edinatlanta
Stylish Dinosaur
- Joined
- Nov 17, 2008
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Hey. You may know me from CEPM where I've had such good posts as....well I haven't had any. I do however, have more-than-a-passing interest in archaic men's styles, hence why I joined here. I had a few days in Rome to wander around Rome and I made a point of buying some stuff and checking out some SF-recommended places.
Anyway, as the title says: I'm a smalltimer. Unlike SF, for many things I'm not so concerned about handiwork or the elusive quest for the perfect. Take that disclosure for what's it worth.
The first half day I had some meetings and then I went to Battistioni since I heard it was gorgeous. It was! With prices to match. They had some sweaters for 400 Euro and other gorgeous stuff. Didn't buy anything because, well, I'm a smalltimer. I highly recommend going just to see it but they also seem to be able to sense who is just browsing. Or who is a smalltimer and were appropriately non-attentive.
About two blocks away is a shop called Dal Sarto. To get there you turn right from Battistioni then left down either the first or second street across that dead ends into the street. You'll see the sewing machine and some fabric books outside.
Dal Sarto was neat. They can do bespoke ties as well as suits and shirts. The workshop and fitting room are above the storeroom on the street. It's all located in a former monastery. Their location is new as of about six months ago. Can't remember the brothers' names but their parents had a shop in the suburbs. When they assumed control they thought it better to move downtown and it so far seems to pay off (my one order is totally putting them in the black for the relocation). Since by comparison to Battistioni the prices were reasonable I sprung for a jacket, some pants and a shirt. I thought about getting a tie but, eh, I was spending enough as it was.
I sort-of mislead you dudes. It's not true bespoke, at least not how I understand the term. They measure you, have some sample jackets and shirts to get a sense of how they will fit. Included in the price is shipping and if there's any problems you can return it to them for alterations or they can reimburse you for local tailoring. They hew to a traditional Neapolitan style however they're not wedded to it and will adapt as necessary to the clients. As a relatively slim dude they suggested a little more padding than usual and wider lapels to give me a bit more heft which I'm fine with. I usually like boring-ass clothes and I kind of wanted to stay with regular lapels but as they suggested "every shop in the world sells jackets like that" and I mean, I see their point. Why get bespoke if it's ordinary? They can do as much, or as little, handiwork on everything. In fact, they steered me away from going full-on with the handiwork. I went somewhere in the middle with what they offer. Nothing ostentatious, only on visible elements blah blah blah.
I chose a relatively dark green jacket because, yeah, I like boring clothes. It's not that flashy and is a good four-season jacket from a book of traveller's fabrics. Pants will be khaki and just a blue-and-white striped shirt because, yeah, I actually only like boring clothes that I can wear all the time. Price, without VAT was 1200 Euro for everything. Will update when it comes in. For comparison, I paid roughly that same amount for a suit, jacket and pants from Noble House, one of the decent travelling Hong Kong tailors, a few weeks ago. Tell them Ed from Atlanta sent you.
OK, time for photos.
The next day I went to Schostal which is great if you like old, conservative boring clothes. Hooray! Lots of staples, lots of decent prices and everything is made in Rome. Here's my haul. The squares are hand-rolled which I don't really care about since, you know, it's going to be shoved in a pocket with no impact on fit etc blah blah blah. I paid about 160 euro for this. Schostal includes a spare collar and cuffs so you can replace them as they get worn out. If my girl Shirley is there, tell her Ed the young guy from Atlanta who likes boring clothes sent you. (I don't think it'll do you any good).
There's a little shop next to the Pantheon, Pellicano. Apparently Obama shopped there. Dude makes his ties and squares right above the cash register in a visible workspace. I got this pocket square, I think it was like 25 Euro. Also handrolled and much darker red. This square and the other have very sharp creases which they do for storage. They say to iron them out but I hope I don't need to since....I don't own an iron! :embar2:
Caleffi was a great store. The prices were a bit more expensive than Schostal and a bit flashier. I wanted to get an umbrella but they didn't have really what I wanted and I wasn't gonna pay 300 euro for that when there are Italian makers who have what I want for 200 euro. Braces were another item I looked at, they were 85 euro. Shirts were, I want to say 200? Pocket squares about 60 euro. Didn't get anything. I highly recommend the place, however.
