Working button holes, worth it?

[Master-Classter]

personally I don't think it's worth it, nor does it make particular sense. if it comes OTR then sure, fine it's nice, but I'd only spend the money if it really goes with the suit (IMO something +$2K or so). Otherwise even if "well I know", I'd rather spend the extra money on getting nicer shoes, a pair of links, a tie, etc.

 

[FStyles]

maybe

 

[Fraiche]

Am I the only person here who get them based on "usage" instead of "look"?

 

[JamesX]

Pretty much. To me (who lives in the City) it has little to nothing to do with usage and only for looks.

 

[thebarsmydestination]

I think working buttonholes -- left *buttoned* unless you're doing surgery or rolling up your sleeves, the former of which you may want scrubs for and the latter of which you probably shouldn't do without great care -- are ideal as long as the cost of cutting them isn't too great a percentage of the actual cost of the suit.

I think they look and hang more nicely (and feel better) to a degree that is worth it.

Also I admit I'm kind of taken by the Frank Muytjens trick of flipping your cuffs up an inch or so in the warmer months, but that probably just invalidates my opinion wholesale.

 

[RSS]

I never ask for them ... but my coats come with them.

 

[a tailor]

if you like them and want them, then its worth it.

 

[haiguise]

Club Monaco jackets all have functional cuffs.

 

[binge]

Have the ends of the sleeves sewn shut. Baller!

 

[dragon8]

Originally Posted by JamesX

Pretty much. To me (who lives in the City) it has little to nothing to do with usage and only for looks.

True but I've never ever undone mines for any reason.

 

[Orgetorix]

Tom Mahon wrote about this on his blog a while ago: http://www.englishcut.com/2007/01/18/real-cuff-holes/

Originally Posted by Tom Mahon on Englishcut.com

This is a little detail that's grown in importance over the last few years: "Real Cuff Holes". These are seen today as one of the major hallmarks of a bespoke suit. But surprisingly enough, it wasn't always this way. Indeed, when I started in the trade twenty-three years ago, a relatively short time span, real button holes on the cuff were very rare.

When I started working at Redmaynes as a youth, the only people who had real holes in their coats were doctors and vets, simply so they could roll up their sleeves. With Mr Hallbery at Anderson & Sheppard's it was much the same. If you asked the two senior cutters for real holes, they would both pull a face as if they were chewing on a wasp.

The reason for this is not what you think, i.e. that real holes are more expensive or harder to do, even though yes, they are.

The real reason is that quite simply, very few people need them, and yes, they can cause problems.

Here's why. Bespoke clothing is like liquid. It's always in a slight state of change until it's been well worn and allowed to settle down. When a suit is finished and has gone to the customer, once it's "settled" a bit, it might need some minor alterations. This is perfectly normal. But this is where "real holes" can cause problems. Because you may need to lengthen or shorten a sleeve, and this is where real holes cause the most obvious aggravation.

Also, if you alter the shoulders this can also affect sleeve length, so that too may be slightly compromised. Most tailors, including myself, put two "real" and two "sham" holes, for precisely this reason. Four "real" holes allows for virtually no sleeve length alteration, unless the cloth is plain or striped. If the latter is the case, you can take out the sleeve from the shoulder and shorten it from the top.

But to lengthen it any more than about three-eighths of an inch at the bottom is going to start looking awful, with cuff buttons apparently floating halfway towards the elbow.

If you must lengthen a sleeve with real holes, as I often do, what you can do is lengthen the sleeve as necessary, then take out the top hole, and add another at the bottom to keep it balanced. So the worst-case scenario is that you've now got three working "real" holes instead of two.

On a somewhat related matter: I've just had the pleasure to alter some jackets made for a good customer of mine. They're not being altered for him, but for his eighteen year old son, who loves them. My customer came to see me in NYC with his son, and he told the lad how he remembers me at Anderson's a long time ago, as a blond haired young boy standing in the corner of the fitting room, standing there the whole time in complete silence with my hands behind my back, listening and watching every detail of Mr. Hallbery at work.

This moment of course is typical of the specialness of bespoke. And now what makes it even better is that the investments of the father are now being handed on to the son. It's always lovely to see.

As the photo at the top of this page will testify, the suits look terrific and have stood the test of time. I can alter these for the son, and I will, but in the picture of the cuff directly above, the headache is there for all to see. Blinking "real holes". As the fabric in this case is plain, it I can get away with it. Imagine the fun if I was shortening it an inch and the cloth was checked. Look how I've marked the right sleeve on the top photo.

So there you have it. Choose your cuff holes with great care. Twenty years later, whatever decision you make might just end up upsetting your son or grandson, not to mention his poor tailor. But this is what bespoke is all about.

 

[EBugatti]

Once someone asked me why I left a button or two on my jacket sleeves undone. My response: "Because I can."

Get them if you want. Leave them unbuttoned if you like. Most people won't even notice. I find a suit is more "complete" with working buttons. It seems silly to have non-working ones--why have buttons on a sleeve in the first place if they don't work? It is kind of like being a kid, having a model car and the windows don't really work. They're just glued into place. Seems cheap..

But to each his own.

 

[Kentishman]

Before I was 'in the know' if I ever saw buttons left undone on cuffs, I always used to think that people had just lost them and hadn't sewn a replacement on – talk about creating the wrong impression!

 

[RSS]

^^^I'm one of those "douchy" (post #3) fellows who "pretentiously" (post #5) leaves the bottom button unfastioned ... have been doing it for thirty years or more. Of course that was long before there was an internet to tell me what to do and what not to do. Now even the hoi polloi know the rules ... and is want to push thier "knowledge" on others.

While wearing a button undone ... a number of times someone has commented ... letting me know that I have lost a button. I have a pat response for that: "Thank you for letting me know." I suppose if I were really "douchy" -- and just using that term is ... well ... douchy -- I could "pretentiously" offer a comment as follows: "You douchebag, it isn't lost, it's simply undone. Hey, my sleeve buttons really work, 'cause I'm a baller."

 

[EBugatti]

Actually, why should leaving buttons undone be somehow a symbol of "douche-dom" or pretense? One regularly unbuttons the top couple buttons on a shirt if not wearing a tie, and of course, you never button the last button on your vest or sport coat. They are BUTTONS folks. Not status symbols. Button them if you like, leave them unbuttoned, or sew them shut. Vive la difference.