming from someone who is born in a province where most men wear "Moore's".

Mario

 

[dufferin1]

Anyone?

 

[guymac12]

Well, you'll never know if the tailor's goood unless you try him out I guess. Look for sample suits/shirts that the tailor has made, that's one way to gauge his skills.

 

[Despos]

Take something simple to alter and see his attitude and approach. If he does well and you like him on a small job he will probably do well with a bigger job. If he takes in the waist or hems a trouser sloppily, he probably won't get better.

 

[jefferyd]

Call Zachary Samuels in Moncton and speak with Jeff Garcia- ask him who he would recommend. (506) 383-8779

And tell him I said hi.

 

[sportin_life]

The way I gauge a tailor, which might not be the most cost efficient method, is I typically bring a cheaper work shirt and ask them to shorten the sleeves and take in the sides. If they do a good job with this, I start bringing them slightly more difficult jobs.

I don't know if attitude matters that much. One of the best tailors near me is really rude to customers but does some of the best work (although this might just be his culture since he isn't from the U.S.).

 

[pnutpug]

I think folks have said all one needs to know. The best method is word of mouth from folks you trust. If there's no way to get a reference, number two is start small and build up. If it were me, I'd start with hemming trousers, which is about as simple as you can get. Note how much break he/she allows at the initial fold-up and award bonus points if it's just right. Ask lots of questions, both about the instant job and clothing in general. If he/she doesn't know the difference between fused and canvassed, for example, go elsewhere. Ideally, find someone who also makes clothes, which is getting tough. My guy did at one time and still will, but I don't think he gets much work simply because there isn't much to be had.

 

[SMatthews]

The way I gauge a tailor, which might not be the most cost efficient method, is I typically bring a cheaper work shirt and ask them to shorten the sleeves and take in the sides. If they do a good job with this, I start bringing them slightly more difficult jobs.
I don't know if attitude matters that much. One of the best tailors near me is really rude to customers but does some of the best work (although this might just be his culture since he isn't from the U.S.).

hey this is a good idea thanks.