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Bespoke vs. High End RTW shirting

mmkn

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Unlike suits, the more I explore bespoke shirts, the more I return to and reach for my high end RTW shirts because . . .

1 - I wear more shirts as undersuitwear, and so only need the collar and cuffs to have the appropriate styling and fit.

2 - It seems that high end RTW makers (e.g. Jil Sander, Gucci) can get fabric that is that much more heavenly next to my skin than what the bespoke makers can get. It's like spending all day wrapped in Pratesi bed sheets.

Thoughts?

- M
 

TheFoo

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It depends on what bespoke makers you're using and what kind of fabric they have access to. Nothing Gucci puts out feels like Riva cotton. On more than a few occasions I've caught my wife hugging me a moment longer just to feel my shirt. It makes me feel sad about me, but happy about my shirts.
 

Manton

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I can't imagine that any RTW maker routinely uses fabric as good as Alumo 170s, etc. I don't shell out for the stuff myself, but I admit it is great.
 

greekonomist

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Originally Posted by mafoofan
It depends on what bespoke makers you're using and what kind of fabric they have access to. Nothing Gucci puts out feels like Riva cotton. On more than a few occasions I've caught my wife hugging me a moment longer just to feel my shirt. It makes me feel sad about me, but happy about my shirts.

This sounds like an ad you might read in GQ.
 

TheFoo

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Originally Posted by greekonomist
This sounds like an ad you might read in GQ.

Unfortunately, it is true.
 

mmkn

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Originally Posted by mafoofan
Nothing Gucci puts out feels like Riva cotton

The high end designer RTW shirts I have are from Maxfield in Los Angeles. The quality and selection of fabric they carry are very different from the same maker in say, SFA in Beverly Hills. Many of Maxfield's items seem to be of the same design as the department stores, but their fabric seem as if it was specified for Maxfield because I can't find them anywhere else.

Anyhow, I always instinctively and mindlessly reach for these shirts over my bespokes (the most "luxurious" I have is 2x2 170s), and have been wondering why.

- M
 

philosophe

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If you get a great fit with RTW, more power to you. Many of us find custom shirts far more comfortable.
 

josephrex

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Who makes your shirts? All 2x170s are not created equal.
 

why

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I think the big deal is that some RTW designers have better understandings of fabrics than tailors and customers.

I buy RTW and have them tailored.
 

mmkn

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Originally Posted by josephrex
Who makes your shirts? All 2x170s are not created equal.

I believe the one I selected was from Alumo in white.

I generally choose the color first. Then pattern. Then I run my hand over it to see how it feels. The ultimate test is how it feel on me over time . . . Hmm, that might sound like what one might do walking by those windows in Amsterdam, but I'm referring to shirting.

- M
 

unpainted huffheinz

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Originally Posted by Manton
I can't imagine that any RTW maker routinely uses fabric as good as Alumo 170s, etc. I don't shell out for the stuff myself, but I admit it is great.

RTW makers do use fabrics like that. Ralph Lauren has used the Alumo 200s before, the Italian makers use Riva, and obviously Charvet uses some very high end fabrics. The RTW makers have access to the same swatches you do and most likely a whole lot more.
 

josephrex

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Unfortunately not much matters except the way it feels on you over time.

RTW designers like the ones we're discussing are able to commission fabrics to order. Part of the difference you feel might be the finishing of the fabric - some have a silky hand and some have a drier feel. They may be cotton blends. The fabric could be washed with enzymes. There are many possibilities.

Anyway I've bought a lot of shirts from Maxfield too but I don't think any are that great. When I was in high school I bought a shirt on sale (retail was $515) by Balenciaga that in retrospect is a *************, particularly fabric-wise.
 

Taxler

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Originally Posted by unpainted huffheinz
RTW makers do use fabrics like that. Ralph Lauren has used the Alumo 200s before, the Italian makers use Riva, and obviously Charvet uses some very high end fabrics. The RTW makers have access to the same swatches you do and most likely a whole lot more.

Some of my bespoke shirts have the fabric label indicating maker and thread count, but I've never seen it on a RTW shirt. Did RL label the shirts with "Alumo 200" or did you find this out some other way?
 

mack11211

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Originally Posted by Taxler
Some of my bespoke shirts have the fabric label indicating maker and thread count, but I've never seen it on a RTW shirt. Did RL label the shirts with "Alumo 200" or did you find this out some other way?

I think RL is reluctant to put any mill labels on its clothing; they think it's declasse.

They will put on labels suggesting fabric quality; I have an RLPL shirt that says "140s" or some such.
 

poorsod

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Actually I wear shirts without jackets most of the time so fit is key. Fabrics are somewhat less important but I really do like some of the Riva stuff.
 

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