Mr. Ned vs. Winston MTM vs. alternatives in NYC

[poorsod]

Originally Posted by Lonneker

I also thought that was Ercole's price point, but perhaps Rob (NYR) can weigh in. Is MA 'only' $2150 for a two piece?


NSM is 1500 euro + price for material. I recently bought euro for $1.31 which makes $1965 + material.

 

[Eustace Tilley]

Originally Posted by Lonneker

I also thought that was Ercole's price point, but perhaps Rob (NYR) can weigh in. Is MA 'only' $2150 for a two piece?


She is 1,500 euros for CMT which is ~$2,000. Good cloth can be had from a variety of sources for $100-$150.

 

[Eustace Tilley]

Originally Posted by poorsod

NSM is 1500 euro + price for material. I recently bought euro for $1.31 which makes $1965 + material.

Where are you buying euros for $1.31?

 

[jeff13007]

Originally Posted by Eustace Tilley

Where are you buying euros for $1.31?

Seriously. Mine came out closer to 2700 including fabric. Which imo is still worth it! If you are ok with the 2500ish budget you wont be disappointed with mina.

 

[NewYorkIslander]

Give Frank a call and tell him your just concerned about his location...he may still work out of the city once a week.

 

[Shirtmaven]

expectaions are often higher then reality

walking into Ned and asking for an Iasia cut is not going to work. Ned makes an american/english cut jacket.
asking for little padding and narrow shoulder should have been followed. at the basted fitting the padding is always thicker, since the shoulder has not been properly pressed yet.
Ned has tons of fabric. and he does have 11/12 oz fabric.

where are you going to buy nice fabric for $35 a yard. sure you can buy some of the HartMarx fabric in the garment district (they dumped close to 400,000 yards into the market. very little of the fabric had woven selvedges. so you dont know where the fabric was woven. India? Italy? most of the country of origin tickets are gone.

I have seen Mina's jacket. it is quite nice. but not for everyone's taste. nothing like Ned's

Frank, from ercole does come into the city. he has a small space in midtown, I think. but I also think there is a bit of an upcharge for the service.

Izzy at LS is also a good choice. outsourced to English American , I think.

 

[OxxfordSJLINY]

Originally Posted by Threadhead

Winston all the way. The tailor who makes the pattern and does the fittings works in the next room. Whether its made on the premise or not, he will make sure the end product is outstanding, canvas fitting or not.

Paul is one of the nicest guys around and knows more about clothing than most anyone. And, he can likely fix whatever went wrong with your old garments. Speak with him in person and you will see what I mean.

Does Paul Winston have a house style? If so, what is his house style?

 

[Eustace Tilley]

Originally Posted by jeff13007

Seriously. Mine came out closer to 2700 including fabric. Which imo is still worth it! If you are ok with the 2500ish budget you wont be disappointed with mina.

The price can be as high or low depending on the fabric chosen. But all the basic stuff is available at about $150.

 

[Eustace Tilley]

Originally Posted by Shirtmaven

where are you going to buy nice fabric for $35 a yard.

Dugdales has good stuff at about $45 a meter. Beckenstein's has Wain Sheill at $30 a yard, and Tip-Top has Woodhouse at $40 a yard.

 

[taxgenius]

Originally Posted by sellahi22

I told the younger Ned on day 1 that I wanted minimally padded shoulders. I have fairly broad, square shoulders and the biggest problem I have with RTW is that it gives me a linebacker appearance. I wore an Isaia jacket to my fitting and told him that I wanted similarly soft shoulders, and that I want a shorter shoulder seam (with more of my shoulder filling the sleeve cap, so as to reduce the appearance of broad shoulders). To their credit, they seemed very receptive to these instructions at the time measuring.

Turned out that these instructions simply didn't compute with them. At my basted fitting they put on a sleeveless jacket and the shoulders were heavily built up with canvas. The younger Ned marked the shoulder and I reminded him that I want a narrower, softer shoulder. He nodded again.

At my second fitting, the jacket was basically complete except for the sleeve length and buttoning point. The jacket's shoulders were a nightmare - overextended, with a nonexistent sleeve cap, and baggy arms that flared out at the cuff. I pointed it out, and the young Ned said that the jacket was how it was "supposed" to be (i.e., that there is one single "correct" way to execute shoulders on a jacket), and that there was nothing that he could do now because the jacket is complete (and that the tailors are very busy filling other orders at the moment). Re the sleeves he said that I should have been clearer at the beginning (I honestly didn't know that sleeves which flare at the cuffs is even an option). Basically he was acting very smug and condescending and it wasn't worth my time to stand there negotiating with him. I picked up the jacket, ended up getting the sleeves narrowed from an alterations tailor for like $80, and the jacket remains at the back of my closet very rarely worn.

I was also pretty dissatisfied by their sales tactics. After the first fitting I inquired about getting some suits made. They stock a bunch of in-house bolts as well as some books from Scabal, Dormeuil, Loro Piana, etc. (with suit prices of 1500-2500). I asked about CMT because I wanted to buy some heavier British cloth that I would source from Andrew Rogers. The young Ned insisted to me that brand name cloth is just a scam, and that his no-name in-house cloth was equally good. He also scoffed at the idea of buying 10-13 oz cloth, saying that that stuff is strictly for winter and that everyone in NYC buys 8 oz cloth for 4-season use. This is not the type of bespoke tailor that I would want to build a relationship with.

