Modern Tailor Custom Suits

[TheWraith]

Originally Posted by dv_indian

I think that if ModernTailor started the traveling tailor thing could they become a smashing success.
Does anyone else think so?

You're probably right.

 

[jackgibbs]

they just sent me a photo of the suit I ordered a few weeks ago to double check everything was to my satisfaction before shipping. this is it, so far. hopefully it will ship soon and I can get some pictures for you all.

 

[gnumonic]

Could anyone post a good guide to armhole measuring? I have a few jackets that fit very well, but I'm a little bit confused as to exactly how to measure the armhole. On my 38/39 size jackest, I'm getting around 10.75 inches doing it the Moderntailor way - is that horribly inaccurate?

 

[a tailor]

you give them the measurements the send you a finished suit.
that by definition is made to measure, not custom.
custom is the american word for bespoke.

 

[Chips]

My point remains, in regards to the gentleman who posted the multiple photos is that, taking the suit he had made up, with a few adjustments at a competent tailor, would result in a generally acceptable suit for less than the $800-$1000 one would spend at a MTM venture.

I don't think there is anyway possible, even with luck, to end up with a jacket that has the shoulders that could compete ( even to a slight degree ) with a high end bespoke tailor, regardless of how many detailed email instructions one includes. or how careful the measurements.

The buttons are ****, but an easy fix. The pant legs do look poorly done.

If I were to go this route, ( and I wouldn't) I'd aim for a fit that would be perhaps on the larger size, ever so slightly, and then make a few necessary adjustments at another tailors. Not that it would be practical or feasible to attempt to fix horribly fucked up shoulders, or have such a cheap suit completely recut, but taking in the waist and fixing the pants wouldn't be a big deal.

My issue is, even for close to $500, it's not a bargain for me, if it wouldn't last more than a year or two of normal wear. I wouldn't want cheap fabric and would happily sacrifice three to four times as much to a tailor such as Chan knowing I'd receive three to four times as much satisfaction, and it would last longer.

 

[gnumonic]

Just a heads up to anyone who was interested - they're now out of the light gray "Pure Wool" fabric for $300, which was the only 100% wool at that price point (hope they're fast on the refund at least - for almost $400 with shipping I'd rather just spend the extra cash for a TaT).

 

[jackgibbs]

okay so these are very low quality pics, I just got the suit back from the cleaners and threw it on after work (wrinkled shirt) and there was no natural lighting, so you get tiny apartment lamp lighting, but this is more about the quality of the construction than a waywrn thing anyway so here we go.

(please ignore the the lean-y posture I was running to beat the self timer, and trying to get my pants to fall right. more on that in a sec.)

FABRIC
I'm not an expert on fabrics, I don't really know if 8oz is considered heavy or light or what, but this wool is the (now out of stock?) pudding stone gray 'pure wool' and according to the FAQs, all mt 'pure wool' suit fabrics are 280- 300 gr/mt, whatever that means.

10. What is the normal weight of your suit fabrics?
Our suit fabric weighs around 280gr/mt to 300gr/mt thus are great for all seasons. Flannel fabrics would be heavier than others, weighing around 400gr/mt up. We are still looking into providing such soon.

Now. this suit is very light weight. It's easily the thinnest fabric I've ever seen on a suit. It's almost shirt thin. This is actually a good thing for me, as I live in socal, and almost never need a heavy suit, but I'm just saying. It's really thin. It was the one thing that jumped out at me the most.

there is one problem that stems from this, though

you can see the padding/pockets through the fabric. maybe it's the light weight wool combined with the light color, but I've never seen this before.

Construction
I didn't take any pictures of the inside of the suit, as there's no real difference between mine and imwithtuxedo's, and since there aren't any egregious errors or dimples or tears or anything it seems redundant. so unless there's anything specific someone wants to see, I'm skipping this.

like their shirts, moderntailor followed my directions exactly, with only two exceptions. the first is the armhole, where I requested a 9.5 inch measurement from top seam around the scythe to the armpit seam, for a 19 inch total circumfrence. The measurement sheet also has a measurement for sleeve length and sleeve inseam. I asked for a sleeve length of 24 inches and an inseam of 21 inches, forcing them to create more of a sideways oval for the armhole instead of a circle. I was hoping this in combination with the armhole measurement would create a nice high armhole for maximum mobility. unfortunately the armhole on the finished suit is more like 11.5 inches, and the sleeve inseam is 16 inches

I was hoping to avoid this pull.

