The Made-to-Measure Thread

[dieworkwear]

Mark Wystrach, the lead singer of the country band Midland, wore a nice Western suit to his wedding. Guy is super stylish and his IG is full of good style inspiration photos.

 

[heldentenor]

Glenplaid MTM suit. First time making a suit with this tailor, and we're going to add a little bit of length to the inseam and a tiny amount of ease to the hip circumference.

In my (limited) comparative experience with MTM tailoring, it's important to work with someone who is a) something of a perfectionist when it comes to process, but b) not an obsessive tinkerer. That means trial garments and ideally a fit garment made to your measurements if doing it remotely, so that the first commission gets the non-negotiable parts right (sleeve and shoulder pitch, hip/pelvic rotation, etc). Once those are dialed in, changes should be made for a clear reason and in such a way that they don't (and can't) compromise the fundamentals. Learned this the hard way and will post more about that in future.

 

[bdavro23]

Mark Wystrach, the lead singer of the country band Midland, wore a nice Western suit to his wedding. Guy is super stylish and his IG is full of good style inspiration photos.

I actually like his suit and he looks good. I would argue that its probably not a great idea for him to be showing more cleavage than his wife, but its 2020, so you do you, etc.

 

[dieworkwear]

I actually like his suit and he looks good. I would argue that its probably not a great idea for him to be showing more cleavage than his wife, but its 2020, so you do you, etc.

If I had that body, I would be showing man cleavage all the time.

 

[LuxLemon]

This is a MTM Sportcoat I recently had commissioned from a large Canadian men’s luxury retailer. The rep definitely rushed through the process and had a pretty arrogant attitude through it all, even skipping the try on appointment even though we had scheduled a time.

I feel like this is my worst fitting jacket but I still lack confidence on exactly how my body should fit into these garments or how particular I should be in my expectation. I feel it is very tight through the back, the shoulder seems to be too straight and maybe large, but then the armholes are super awkward where the entire jacket pulls up if I reach up at all, but is also extremely tight through the upper arm if I reach forward. I felt like I was going to bust through it when driving. The chest seems to also be a bit off.

Any feedback? What extent should I expect the maker to fix this?

Spoiler

 

[othertravel]

This is a MTM Sportcoat I recently had commissioned from a large Canadian men’s luxury retailer. The rep definitely rushed through the process and had a pretty arrogant attitude through it all, even skipping the try on appointment even though we had scheduled a time.

I feel like this is my worst fitting jacket but I still lack confidence on exactly how my body should fit into these garments or how particular I should be in my expectation. I feel it is very tight through the back, the shoulder seems to be too straight and maybe large, but then the armholes are super awkward where the entire jacket pulls up if I reach up at all, but is also extremely tight through the upper arm if I reach forward. I felt like I was going to bust through it when driving. The chest seems to also be a bit off.

Any feedback? What extent should I expect the maker to fix this?

That's very unfortunate. Was it Harry Rosen? And which MTM brand did you go with?

 

[LuxLemon]

That's very unfortunate. Was it Harry Rosen? And which MTM brand did you go with?

Yes it was - and I went with Munro. Do you think I'm within bounds to request a remake or significant alterations?

 

[dieworkwear]

This is a MTM Sportcoat I recently had commissioned from a large Canadian men’s luxury retailer. The rep definitely rushed through the process and had a pretty arrogant attitude through it all, even skipping the try on appointment even though we had scheduled a time.

I feel like this is my worst fitting jacket but I still lack confidence on exactly how my body should fit into these garments or how particular I should be in my expectation. I feel it is very tight through the back, the shoulder seems to be too straight and maybe large, but then the armholes are super awkward where the entire jacket pulls up if I reach up at all, but is also extremely tight through the upper arm if I reach forward. I felt like I was going to bust through it when driving. The chest seems to also be a bit off.

Any feedback? What extent should I expect the maker to fix this?

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Spoiler

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The jacket looks too small on you, and very short.

My impression is that many large retailers start with this kind of pattern because most men are afraid of wearing more classic fitting clothes. They think a classic cut looks too old and fusty. But the result is often a slim, short jacket that doesn't look very flattering on them.

I'm not sure a remake is worth your while, as their pattern is basically made for a more fashionable look. IMO, MTM works best when you like the "house style" but want small tweaks here and there -- just a little bit on the shoulder, a very small bit on the length, etc. If you have a try-on garment, it's easier to tell whether you like the house style on you at all before proceeding with an order.

If you get a remake, I would just lengthen the jacket, as that will make a big impact on how the garment looks overall.

 

[othertravel]

Yes it was - and I went with Munro. Do you think I'm within bounds to request a remake or significant alterations?

To echo Derek's point above, the jacket is too short and tight. Some of the tightness could be ameliorated through alterations, but not the length.

The jacket has a flaring-skirt effect which I think is from the mid-section.

Harry Rosen can be a good source for MTM. But I've seen/experienced some bad examples as well.

A few more questions: which location, and why Munro?

