bdavro23
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- Mar 11, 2014
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There is some advantage other than satisfying my boredom while locked in my home. But the primary driver is boredom. I typically buy 3-6 tailoring items a year and rotate items out after a few year. This might let me add a few garments per year.
I currently work with a local tailor that has access to Holland and Sherry and Loro Piana and he will make a machine made full canvas suit for $1400-$2000 and up and handmade bespoke for $3400 and up. I've typically gone to him and I will continue to go to him, as we have developed a personal relationship and he knows exactly what I like now. I value that relationship even though I have had to handhold him through some style elements. I wont tell him about this little secret though.
However, this asian factory can CMT a full handmade suit for $500 plus fabric, or semi hand made for $350. Machine made full canvas is $240. Their in house fabric is about $300 for machine made full canvas. It will allow me to increase my purchasing once I get fit so I can add more items per year and experiment even more.
I know the mantra is buy few of high quality... but well... I might not always follow that. I have a tendency to buy many of high quality, and it gets very expensive very quickly. I can afford that, but I like to find cost cutting where i can.
Its all well and good to find a factory who can produce at that price, and they might even turn out a really nice product. Then again, they might not. The bigger issue is who is going to fit you for the garments? We have seen disasters on this forum from big time tailors, and masterpieces from small or MTM groups. We've also seen the reverse. You simply cant divorce the fitting from the construction as they go hand in hand and need to work together.
You might be able to start working with this Asian factory and turn out some good garments, but there will definitely be a learning curve and you will almost assuredly make some mistakes. There is a cost associated with all of that, and you might not ever figure out what you need to get a good fit if you are doing it yourself.