Obviously there is no way to cheat your way into a high armholed suit, you have to drop a buttload of money for the makers with skills. I think this is just too much for the moderntailor tailors...maybe it's too far from their set suit pattern, maybe they lack the skill...whatever it's a 300 suit. which is fine, but if you can't adjust the armhole beyond your pattern, then why ask for the measurements like you can? small disappointment.

the only other measurement that they inexplicably disregarded was trouser cuff. I asked for 2 inches, I got 1.5. not a big deal, just weird as they're usually excellent at following my numbers..

the buttons are cheap. I found an old goodwill blazer in my closet to cannabalise and I think these should look good

still it would be nice if their were options like with the shirts. moving on.

I also asked for the thick as thieves(tm) frogmouth pockets and attached a couple photos and they nailed them. now when I order a TaT suit, I know I can rock the frogmouths.

blurry:

customer service
I think enough's been said about this. these guys are great. I had a mismeasurement on the back rise of my pants and they suggested adding an inch to my hip measurements, they sent me photos to make sure they had placed the button stance properly ( I took my waist length measurement per some post of shirtmaven's I read to tell them where to place the slimmest part of the suit, and asked for the button to be placed at the same heighth, I guess they thought it was a little high. maybe it is, I dunno. I like it)

I ordered the suit, with two shirts, on 6/26, I got it just about a month later on 7/24.

overall, I really happy with this suit. however, I probably won't be getting anymore from them, as I don't trust that their more expensive wools will be any better than this one, and their selection leaves a lot to be desired. my next purchase will be from jason.

miscellany
I'm not putting this with the rest of the stuff because I have this problem with almost all the slacks I've ever worn.

dark, I know, sorry

I can never get my stupid pants to fall straight, no matter how big the leg opening, no matter how much taper, no matter if I go for slight break, no break, whatever. they always catch either on the laces, the heel, my calves, something. is it the way I stand? is there something I need to ask for from a tailor? does anybody know anything that can help me?

 

[Chips]

Well, it looks like again, the shoulders of their suits are horrible. Your buttoning point is way too high, which amplifies the appearance of the lapels being way too short and perhaps too small for your body shape.

That suit doesn't flatter you at all. Just being honest. I think if you had a lower buttoning point, the horrible shoulders wouldn't be as much of an eyesore. And then, and only then, at less than $400, it might hold value to a consumer on a tight budget.

I'm not a fan of JAB, or Mens Wearhouse, but I believe if one were to spend 45 minutes inside one of their locations, during a good sale, trying on various OTR suits, with the help of a competent tailor- could result in a much better result for at least the same price if not better. And, you wouldn't be surprised by the fit and look of a suit that was drafted blindly online, not knowing what the resulting effort would look like once on your particular frame.

And sorry, but the buttons you chose to replace the even cheaper buttons on the suit with, still look quite horrible, at least to me. But if you like them, then that's what really matters.

 

[Kurtz]

The way your pants fall could be an issue of the fork (crutch?) balance. By that I mean the difference between the front and back rises. I have similar trouble with pants attaching themselves to my rear end and falling awkwardly at the foot. To solve it I decreased the difference between the front and back rises. More specifically, some pants I liked had a four inch difference between the two measurements (14.5 vs 10.5) and I changed it to a two inch difference (13.5 vs 11.5) on a MTM pair. The pants still sit at the same point on my hips, but fall straighter.

I think this has something to do with one's posture, I read about it in a thread called On Pants if you want to search for it. I'm not an expert, but its worth considering.

 

[jbharris88]

You should have just gone to men's warehouse and saved yourself the trouble. I'm sorry, but that jacket is horrendous.

 

[imwithtuxedo]

Originally Posted by Chips

Well, it looks like again, the shoulders of their suits are horrible. Your buttoning point is way too high, which amplifies the appearance of the lapels being way too short and perhaps too small for your body shape.

