SWD Discussion Thread for Tailoring

[cchen]

are we just talking about tailoring worn casually?

i came up in the early days of the forums (2005-ish) and got into it because of raw denim but slowly gravitated towards the CM side as I started my career and wanted to dress more professionally.

and then leaned into #menswear with a closet full of Ring Jacket, Liverano, Sartoria Rafaniello, Ascot Chang, Carmina, EG, etc, which I still have and love. but had always tried to keep jackets soft shouldered and paired with denim and chinos.

fast forward a few years workplace culture moved towards being more casual, then the pandemic - i haven't touched my tailoring sans a few nice dinners out and the occassional wedding or two.

i would love to incorporate tailoring back into my daily wear the way I see FoG or ALD being styled, but the existing pieces I have don't fit that aesthetic, and I just don't have the physical space or mind space to buy more "tailoring." and WFH has really dampered any desire to "dress up," even in a SWD tailor way.

 

[FlyingMonkey]

This is pretty much what I wear all the time for work these days (and sometimes at home too) - what elsewhere gets called a 'casual suit' or in Japan they use another term for this kind of thing, where you wear different elements in matching fabric together: the 'set-up.' I tend to use the latter term, because I think it's a useful way of distiniguishing things from the standard menswear suit. I think what distinguishes a set-up from a suit is that the parts don't have to be bought or worn together but you can, and the design is more often runway or workwear in style, whereas with a traditional suit, the parts are only available together, there is a pretty standard expectation as to cut and lapel shapes etc, and there is a presumption that they should only be worn together (hence the whole thing about 'orphan' jackets over in CM). But I'm not that bothered what we call them in the end.

Whatever they are, I tend to wear lighter cotton, hemp or sill-cotton set-ups, with open-necked shirts, or buttoned but with no tie, in the warmer months; and heavier wool, tweed, or blended fabric set-ups in the cold months with turtleneck sweaters.

 

[d4nimal]

Thanks @dieworkwear for putting this thread up - seems very timely. I feel like this renewed interest in tailoring is definitely a thing, but perhaps less #menswear and fussy and more in the relaxed form that I’ve seen a lot of members here do really well. @#dadcore
consistently gives me inspiration, as do @gdl203, @UrbanComposition, @RajunCajun and @conceptual 4est, just to name a few. I also admire the way guys like Ethan Newton/Kenji Cheung and Ethan Wong work vintage militaria and workwear into their tailored wear.

Lately I’ve been thinking about working more classically tailored clothing into my own wardrobe as well. I bought a beautiful Eidos sport coat recently from @SpooPoker for almost nothing that looks like it could be Antonio era I’m excited about wearing, though I have to build that part of my wardrobe up slowly and figure out how and in what ways to work more tailored clothing into my dress. I also picked up some secondhand Alden loafers (black tassel and a brown bit) I’ve been enjoying.

Should be fun! Loving this thread so far.

 

[oulipien]

Wearing a Frank Leder Deutschleder jacket and pants today by coincidence—I suppose this would count as a "set-up", since they're not sold with an expectation of being worn together (I actually got these at Leder's atelier, and when I referred to getting both to complete a suit his reaction was sort of a "yeah, I guess that's right" rather than a "yes, precisely").

 

[bourbonbasted]

The perceived "resurgence" in tailoring (likely ushered in by the psychological realities of the pandemic) and fashion's recent "return" to larger, more forgiving silhouettes creates a pretty ideal environment for casual tailoring.

Lately I've been wearing cashmere crewnecks under cashmere-blend jackets, paired with either cords or denim. I find RTW clothes create a more imperfect, louche air that feels more natural. That's not to say that I haven't worn some of my bespoke stuff more casually, but bespoke often feels "nailed down" which can create conflicting levels of formality. Something about an imperfect fit or an odd cloth composition makes things feel less forced.

I'd be interested to hear from members who have used bespoke (or even MTM) tailors to create a more casual silhouette and design. I'm sure it's possible, but the temptation to go trad or biz formal seems to rule the day in my commissions.

 

[FlyingMonkey]

I'd be interested to hear from members who have used bespoke (or even MTM) tailors to create a more casual silhouette and design. I'm sure it's possible, but the temptation to go trad or biz formal seems to rule the day in my commissions.

I have inquired (I waned to get an asymetrical jacket cut with a twisted seam), but the tailors I approached were neither confident that they could do it nor particularly willing to try. Trad men's tailors are good at what they do, but it's a pretty narrow range.

 

[oulipien]

I have inquired (I waned to get an asymetrical jacket cut with a twisted seam), but the tailors I approached were neither confident that they could do it nor particularly willing to try. Trad men's tailors are good at what they do, but it's a pretty narrow range.

Davide Taub's instagram (and even more so his old blog) has pants with curved seams, eg here (curved-seam pants) or here (patchwork curved-seam jacket), and he seems in general pretty open-minded (he made from burlap coffee sacks, for instance). But I have to assume that things like that from him would be even more expensive than a regular commission.

