Mixing horozontal strip with vertical?

[Shirtmaven]

I am not taking sides just adding what I remember. Mel was the youngest of the three brothers involved in the business on Lafayette st in Newark.(now called Gambert daughters) He left to open his own place. When I met him in the early 80's his factory was located in Harrison,NJ. The middle son David and his son, Skip also worked there. David retired. a year or or so later, Skip left Duke, the eldest of the three brothers in the business,(I think there was a 4th brother not working in the business) to work with his uncle Mel. Skip left after a few years to open his own factory in Newark. Mel has since moved his factory to East Newark. When Alan was using Mel to do his work, Mel's Son Mel Jr. worked there. Mitch was in high school. I would see him thereUsually spreading fabric. He was not very involved at that time. Alex did make The shirts for the movie Wall street. I remember Jose the skinny cutter who cut that order. I think Alex also made many shirts for Alan in the Denhof factory in Ct. Or was it the Denhof side on 57th street. It was a long time ago. I remember Stacey G very well. Where is she today. She was great at getting suppliers to ship even when Alan was behind on payments. The suits were made at that time by Greenfield or Adrian Jules. Raphael was one of several tailors over the years who did their best to get the clothes out the door. There was an Israeli tailor named Maurice who I had work with at the old Austin Ltd. store on east 55th street. Â I think he worked for Flusser before Raphael. I have never seen a more disoganized place then the shop in the penthouse in the east 50's. The amount of undelivered clothing was scary. They sold tons of suits. Unfortuately many of the customers did not understand the cut and were unhappy. I used to sell Alan fabric back then. I even bought fabric from Alan when he closed the trinity street location. I have not seen or spoken to Alan in years. I guess i need to find my way north of 42nd street every once in a while. Carl www.cego.com

 

[lisapop]

This is all inside baseball, not of interest to most others.  Don't shoot the messenger---I was told in no uncertain words from Alan Flusser himself, and I have it in writing, that any other custom shirtmaker, other than the Gamberts, made shirts for Mr. Flusser for "about one minute" (A quote).  If anyone has a problem with that historical recollection, rather than having a "meltdown", take it up with Mr. Flusser.  
Grayson

 

[Alexander Kabbaz]

(Shirtmaven) just adding what I remember

Someday we'll have to have a contest over who has forgotten more. But my memory has had ten years more than yours to lose it, so I would need a handicap. Maybe Stacey will be the referee?

 

[lisapop]

By the way, Carl, Stacy is doing well. She has many interesting stories regarding shirtmakers who caused "meltdowns" during her time with Alan Flusser. Perhaps she'll share some of them here.
Grayson

 

[MCA]

Hi Mr. Grayson, since you've mentioned Sig. Siviglia, I would like to ask you a couple of questions, and share some of my recent findings that might be of interest.

Have you tried a variety of collar styles on your Siviglia shirts, or rather  prefer to wear 1 particular style?  In my case I asked Maestro Siviglia to design a variety of collar details he thinks suit me, and so far he has created a wide spread and a slightly smaller medium spread for my dress shirts (in addition to the casual shirt custom collars). I must say I was very impressed with the results. Construction wise, these dress collars are not fused, but look perfectly flat as if they were fused, something I cannot say about any unfused collar I've seen, and unlike Borrelli et al., which rely on fused methods to achieve the look. They are quite substantial and have very wide removable collar stays. The style is outstanding: classic and subdued, but never matter-of-fact nor clinical. There's a slight roll and a certain asymmetry to them that work so well --the flair from the artist. On a side note --have you seen his edge stitched collars? These are truly edge stitched, unlike some others' supposedly edge-stitched examples I've seen.

Have you asked for hand-made buttonholes on your shirts? Siviglia's machine-made are superb, but out of curiosity, I recently asked for hand-sewn button holes and buttons, and the results are sublime. I never liked hand-sewn before, because of what I've seen from Borrelli, Attolini et. al, but Siviglia's work is in a completely different category. I highly recommend them; however, on the very lightly-woven fabrics like batiste, it might be better to stick to machine-made.  

Cheers.

PS: This was a candid attempt to keep the discussion on the subjects we enjoy.

Edit: I meant etamine, not batiste.

 

[lisapop]

Hi MCA--The collar Mimmo thought best for me has a spread slightly wider than other collar styles he offers, or that I've worn from other makers.  It's more like a classic English spread collar.  I recently ordered a couple new shirts from Mimmo made with a denim and oxford-type of cloth (although denim and oxford from Mimmo is like no other I've ever seen or felt.) and, given they'll be worn in more of a casual way, I'm having them made with a button-down collar.  I chose between the more moderate BD collar and a more dramatic collar (the collar with two buttons at the top) and chose the former collar.  The latter collar sits a bit too high on my neck and, candidly, from a practical standpoint, it took me forever to fasten those two buttons, especially with them being diagonal from one another.  It's hard enough for me to dress myself, and so one button is enough.  Still, the collar I did not choose is engineered brilliantly to remain flat and accommodate a necktie in a most beautiful way.  I hope this helps.  Enjoy your shirts, too.  We're members of a very special shirt club with Mimmo.  
Grayson

 

[cuffthis]

Sheez, all I did was ask a simple question.

