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Tailor moved the collar on my suit, now shoulders pinch badly...

citizenshame

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So I took a new suit into my normal tailor, an Italian guy who knows and loves everything about suits. He tells me that fabric is bunching below the collar and that it can be fixed be reattaching the collar at a slightly lower point. I came in today to pick up the suit to discover that the shoulder seam is now a half inch narrower and the shoulders pinch like crazy. The entire shoulder area of the suit now feels tighter, and it just looks like garbage. Is this typically a reversible alteration? I'm frustrated because I specifically asked him twice whether this was going to affect the fit in the shoulders and both times he assured me that it would not.
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Despos

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Originally Posted by citizenshame
So I took a new suit into my normal tailor, an Italian guy who knows and loves everything about suits. He tells me that fabric is bunching below the collar and that it can be fixed be reattaching the collar at a slightly lower point.

I came in today to pick up the suit to discover that the shoulder seam is now a half inch narrower and the shoulders pinch like crazy. The entire shoulder area of the suit now feels tighter, and it just looks like garbage. Is this typically a reversible alteration?

I'm frustrated because I specifically asked him twice whether this was going to affect the fit in the shoulders and both times he assured me that it would not.
confused.gif


Not sure how to interpret this but it sounds like he took in the center back seam enough to make the neck hole smaller and then lowered the collar enough to reduce the roll under the collar. This is a cheap shortcut and not the way to do this alteration. This is a guess, but doing the adjustment in this way could cause something similar to what you describe. No one can tell you what can or cannot be done without knowing exactly what was done. Did you take it with you or leave it there for more work to be done?
 

Mr. Moo

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So, when you picked up the suit did you try it on in front of him? If so, did you ask him what the **** the deal was? Did you pay? Were you clear in your disappointment and anger towards that shmuck you refer to as a tailor?
 

Wes Bourne

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Originally Posted by Despos
Not sure how to interpret this but it sounds like he took in the center back seam enough to make the neck hole smaller and then lowered the collar enough to reduce the roll under the collar. This is a cheap shortcut and not the way to do this alteration.

Could you share what the proper way to reduce/eliminate a roll under the collar is?
 

ryoneo

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Did you leave the jacket? Some pics might help us see the options.
 

Despos

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Originally Posted by Wes Bourne
Could you share what the proper way to reduce/eliminate a roll under the collar is?

Three main causes

Erect posture; open shoulder, square up the back shoulder only by reducing the slope of the back part. Remake shoulder and shorten collar if needed.

Square shoulders; reduce the slope of the shoulder line but on both the front and back. Shorten collar.

Round back or prominent shoulder blades that cause tension across the back and creates the roll.
Make neck hole a bit wider by letting out center back seam or widening the yoke at the shoulder point if you have outlets, work in more fullness over shoulder blade. Maybe straighten the front shoulder point to widen the back. May need to make collar longer from this adjustment. Not possible without outlets on the top collar. Very labor intensive job.

None of this may be clear to anyone but a tailor. Pictures would communicate this better than words.
 

bringusingoodale

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Originally Posted by citizenshame
[...]

I came in today to pick up the suit to discover that the shoulder seam is now a half inch narrower [...] The entire shoulder area of the suit now feels tighter


On the other hand, it sounds as if you may have stumbled on a way to resolve the ever elusive "can the shoulders be tailored/narrowed question." Well maybe not stumbled, as I am sure tailors know of this, but I wonder if a tailor can confirm if this is in fact a way to reduce the shoulder measurements or if this means it is entirely possible and even readily done (seeing how this was a "mistake" by the tailor). Maybe I am wrong on many levels. Hope Despos can elaborate on this.

Heaven knows if this is done on the cheap and it works, I will double my sport jacket hunting on ebay, which may be a bad thing
confused.gif
 

citizenshame

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The tailor actually does some bespoke and his highly competent. I've been going to him for a couple years and he's never screwed anything up, which is why I'm so surprised. I took the jacket home but I'll be bringing it back in tomorrow. Hopefully things can be fixed or at least mitigated.
 

citizenshame

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Here's a picture of the jacket. The shoulders don't pinch as bad without an undershirt on (which is the case in this pic) but it's still there. Sleeve pitch actually seems to be the biggest issue, but that's unrelated to this tailor's work.
2LSUr.png
 

teddieriley

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Originally Posted by citizenshame
Here's a picture of the jacket. The shoulders don't pinch as bad without an undershirt on (which is the case in this pic) but it's still there.

Sleeve pitch actually seems to be the biggest issue, but that's unrelated to this tailor's work.

2LSUr.png


Yes, there is certainly weird twisting originating from under the armpit. I experience something similar, but to a lesser degree with a Cucinelli SC that I have.
 

Wes Bourne

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Originally Posted by Despos
Three main causes

Erect posture; open shoulder, square up the back shoulder only by reducing the slope of the back part. Remake shoulder and shorten collar if needed.

Square shoulders; reduce the slope of the shoulder line but on both the front and back. Shorten collar.

Round back or prominent shoulder blades that cause tension across the back and creates the roll.
Make neck hole a bit wider by letting out center back seam or widening the yoke at the shoulder point if you have outlets, work in more fullness over shoulder blade. Maybe straighten the front shoulder point to widen the back. May need to make collar longer from this adjustment. Not possible without outlets on the top collar. Very labor intensive job.

None of this may be clear to anyone but a tailor. Pictures would communicate this better than words.


I’ve been told I have an erect posture and square shoulders; I can see that I have somewhat prominent shoulder blades as well. So I suppose the neck roll I usually get can result from any of those factors or all of them combined.

While it’s quite clear that you take the same care in doing alterations to rtw as you do in creating bespoke pieces, I’m not sure average alterations places have the knowledge or skill to do this properly, as you’ve described above. Case in point: the 2 places I’ve been to each have a fitter along with a number of alterations tailors who do the actual sewing in the back. At both places, the only thing I’ve seen the fitters do (to other customers) was pin the roll. Given your explanation of the various ways to fix a collar roll depending on the cause, I would expect to see some chalk marks or even the jacket opened in certain areas and fitted on the customer no? Somehow, I have a sneaking suspicion that alteration places are more likely to just take the shortcut you mentioned…
 

Despos

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Still do not understand what shoulder pinching means
 

citizenshame

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Originally Posted by Despos
Still do not understand what shoulder pinching means

I mean there is a slight pucket right below the shoulder seam.
 

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