 

[FlyingMonkey]

But I have to assume that things like that from him would be even more expensive than a regular commission.

Ha, well I couldn't afford his regular prices anyway!

 

[dieworkwear]

are we just talking about tailoring worn casually?

i came up in the early days of the forums (2005-ish) and got into it because of raw denim but slowly gravitated towards the CM side as I started my career and wanted to dress more professionally.

and then leaned into #menswear with a closet full of Ring Jacket, Liverano, Sartoria Rafaniello, Ascot Chang, Carmina, EG, etc, which I still have and love. but had always tried to keep jackets soft shouldered and paired with denim and chinos.

fast forward a few years workplace culture moved towards being more casual, then the pandemic - i haven't touched my tailoring sans a few nice dinners out and the occassional wedding or two.

i would love to incorporate tailoring back into my daily wear the way I see FoG or ALD being styled, but the existing pieces I have don't fit that aesthetic, and I just don't have the physical space or mind space to buy more "tailoring." and WFH has really dampered any desire to "dress up," even in a SWD tailor way.

I don't think this thread has to be just for casual tailoring or even very SWD fits. I think of it mostly as a place for people who feel more comfortable on the SWD side of the board, but want to discuss tailoring.

In the past, a few members here wore traditional suits and sport coats in the SWD WAYWT threads (e.g., ChetB and StanleyVanBuren). I think this thread can be a mix of traditional and non-traditional, formal and informal, etc.

 

[tonhaolim]

I've gone back and forth. Used to buy from Epaulet and Context in their early days, and then #menswear, now back to RRL, Filson, etc. Great thing about menswear is you can mix and match most spectrums, especially if they're from early to mid 20th century. Civilian and military, workwear and sportswear, tailoring and Western all took cues from each other so it's not hard to imagine them coexisting in someone's daily wear.

Today the fastest way for someone deep in streetwear to cross over would be something like ALD doing a collab with, say, J. Press and going "Psst, we styled this with a sweatpant and New Balance shoes, and by the way it's highly limited and gonna sell out immediately"

 

[UrbanComposition]

The perceived "resurgence" in tailoring (likely ushered in by the psychological realities of the pandemic) and fashion's recent "return" to larger, more forgiving silhouettes creates a pretty ideal environment for casual tailoring.

Lately I've been wearing cashmere crewnecks under cashmere-blend jackets, paired with either cords or denim. I find RTW clothes create a more imperfect, louche air that feels more natural. That's not to say that I haven't worn some of my bespoke stuff more casually, but bespoke often feels "nailed down" which can create conflicting levels of formality. Something about an imperfect fit or an odd cloth composition makes things feel less forced.

I'd be interested to hear from members who have used bespoke (or even MTM) tailors to create a more casual silhouette and design. I'm sure it's possible, but the temptation to go trad or biz formal seems to rule the day in my commissions.

I specifically worked with Salvo to create a more relaxed silhouette, and I’m really happy with it: slightly extended shoulders, a slightly roomy upper back, and chest drape for the jacket, and a roomy upper block for pants.

At Pitti I purposely left the ties at home, as much as I love them (and still think they look good when appropriate). But I’m finding that many are beginning to embrace the suit as something that can be worn more casually, something I’m 100% behind. Even when wearing a tie, I’m seeing three elements that are keeping the suit relevant and interesting:

Casual signifiers (like the JMueser guys in tweed, corduroy, or rumply linen suits)
Cool signifiers (longer/angular 70s cuts and glam/western details, velvet, silk, etc)
Futuristic signifiers, such as Zegna’s runway line. It’s a bit insane, but still wearable: side vents, jackets in reversible fabrics that can be worn in multiple ways, comfortable silhouettes.

 

[dieworkwear]

Casual signifiers

Cool signifiers

Futuristic signifiers, such as Zegna’s runway line. It’s a bit insane, but still wearable

Crazy, Sexy, Cool is also the name of my favorite music album

 

[Adsky Luck]

I wanted to get an asymetrical jacket ...

Spoiler

 

[RegisDB9]

I like wearing casual menswear and suits whenever I drive. I don't usually bother photoing it because I've been burned out of taking selfies for years so when I do, it needs to be the kind of sportswear my audience likes. I find the trickiest part of wearing suits casually is matching the right t-shirt or button up with the suit and shoes. A lot of t-shirts just look off with suits, so finding the right texture and the shape and opening of the neck banding is the challenge. Minimal slip ons for shoes seem to work alright in this context, I've never thought that busy sneakers work well; they always dominate the outfit and end up looking affected.

I find that something with texture or nice drape does the trick. A regular cotton T always didn’t look right for me with suits. A nice silk/linen/waffle short sleeve shirt is my go to

Spoiler: Spoiler

 

[willy cheesesteak]

closest i’ve gotten to wearing a suit/tailoring in a while with this sage de cret patchwork cord setup from fw20