They sound like a bunch of clowns.

 

[Shirtmaven]

Originally Posted by Eustace Tilley

Dugdales has good stuff at about $45 a meter. Beckenstein's has Wain Sheill at $30 a yard, and Tip-Top has Woodhouse at $40 a yard.

I was assuming you were referring to suiting . since. when has becksenstein sold decent woolens for that cheap? if you live in NYC, it is doubtful you own a car, so add $40 for taxi to tip top

 

[nmprisons]

Originally Posted by Shirtmaven

expectaions are often higher then reality walking into Ned and asking for an Iasia cut is not going to work. Ned makes an american/english cut jacket.
This is undoubtedly right. I have had three suits made at Ned's. I knew next to nothing the first time and it came out boxy as hell. (my fault) The second, was vastly improved and I wear it frequently (today, in fact). The third, well, the jacket had so many problems that it was immediately donated to charity and so I was left with $1,000 pants. The problems I experienced were not at all based on service. I really like both Ned and Varhm. They also weren't based on price: it is a good deal and has the potential to be a great fit for the price (not to mention the benefits of buying Made in America stuff from someone who treats his workers well). In the end, I just didn't feel comfortable asking them to fix the repeated mistakes in construction and decided to go elsewhere. There is not doubt in my mind that someone with the right attitude could do well buying their suits there, and they have many happy long-term customers. You have to know what you want and what is realistic and you must be willing to speak up if things aren't working out (and probably be willing to push it a bit because they will tell you thing are fine even if you don't think so). Its proximity to CEGO, however, is a major plus.

 

[poorsod]

Originally Posted by Eustace Tilley

Where are you buying euros for $1.31?

http://www.asforeignexchange.com/

They are on W32nd st. Euro is now $1.33. I found them recommended from Trip Advisor.

 

[Vintage Gent]

Originally Posted by taxgenius69

I don't recall seeing any pics of Ercole's suit other than on NYRanger. I wish there were more pics to look at to get a sense of his skill.

Has anyone ever posted pics of a suit or jacket from Mr. Ned? I often hear Mr. Ned offered up as a "budget bespoke" option for NYC folks, but I've never seen finished product to back up that recommendation.

 

[TheTukker]

Originally Posted by sellahi22

I told the younger Ned on day 1 that I wanted minimally padded shoulders. I have fairly broad, square shoulders and the biggest problem I have with RTW is that it gives me a linebacker appearance. I wore an Isaia jacket to my fitting and told him that I wanted similarly soft shoulders, and that I want a shorter shoulder seam (with more of my shoulder filling the sleeve cap, so as to reduce the appearance of broad shoulders). To their credit, they seemed very receptive to these instructions at the time measuring.

Turned out that these instructions simply didn't compute with them. At my basted fitting they put on a sleeveless jacket and the shoulders were heavily built up with canvas. The younger Ned marked the shoulder and I reminded him that I want a narrower, softer shoulder. He nodded again.

At my second fitting, the jacket was basically complete except for the sleeve length and buttoning point. The jacket's shoulders were a nightmare - overextended, with a nonexistent sleeve cap, and baggy arms that flared out at the cuff. I pointed it out, and the young Ned said that the jacket was how it was "supposed" to be (i.e., that there is one single "correct" way to execute shoulders on a jacket), and that there was nothing that he could do now because the jacket is complete (and that the tailors are very busy filling other orders at the moment). Re the sleeves he said that I should have been clearer at the beginning (I honestly didn't know that sleeves which flare at the cuffs is even an option). Basically he was acting very smug and condescending and it wasn't worth my time to stand there negotiating with him. I picked up the jacket, ended up getting the sleeves narrowed from an alterations tailor for like $80, and the jacket remains at the back of my closet very rarely worn.

I was also pretty dissatisfied by their sales tactics. After the first fitting I inquired about getting some suits made. They stock a bunch of in-house bolts as well as some books from Scabal, Dormeuil, Loro Piana, etc. (with suit prices of 1500-2500). I asked about CMT because I wanted to buy some heavier British cloth that I would source from Andrew Rogers. The young Ned insisted to me that brand name cloth is just a scam, and that his no-name in-house cloth was equally good. He also scoffed at the idea of buying 10-13 oz cloth, saying that that stuff is strictly for winter and that everyone in NYC buys 8 oz cloth for 4-season use. This is not the type of bespoke tailor that I would want to build a relationship with.

Thanks for elaborating on your experience - very helpful. I can see where you're coming from and why it didn't work out for you. They are indeed characters; works for some and not for others. You may be getting less fittings with Chan, but I think a bit more handwork and Patrick's great to work with, so that's a great alternative.

Originally Posted by Eustace Tilley

She is 1,500 euros for CMT which is ~$2,000. Good cloth can be had from a variety of sources for $100-$150.

Many thanks.