SPIER & MACKAY - Official Affiliate Thread

[DonRaphael]

People in the rags trade are weirdly cagey about why or why not some makers but not others have relationships with certain mills/merchants but not others, but regardless of reason, I'm guessing that aside from the very occasional one-off project, SM will never get into the higher tier stuff (Loro Piana, Scabal, Harrison's, Dugdale Bros, Dormeuil, Zegna, Holland & Sherry, etc.) that bespoke or higher end MTM places use, places that charge a lot more than what we are used to paying for SM.

Dugdale is available through SM. ~1,4k USD for a MTO suit from their English & Town Classics bunch book when I inquired last year.

Also, H&S is available, evidently by the current "Crispaire" suit offerings. They're offered under another name/brand, but it's H&S. It's a trademark/price/cost thing apparently. Not sure to what extent however.

Harrisons, I've asked Rick for years to bring on board.

 

[TheLawBeard]

People in the rags trade are weirdly cagey about why or why not some makers but not others have relationships with certain mills/merchants but not others, but regardless of reason, I'm guessing that aside from the very occasional one-off project, SM will never get into the higher tier stuff (Loro Piana, Scabal, Harrison's, Dugdale Bros, Dormeuil, Zegna, Holland & Sherry, etc.) that bespoke or higher end MTM places use, places that charge a lot more than what we are used to paying for SM.

I'll point out- Speir puts out stuff using Fox and they're about as expensive as it gets. (That is, until you get into London Lounge, Vicuna, and other really special stuff).

 

[blue2007]

High-rise, stone cotton from last season.

Thanks. Did they change since?

 

[WoolyLamb]

For those of you that have the high rise with side tab styles. How much adjustment do the side tabs offer? For instance if I get a 34 waist will I be able to go down to 33 in?

 

[Genericuser1]

For my sweaters I use Kookaburra Wool wash, roll up the sweaters, place them in mesh bags and safety pin them tight. then was on delicate and flat dry. Alternatively you could just soak and hand wash in Kookaburra or similar wash with lanolin.

 

[ericgereghty]

People in the rags trade are weirdly cagey about why or why not some makers but not others have relationships with certain mills/merchants but not others, but regardless of reason, I'm guessing that aside from the very occasional one-off project, SM will never get into the higher tier stuff (Loro Piana, Scabal, Harrison's, Dugdale Bros, Dormeuil, Zegna, Holland & Sherry, etc.) that bespoke or higher end MTM places use, places that charge a lot more than what we are used to paying for SM.

I hope they don't. Presumably on the uber high end stuff (Dugdale isn't that, though damn good, to be sure) you'd be looking at presumably $800-1000 or so RTW, and, apparently, ~$1500 for MTO.

I really dig S&M, but that's a dreadful value proposition, in my opinion. Just gimme a damn light grey fresco and one more run of that mohair blend fresco and I'd be good for a buy or two every season lol

 

[ericgereghty]

On a more positive note, the Di Pray W/S jacket is awesome. Curious to see how it resists wrinkles. With the weight and amount of silk in it, I expect a fair amount of wrinkling, but, it's hopsack, so who knows. Either way, not a formal jacket at all, so in my mind anything less aggressively wrinkled than, say, a linen jacket is fine with me.
Cloth is gorgeous. Get a little bit of sheen from the silk and an awesome variegation from the weave...and huge, huge kudos to SM for lining the sleeves. So nice to not pull them inside out every time I slip off the jacket. They also overcompensate for the 3r2 in their ironing, which, again, I think is a positive for something totally unconstructed. I have some jackets where the roll looks a bit...floppy, for lack of a better word.
My biggest (and really only) gripe is that I wished they'd either utilized a double layer of fabric and very, very minimal buggy lining across the upper back. The weave is VERY open, and I am already mentally prepared to snag it a time or five on a drunken eve...
But, all in all, awesome.

 

[ericgereghty]

Oh, and Spier, stock 46Ls, please.

 

[A12321]

For those of you that have the high rise with side tab styles. How much adjustment do the side tabs offer? For instance if I get a 34 waist will I be able to go down to 33 in?

Definitely.

 

[alkydrinker]

Has anyone noticed the buttonholes on OTR shirts are much better than the custom order shirts? I have both and find the OTR shirt buttonholes are cut and sewn and easy to use whereas the custom order shirt buttonholes seem to be made from a lower grade buttonhole machine i.e. buttonholes are hard to open and pass button through.

Yes, I just noticed on a recent S&M MTM shirt it was difficult to fasten the buttons. It wouldn't be unusual for me to roll and unroll my sleeves a few times in a day, and this makes it frustrating.
Really a problem that shouldn't exist. I hate it when a product gets a really fundamental thing like this wrong...it's 2023 - haven't we figured out how to get machine made button holes right??
With this batch of custom shirts, I also saw inconsistencies in the chest pocket size, with one of them looking and measuring too big.
I love S&M's tailored suits/sportcoats/overcoats ...but damn, I just get more and more down on their other offerings. If it's not something in the styling that's off, there's some problem in the quality.
I just bought a pair of pre-owned 2010's Banana Republic wool trousers off ebay for like $20 in one of their fuller cuts. They fit great with the same rise measurement as S&M's high rise trousers but without the side tab adjusters (love a high rise, but hate side tabs). The construction & linings feels better than S&M, and the fabric is probably nicer than any of their "house" fabrics. I find BR's fit to also be super consistent with +2.0" vanity sizing (S&M not so consistent). Putting that purchase next so many bricked S&M purchases really puts things in perspective. I'm still spending with S&M and rooting for them as a company to succeed and put out ever greater products, but just a lot more hesitant and keeping more of an eye elsewhere.

 

[CasuallyWorked]

Not the best quality picture.

Knit cotton polo . View attachment 1961977

looks nice! How did you size compare to their sport coats or regular cotton polos? I wanted to pick up a navy but sold out :/

 

[SteveMc]

Thanks. Did they change since?

Changed? In what way do you mean?

 

[7_rocket]

looks nice! How did you size compare to their sport coats or regular cotton polos? I wanted to pick up a navy but sold out :/

I am a large in both. I prefer the look and feel of the knit cotton vs the regular polos as it's more refined.

 

[7_rocket]

Has anyone washed SM Merino sweaters?
Instructions say dry clean only but most merino sweaters from other markers are usually washable?

Has anyone washed the Quest Cotton Trousers?
They are so soft, I'm afraid washing them might ruin the soft characteristics of the fabric, but I Have the cream one, so the only other option would be dry-cleaning.

I put everything in the washer from SM and set it on cold. I lay Merino sweaters flat to dry with no issues.

The only issue I had was a hoody from them a few seasons ago and it shrank a little too much but other than that, everything has held up fine.

 

[poroto]

Is SM ditching the extra slim fit for RTW shirts, or is it just a seasonal thing?