Cenci was good, but lots of American RTW brands with a few Italian SF-approved brands. Didn't buy anything, very department store-esque.
Around the area there's a bunch of shops offering cashmere sweaters for around 60 euro. In fact, there's lots of places in Italy offering prices around that level. Seemed decent enough but, eh. I'm happy with my Uniqlo sweaters.
Manti Gloves is also a cool shop. Maybe three meters wide and 10 meters deep right alongside the Pantheon. I really wanted their navy blue gloves for about 65 euro but they were just too big. My hands are absurdly small....
Stopped at Gutteridge, a chain all over, with a very British bent. Ties were very thin silk but the braces and square were 35 euro total. Like with squares, I don't really care about the craftsmanship of suspenders.
I checked out a few, as in too many, other stores and didn't buy anything. It's actually overwhelming even in a place like Rome that isn't as famous for clothing as Naples to choose where to go.
I forget why I stopped at Boggi. I've bought stuff from them before maybe and I liked it? Well they had a pair of dark brown suede loafers, much darker than the photo, and they are essentially what I've been looking for for a while. My feet are very odd: quite narrow in the middle and wide at the part below the toes. So having a pair that fit well I was willing to pay. A long way of saying I probably could have found better price for quality than these but whatever.
When in Venice I didn't buy anything except a replacement for my falling apart card case. Another item I'm not concerned about the quality of workmanship on since, you know, it doesn't matter. I just liked the color and it was 10 euro. The shops sell this same type of card cases and other leather goods from the same "maker" all over in case you care.
As a dutiful Catholic my faith couldn't be spared from this gross, overly consumeristic spree. My new rosary from the Vatican (which my new buddy Lazarus from South Korea seemed to like when he blessed it), my new crucifix (which my new buddy Phillipe from Italy seemed to like when he blessed it) and pouch (unblessed).
Questions or comments? Hollatchaboy.
Anyway, as the title says: I'm a smalltimer. Unlike SF, for many things I'm not so concerned about handiwork or the elusive quest for the perfect. Take that disclosure for what's it worth.
The first half day I had some meetings and then I went to Battistioni since I heard it was gorgeous. It was! With prices to match. They had some sweaters for 400 Euro and other gorgeous stuff. Didn't buy anything because, well, I'm a smalltimer. I highly recommend going just to see it but they also seem to be able to sense who is just browsing. Or who is a smalltimer and were appropriately non-attentive.
About two blocks away is a shop called Dal Sarto. To get there you turn right from Battistioni then left down either the first or second street across that dead ends into the street. You'll see the sewing machine and some fabric books outside.
Dal Sarto was neat. They can do bespoke ties as well as suits and shirts. The workshop and fitting room are above the storeroom on the street. It's all located in a former monastery. Their location is new as of about six months ago. Can't remember the brothers' names but their parents had a shop in the suburbs. When they assumed control they thought it better to move downtown and it so far seems to pay off (my one order is totally putting them in the black for the relocation). Since by comparison to Battistioni the prices were reasonable I sprung for a jacket, some pants and a shirt. I thought about getting a tie but, eh, I was spending enough as it was.
I sort-of mislead you dudes. It's not true bespoke, at least not how I understand the term. They measure you, have some sample jackets and shirts to get a sense of how they will fit. Included in the price is shipping and if there's any problems you can return it to them for alterations or they can reimburse you for local tailoring. They hew to a traditional Neapolitan style however they're not wedded to it and will adapt as necessary to the clients. As a relatively slim dude they suggested a little more padding than usual and wider lapels to give me a bit more heft which I'm fine with. I usually like boring-ass clothes and I kind of wanted to stay with regular lapels but as they suggested "every shop in the world sells jackets like that" and I mean, I see their point. Why get bespoke if it's ordinary? They can do as much, or as little, handiwork on everything. In fact, they steered me away from going full-on with the handiwork. I went somewhere in the middle with what they offer. Nothing ostentatious, only on visible elements blah blah blah.
