Lee Baron: fabric availability -> sourcing fabric in HK

[dan'l]

I posted a similar question in the Hong Kong Tailors Thread (http://www.styleforum.net/showthread.php?t=33568) but have not seen a reply, so I thought I would start a dedicated thread.

I will visit Peter Lee at Lee Baron next month to have two sport coats made. From what I have found combing through the SF archives, he "doesn't have a good selection of fabrics." What does this mean, exactly? Is everyone who uses him going the CMT route? I am interested in a glen plaid fabric for one coat and a brownish herringbone fabric for the second. Now, what happens when I get there and he has nothing I like? Am I SOL, or is there anywhere in HK I can go to to buy some fabric for CMT?

I'm hoping that some of the people who have specific experience with Lee Baron will chime in.

Thanks.

 

[dan'l]

I hate to bump my own thread, but does anyone have some experience on this?

Perhaps I can broaden my question: where can I source fabric in HK on short notice if I cannot find what I like at Lee Baron?

 

[EricE.]

i guess he will be very helpful to get you what you are looking for. except of course its some high end fabric. he has a very good selection, you can choose from (even though his in-house fabrics are not breath taking but decent nonetheless)

i ordered some shirts, a suit and a sportcoat from him during the last 2-3 months so i got a bit of a look at the material and he has quite a large selection there.

ps.: i think the "bad material" of Lee Baron was only based on the in-house fabrics (he also has a HUGE selection to chose from in those little books)

 

[Maccimus]

I believe there are quite a lot of fabric sellers in HK. Most mainland tailors buy their English and Italian fabrics from HK, at least they claim so.

 

[emptym]

I think he has some very nice fabrics, but he may not have exactly what you want. You could email him and ask ahead of time. If you're picky about fit and details, I'd make sure you have enough time in HK to have the suit fitted a few times and pick up the final product. His results can be inconsistent in the exp. of myself and some others here.

 

[dan'l]

I thank all of you for the feedback! I have a few ideas of what to have commissioned, so I have some flexibility in case I don't find exactly the fabric I'm looking for.

I will be in Hong Kong for close to ten days, so I should have enough time for at least three fittings. I read through the various reviews on Peter Lee and know that I need to be very firm in what I want.

 

[JohnnyCrockett]

PL has a great selection of linen (heavy, great for jackets) in-house. He also has access to Loro Piana and other Italian fabrics, as well as big-name British like Holland & Sherry (though a more limited selection).

If you want other English fabrics (Minnis, Lesser), I would advise doing CMT. Go to Huddersfield online and you can order Minnis stuff, having it sent directly to your hotel in HK or to PL.

I don't think you need to be too worried about PL taking direction. He is very flexible in his style and has a few SF-approved items down cold - for example, Phat Guido's natural shoulder 3-roll-2 and curved patch pockets, also the button down collar with the really great roll (PG wears these but I think another HK SF member is the one who had a hand in the creation of the pattern).

The one thing I'd caution is that you do need to make sure he doesn't make yourself too tight. Like lots of Asian tailors, there is a bias towards making garments a little slimmer than normal and while some might like this, those who don't should just state that. For example, all three of the jackets he made me ended up having a bit too much waist suppression, even after a basted fitting plus 2 forward fittings. It's probably my fault because I was so impressed by the other details he had gotten right that I wasn't paying attention to the more basic stuff. He fixed the waists no problem, though.

Also be sure to request full canvas. On the shirts (if you get any), also ask for soft, unfused collars (he calls these canvas collars but I don't think there's actually any canvas in them). Also ask for shell buttons on shirts and horn or MOP buttons on jackets.

Final point - he made the gorges on my jackets very high, almost too high. They are definitely SF-approved but I feel like they're a bit too fashion forward and might not stand the test of time if, for example, low-gorge comes back in style in a few years. I would have preferred something more moderate. Again, it's my fault for forgetting to specify.

Enjoy! He's really a great guy and a fantastic tailor.

 

[Odd I/O]

Originally Posted by JohnnyCrockett

Go to Huddersfield online and you can order Minnis stuff, having it sent directly to your hotel in HK or to PL.

Have you actually done this yourself? I'm curious if Huddersfield will send the package to an address that's not your personal billing address (linked to your credit card) because of concerns about possible fraud. And is the package addressed to you or Peter?

 

[dan'l]

Johnny, thank you for your post and the comments on PL! I am making a list of all the points I need to keep in mind. I just hope that I don't forget to keep an eye out for some of those issues you mentioned.

I am not yet so adventurous to try CMT - perhaps in the future. But thanks for the tip on Huddersfield; I just found their website and looking at all those fabric .jpgs sure is addictive!

 

[NewYorkIslander]

Originally Posted by Odd I/O

Have you actually done this yourself? I'm curious if Huddersfield will send the package to an address that's not your personal billing address (linked to your credit card) because of concerns about possible fraud. And is the package addressed to you or Peter?

They have shipped to my work address in the past, no problem.