 

[classicalthunde]

This is a MTM Sportcoat I recently had commissioned from a large Canadian men’s luxury retailer. The rep definitely rushed through the process and had a pretty arrogant attitude through it all, even skipping the try on appointment even though we had scheduled a time.

I feel like this is my worst fitting jacket but I still lack confidence on exactly how my body should fit into these garments or how particular I should be in my expectation. I feel it is very tight through the back, the shoulder seems to be too straight and maybe large, but then the armholes are super awkward where the entire jacket pulls up if I reach up at all, but is also extremely tight through the upper arm if I reach forward. I felt like I was going to bust through it when driving. The chest seems to also be a bit off.

Any feedback? What extent should I expect the maker to fix this?

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Spoiler

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I'll throw out the initial caveat that I'm no expert here, but to me it looks like some of the poses make it difficult to tell how the garment fits overall (arms out taking picture, flexing, etc.). It looks a bit tight, especially between the shoulder blades. I think an straight angled buttoned/unbuttoned set of pictures front, side, back w/ arms relaxed at the side might provide some more insight - there s a tailors fit thread that might be able to offer more specific advice.

My advice, if you are unhappy with the fit especially compared to other RTW stuff I would go in and explain that with some specific examples (this is where the tailors thread can help out a bit more) and ask them what they can do to remedy the situation. Especially since they omitted parts of their standard fitting process. I wouldn't necessarily go in demanding a refund or remake, just simply ask them what they can do to "make it right". They may very well be able to fix it up a good bit with alterations, they may offer to do a remake, or they may tell you to go pound sand...but you'll never know if you don't ask and how they react will help your decision to stay with them as a tailor in the future or to find someone else who does a better job/has better customer service

I would also say that all MTM (and even bespoke) is an iterative process and its very rare to nail the fit on the first go around. Personally, I would use the bench marks: a) does this fit better than widely available RTW stuff, and (if you continue with with a second commission) b) is the second garment better than the first, and the third better/equal to the second, etc.

 

[LuxLemon]

The jacket looks too small on you, and very short.

My impression is that many large retailers start with this kind of pattern because most men are afraid of wearing more classic fitting clothes. They think a classic cut looks too old and fusty. But the result is often a slim, short jacket that doesn't look very flattering on them.

I'm not sure a remake is worth your while, as their pattern is basically made for a more fashionable look. IMO, MTM works best when you like the "house style" but want small tweaks here and there -- just a little bit on the shoulder, a very small bit on the length, etc. If you have a try-on garment, it's easier to tell whether you like the house style on you at all before proceeding with an order.

If you get a remake, I would just lengthen the jacket, as that will make a big impact on how the garment looks overall.

Thanks for the input. I am trying to branch away from the JCrew/Ludlow options but I guess I’ve become accustomed to that type of fit. I’m 6’3 195 pounds so by no means a giant but here is an example of a 42L Spier and Mackay that I bought recently. Would you say this has fit issues and is too short as well?

 

[LuxLemon]

To echo Derek's point above, the jacket is too short and tight. Some of the tightness could be ameliorated through alterations, but not the length.

The jacket has a flaring-skirt effect which I think is from the mid-section.

Harry Rosen can be a good source for MTM. But I've seen/experienced some bad examples as well.

A few more questions: which location, and why Munro?

This was in Calgary. They push Munro super hard every time I’ve been in there and I was returning a 42L jacket that was actually 2 inches shorter than this one and the rep suggested that we’d get a great fit going this route. I also get frustrated with having such a hard time fitting into anything and having such a small selection at my size.

 

[classicalthunde]

Thanks for the input. I am trying to branch away from the JCrew/Ludlow options but I guess I’ve become accustomed to that type of fit. I’m 6’3 195 pounds so by no means a giantere is an example of a 42L Spier and Mackay that I bought recently. Would you say this has fit issues and is too short as well?

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The S&M jacket looks like it fits much better except for the length. The best rule of thumb I've come across for jacket length is that it should cover you butt, which it doesn't look like either of these do...

 

[dieworkwear]

Thanks for the input. I am trying to branch away from the JCrew/Ludlow options but I guess I’ve become accustomed to that type of fit. I’m 6’3 195 pounds so by no means a giantere is an example of a 42L Spier and Mackay that I bought recently. Would you say this has fit issues and is too short as well?

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Agree that jacket fits much better, except for the length.

Last year, I helped a friend find new clothes. He's about your height and build. In the end, we had to do MTM, as he was too tall for most things. I think the best jacket on him was the Armoury's Model 3, but adjusted through MTM, as he needed something that was much longer.

 

[othertravel]

Thanks for the input. I am trying to branch away from the JCrew/Ludlow options but I guess I’ve become accustomed to that type of fit. I’m 6’3 195 pounds so by no means a giant but here is an example of a 42L Spier and Mackay that I bought recently. Would you say this has fit issues and is too short as well?

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Ask for a full refund on the MTM, and put it towards something else. If you want to stick with Harry, Samuelsohn would be a better option as it has longer lengths. Also better quality than Munro imo.

If you have the budget, Tom Ford is a good option too since the length on his tailoring is more traditional.