Shoulder padding

[Pierrepont]

I was hoping you guys could help me out here. I have this Hickey Freeman suit that I've never been quite happy with because I think the shoulder pads are just too big. The jacket basically fits me well in the shoulders, but the padding protrudes much farther than I feel it should.

Could I have a tailor either remove the shoulder pads or substitute smaller pads, without otherwise messing up the fit of the suit? If there's any risk to doing this, I'd rather just live with it.

 

[matadorpoeta]

it's hard to say. i once had a jacket that i thought had big shoulder pads, but my tailor pointed out that in fact the padding was very thin. it was the cut of the jacket that made the shoulders look big. he ended up altering the material just below the collar, in the back, and this made a huge difference.

the padding can be taken out and replaced, but i've never had it done, and i've heard very different versions of how difficult/expensive this is.

 

[bengal-stripe]

The padding can be taken out, but, depending on the degree of padding and your personal shape, it might be necessary to re-cut and re-make the whole shoulder and top-of sleeve area. You'll need a good tailor and it can be quite an expensive job. Discuss it with a tailor you trust.

 

[kabert]

I agree with matador's comment -- that the solution might be to make the shoulders narrower by taking in fabric beneath the collar. Also, a good tailor should be able to swap the existing shoulder pad with a thinner one if that's desired too.

 

[Pierrepont]

Thanks for the advice, guys. In the end, all it took was reducing the size of the shoulder pads. The suit looks and feels ten times better.