That suit doesn't flatter you at all. Just being honest. I think if you had a lower buttoning point, the horrible shoulders wouldn't be as much of an eyesore. And then, and only then, at less than $400, it might hold value to a consumer on a tight budget.

I'm not a fan of JAB, or Mens Wearhouse, but I believe if one were to spend 45 minutes inside one of their locations, during a good sale, trying on various OTR suits, with the help of a competent tailor- could result in a much better result for at least the same price if not better. And, you wouldn't be surprised by the fit and look of a suit that was drafted blindly online, not knowing what the resulting effort would look like once on your particular frame.

And sorry, but the buttons you chose to replace the even cheaper buttons on the suit with, still look quite horrible, at least to me. But if you like them, then that's what really matters.

I didn't know that JAB or MW sold flat front, single button jackets with ticket pockets. Learn something new everyday. jackgibbs got exactly what he ordered. His measurements might need some tweaking in certain areas but all in all not a bad first try. The shoulder issue is disturbing though. Hopefully MT will make it right and pay for the alteration/correction like they did with my pants. The buttons do suck, but buttons generally suck on any suit under $750.

Originally Posted by Kurtz

The way your pants fall could be an issue of the fork (crutch?) balance. By that I mean the difference between the front and back rises. I have similar trouble with pants attaching themselves to my rear end and falling awkwardly at the foot. To solve it I decreased the difference between the front and back rises. More specifically, some pants I liked had a four inch difference between the two measurements (14.5 vs 10.5) and I changed it to a two inch difference (13.5 vs 11.5) on a MTM pair. The pants still sit at the same point on my hips, but fall straighter.

I think this has something to do with one's posture, I read about it in a thread called On Pants if you want to search for it. I'm not an expert, but its worth considering.

Thanks for the great advice as my pants have this same problem. I will be doing some pants research before I order again.

Originally Posted by jbharris88

You should have just gone to men's warehouse and saved yourself the trouble. I'm sorry, but that jacket is horrendous.

I love it when others offer such candid advice that completely lacks any helpful advice. Just like jackgibbs' suit, my suit didn't come out very well either, but that was because of the measurements I sent MT. If I decide to order again I will adjust my measurements.

 

[jackgibbs]

at the risk of being called a ***** again, here ae some pictures taken in sunlight, outside, from a decent angle.

the contrast is ridiculous because my girlfriend's camera phone is crap, this one is pretty close to the actual look of the wool:

I know my specific style choices (button stance, lapel width) may make this suit look really bad to most of you, but I don't think you can fault moderntailor for that, as they gave me exactly what I ordered, armholes and lumpy shoulders excepted. I know that I need to have some let out of the back as well, but who's non bespoke back doesn't crease, really?

can shoulders be smoothed post constuction? If they can I'd be really happy with my moderntailor experience...

 

[unjung]

 

[Macallan9]

Originally Posted by jackgibbs

at the risk of being called a ***** again, here ae some pictures taken in sunlight, outside, from a decent angle.


I know my specific style choices (button stance, lapel width) may make this suit look really bad to most of you, but I don't think you can fault moderntailor for that, as they gave me exactly what I ordered, armholes and lumpy shoulders excepted. I know that I need to have some let out of the back as well, but who's non bespoke back doesn't crease, really?

can shoulders be smoothed post constuction? If they can I'd be really happy with my moderntailor experience...

Shoulders cannot be smoothed. Why would you order a suit expecting lumpy shoulders, anyway?

Perhaps they did give you exactly what you ordered. I dont think you can say your suit was anything approaching a success though. If MT has a return policy like indochino, definitely get rid of it. Theres nothing a tailor can do to fix that suit.

PS - if you get an OTR suit altered by a competent tailor, there's no reason to have back creasing. Your body doesn't look exceptional in the least - probably the least difficult to fit body type on earth. You would be better served either going bespoke with multiple fittings, or getting a suit that actually looks good at the shoulders and getting it altered.

 

[jackgibbs]

ugh. don't just facepalm me. what, specifically, is wrong? measurements are on me, and that's fine. I look awful, I guess. But for people thinking of buying from moderntailor, what needs to be fixed, construction-wise?