How did the sentence "Did you make the shirts for Wall Street?" turn into this?

 

[Alexander Kabbaz]

(CuffThis) Sheez, all I did was ask a simple question. How did the sentence "Did you make the shirts for Wall Street?" turn into this?

Membah with Agenda.

 

[lisapop]

MCA, just as a quick postscript, regarding Mimmo's edge-stitched shirts. I had been debating with myself back and forth about having the edge-stitching design, but ultimately decided against it, perhaps owing to my more American tastes. Nevertheless, the examples of edge-stitching I saw were quite extraordinary in their meticulousness. Just not quite my cup of tea...or espresso. I have to pause to say this, but the $400 I pay for Mimmo's shirts are worth every penny. I have a rather "quirky" anatomy, with all manner of idiosyncracies, such as sloping shoulders, a chest disproportionately larger than my waist, one arm longer than the other...well, you get the picture. Mimmo is the first shirtmaker I've worked with who has been able to figure it all out and produce a shirt that is masterful in its elegance. Only "problem" I now face is my tailor in NY is, conveniently, the sole US agent for Mimmo Siviglia shirts, and so I now am in danger of becoming truly impoverished having easy access to more shirts from Mimmo.
Grayson

 

[lisapop]

In the interest of historical accuracy, the note below, from Mark Rykken, manager of Alan Flusser's current store, clarifies that the Gamberts supplied custom shirts for Mr. Flusser's earlier business, which was refuted by another shirt guy...

----- Original Message -----
From: <[email protected]>
To:
Sent: Thursday, February 10, 2005 6:02 AM
Subject: Re: Shirts
> Dear David,
> We look forward to seeing you on your next trip
> to New York. To answer your question Alan has used
> Mel as well as Duke Gambert in New Jersey to make
> his custom shirts. The collars, details and pattern
> are exclusive only to the Custom Shop.
> Best Regards,
> Mark Rykken

 

[Alexander Kabbaz]

(MCA) This was a candid attempt to keep the discussion on the subjects we enjoy.

As you can see, your candid attempt is failing. Have you any other suggestions?
Sincerely,
Another Shirt Guy

 

[MCA]

Mr. Grayson, thanks for sharing. In terms of anatomy peculiarities, I can probably beat most people....a shirtmaker's nightmare.... I have a 13.5 in. drop while standing only 5'6". Sig. Siviglia makes special seams to accommodate my large chest, among a host of other details, and he has created what I think is a perfect fit, continuously improved over the course of 3 fittings and 3 real shirts --I think the optimum has now been reached.  

I also prefer the traditional stitch over the edge stitch, from a styling perspective, and have yet not owned shirts with his edge stitch. But given their technical quality, and to add some variety, I will likely order some in the future. I'm sure you will like the button-downs, classic yet full of character. Note he will only recommend the tall, 2-button versions if you have a long neck, always in proportion to the rest of the shirt. Next time you order BD, consider looking at his different degrees of roll abnd spreads as you may like some of them --from fairly flat and narrow with short points to pronounced "moustache" roll and wide spread --the # of possibilities is mind-boggling, all with that special "custom" look.

The denim you mentioned sounds quite interesting.... have you seen his amazing Riva light blue oxford linen? I just commissioned  a casual Summer shirt with pajama collar from this fabric.  I'll share my thoughts when I get it.

Regards.

 

[lisapop]

Hi MCA---I, too, have the seams in the back of my shirts, but they're as thin as a hair (nearly invisible to the eye, actually) and just perfectly executed.  I shake my head in admiration and amazement at the level of care and workmanship put into these shirts.  They truly are labors of love.  In terms of patterns, my modest collection currently consists of some pencil-striped shirts as well as a couple shirts in varying shades of French blue.  I have my eye on a few Tattersal patterns.  As I've written before, I have found the Promised Land of shirts.  
Grayson

 

[lisapop]

MCA, incidentally, you may, or perhaps may not, be aware that, unlike most shirtmakers, Mimmo is also a skilled bespoke tailor, enjoying a stellar career in the bespoke arts as one of the most respected tailors in Italy in earlier years.  This is one bond between Mimmo and my New York tailor, another craftsman of the highest order.  Rumor has it that Mimmo still makes the occassional suit for a select, privileged few clients.
Grayson

 

[MCA]

Hi Mr. Grayson, the seams I mentioned are actually in the front of the shirt, believe it or not, but they are almost invisible in spite of their generous size, and provide the anatomical contouring needed at the chest. In my case the back seams are pretty large, about 3/4 in., and the left seam is in a slightly different position than the right seam, to accomodate who knows what asymmetry of my back... Amazing level of detail, as you noted.

In Rome I had the chance to see his suits... just like his shirts, true masterpieces. As a matter of fact, we have been discussing on a suit project, deciding on the styling details and so forth, and we expect to start the fitting process at the end of this year.... I definitely feel privileged and lucky for having this opportunity.

Cheers.