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Mimmo Siviglia

rayk

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One who used to post frequently stated that Raphael took shirt measurements for Mimmo Siviglia...although I could be in error on this, as I suffer from mid-life CRS (can't remember ****).  Regrettably, I have no facility for the beautiful Italian language, and Siviglia's website offers to me no useful information.  

Can anyone tell me anything about the shirts made by this gentleman?  Alex?
 

jekv12

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I'm fairly certain I read that thread on Ask Andy.
 

MCA

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Hi Rayk,

You have indeed very good memory.

Maestro Siviglia and Raphael studied together and they've kept close collaboration for many years.

Thanks to his daughter, he is one of the few small-scale Roman shirtmakers with web presence. Given the size of his bespoke atelier (25 shirts/week) and his established customer base, his website is quite reasonable.

In Roma, his work as a tailor and shirtmaker is regarded as one of the best in the city. Being from the Roman shirtmaking school of thought, he favors >18 machine-stitches/inch over redundant hand-stitching and forgoes gimmicks like gussets and pattern-matched split-yokes. Instead, his first priority is fit and performs a meticulous fitting and pattern-making process. His cloth selection from Como and Switzerland is simply amazing.

To anyone who has the opportunity to go to Roma I recommend you pay Sig. Siviglia a visit to get a sense of his style and technique and also to indulge yourself with his stock of shirtings. He may even greet you with a strong cup of espresso.
 

MCA

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Question for "MCA": I've had my shirts fitted personally by Mimmo Siviglia himself while in Italy.  Who is "Raphael" and how is he involved with Mimmo?  Thank you for the clarification.
Hi Mitchell,

I also had the good fortune of having my 3 fittings done by Sig. Siviglia at his atelier, although due to my rather challenging anatomy, he later performed some tweaks to the pattern based on photographs of my first finished shirt. He also made 2 different patterns: one for dress and one for casual shirts.

As to his involvement with NY tailor Raphael, I know he makes shirts for Raphael's clients (and Raphael himself) based on sketches and notes, and by sending back and forth an initial muslin and later a try-on shirt. Sig. Siviglia showed me some of their faxes and I was quite impressed by the level of detail. I also gather they studied together in Italy some 20 years ago.

I do not have any experience with Raphael but a couple of members here and at AskAndy have written glowingly about him. A search should lead you to the posts.
 

MPS

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Kai has also posted photos of his bespoke Raphael 3 piece, which looks absolutely top notch.
 

Alexander Kabbaz

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rayk
Can anyone tell me anything about the shirts made by this gentleman? Alex?
You all know my long-standing policy of not commenting upon the work of other bespoke shirtmakers. However, this is one of those extremely rare times when I can be complimentary, so I am breaking that rule. I have heard, from people whose opinion I respect, that Sr. Siviglio is one of those dinosaurs ... an excellent shirtmaker. I have seen very detailed photographs of his fitting and his fitting is also top notch. I have not had the honor of personally holding his work in my hand and therefore cannot comment upon the quality of the making. I can add the following information which, to me, speaks directly about the quality of the work of Sr. Siviglia and his daughter, Francesca. They are honorable artisans. They consider quality first; profit last. We may not always agree on how we would try to accomplish a particular client's needs and desires; we shall not ever disagree that this is the single most important goal.
 

Alias

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You can see my little rant as anything you want. Stupid, immature, a whole lotta nothing, whatever. I don't really give a damn. To my way of thinking, there is one overarching adherence to morality inherent in the conscience of every truly creative artisan: One does not steal the creations of others.
Or you can realize that the page has things written in Italian, and that the English probably is just a sloppy translation.

Also, since you both are shirtmakers, and since you two probably adhere to the same certain steps in shirtmaking, I would think that the descriptions of these steps would be somewhat the same. Should one tailor's website accuse another website of stealing its outline on making a suit? OMG YOU INCLUDED THE WORD BASTED IN YOUR DESCRIPTION, I AM ANGARY.
 

MCA

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Hi Mitchell,

Thanks for the information. Indeed, Sig. Siviglia is also a well-respected and accomplished tailor, which breaks the misleading thought that an artisan cannot be both a top shirtmaker and a top tailor.

I understand Sig. Siviglia has devoted his work mostly on shirtmaking in the last years, but if the customer shows enough interest, he may agree to carry on a sartorial project. I was able to see one of his coats, and the construction and Roman flair are awe-inspiring.
 

MCA

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Well, I thought It was better to ignore the post but since others have weighed in...

I agree with Mitchell and Alias. I think no response from Sig. Siviglia is necessary.

Lets keep the discussion on shirtmaking, nothing else.

Cheers.
 

Alexander Kabbaz

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rayk Please note, in response to your question, that I have added additional information to my original post.
 

LA Guy

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Alex,

Although it is highly unlikely that I'll ever be a client, you would certainly be the first custom shirtmaker I would go to if it were financially feasible. I think that your editing of your original post shows a lot of class.
 

Manton

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Edited owing to posting error.
 

Alexander Kabbaz

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LA Guy, Mack11211, MitchellMurray, Chorse123 Thank you for your kind words.
I couldn't help but pause when I cavalierly stated that the cost of a shirt is around $400. There was a time when that kind of money paid for a couple month's rent in a nice apartment in Manhattan.
I as well. I remember when I paid $2 per yard for Swiss voile. My shirts were $85 ... 42 times the per yard price. Now I pay $40 per yard and my shirts are $600 ... 15 times the per yard price. Go figger.
 

johnnynorman3

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Alex, on that score, do you think that the labor charge for tailoring should track inflation, or should it track the cost of the fabric.

For example, assume that it takes an equal amount of time to make a shirt with a 200s fabric as it does a 100s fabric. Assume that the cost for the requisite fabric (i.e. the amount needed to make the shirt) in the 100s is $50. Assume further that the cost for the requisite amount of 200s fabric is $150. Assume further that you charge $150 for the finished product for the 100s shirt ($100 of labor charge). What do you think the proper total charge for the 200s shirt should be?
 

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