I chose a relatively dark green jacket because, yeah, I like boring clothes. It's not that flashy and is a good four-season jacket from a book of traveller's fabrics. Pants will be khaki and just a blue-and-white striped shirt because, yeah, I actually only like boring clothes that I can wear all the time. Price, without VAT was 1200 Euro for everything. Will update when it comes in. For comparison, I paid roughly that same amount for a suit, jacket and pants from Noble House, one of the decent travelling Hong Kong tailors, a few weeks ago. Tell them Ed from Atlanta sent you.
OK, time for photos.
The next day I went to Schostal which is great if you like old, conservative boring clothes. Hooray! Lots of staples, lots of decent prices and everything is made in Rome. Here's my haul. The squares are hand-rolled which I don't really care about since, you know, it's going to be shoved in a pocket with no impact on fit etc blah blah blah. I paid about 160 euro for this. Schostal includes a spare collar and cuffs so you can replace them as they get worn out. If my girl Shirley is there, tell her Ed the young guy from Atlanta who likes boring clothes sent you. (I don't think it'll do you any good).
There's a little shop next to the Pantheon, Pellicano. Apparently Obama shopped there. Dude makes his ties and squares right above the cash register in a visible workspace. I got this pocket square, I think it was like 25 Euro. Also handrolled and much darker red. This square and the other have very sharp creases which they do for storage. They say to iron them out but I hope I don't need to since....I don't own an iron! :embar2:
Caleffi was a great store. The prices were a bit more expensive than Schostal and a bit flashier. I wanted to get an umbrella but they didn't have really what I wanted and I wasn't gonna pay 300 euro for that when there are Italian makers who have what I want for 200 euro. Braces were another item I looked at, they were 85 euro. Shirts were, I want to say 200? Pocket squares about 60 euro. Didn't get anything. I highly recommend the place, however.
Cenci was good, but lots of American RTW brands with a few Italian SF-approved brands. Didn't buy anything, very department store-esque.
Around the area there's a bunch of shops offering cashmere sweaters for around 60 euro. In fact, there's lots of places in Italy offering prices around that level. Seemed decent enough but, eh. I'm happy with my Uniqlo sweaters.
Manti Gloves is also a cool shop. Maybe three meters wide and 10 meters deep right alongside the Pantheon. I really wanted their navy blue gloves for about 65 euro but they were just too big. My hands are absurdly small....
Stopped at Gutteridge, a chain all over, with a very British bent. Ties were very thin silk but the braces and square were 35 euro total. Like with squares, I don't really care about the craftsmanship of suspenders.
I checked out a few, as in too many, other stores and didn't buy anything. It's actually overwhelming even in a place like Rome that isn't as famous for clothing as Naples to choose where to go.
I forget why I stopped at Boggi. I've bought stuff from them before maybe and I liked it? Well they had a pair of dark brown suede loafers, much darker than the photo, and they are essentially what I've been looking for for a while. My feet are very odd: quite narrow in the middle and wide at the part below the toes. So having a pair that fit well I was willing to pay. A long way of saying I probably could have found better price for quality than these but whatever.
When in Venice I didn't buy anything except a replacement for my falling apart card case. Another item I'm not concerned about the quality of workmanship on since, you know, it doesn't matter. I just liked the color and it was 10 euro. The shops sell this same type of card cases and other leather goods from the same "maker" all over in case you care.
As a dutiful Catholic my faith couldn't be spared from this gross, overly consumeristic spree. My new rosary from the Vatican (which my new buddy Lazarus from South Korea seemed to like when he blessed it), my new crucifix (which my new buddy Phillipe from Italy seemed to like when he blessed it) and pouch (unblessed).
Questions or comments? Hollatchaboy.
