 | The Savile Row tailoring community, is the Mecca of bespoke suits.
Bespoke is the highest rung on the sartorial ladder. For a garment
to be truly bespoke the cutter takes as many measurements and body details as necessary to create the perfect pattern for that particular customer. Once the pattern has been made and the cloth cut, the jacket will be given to a coat maker, and the trousers to a trouser maker. Initially the garments will be baste sewn ready for the first fitting. The number and type of fittings will vary from two to five (possibly more) depending on the cutter. The main fitting stages are the baste, the forward and the advanced. |
| After each fitting the cutter will pull the suit apart and adjust the pattern, he will then re-cut the panels of the suit and give these back to the coat maker and trouser maker to be prepared for the next fitting stage. The most inportant thing a bespoke tailor looks for is balance. How the garment hangs and sleeve pitch. This ensures that, the collar stays close to the wearers neck however he moves. The pitch (angle) of the sleeves will be adjusted so the sleeves hang naturally. Also the size and shape of the arm hole (sythe) will need to be correct so the jacket keeps it's shape when the wearer lifts his arms. Trousers need to be comfortable and fitted. This will ensure a much more perfect fit than can be expected from made to measure. After the final fitting and make, the suit is given to the finisher or feller, to fell (cut) and sew the buttons and holes by hand. It takes from 60 hours to make a suit in this way; because a minimum of 80% of the actual work is done by hand. Once the customer has owned his suit for a month or so, he should let the tailor see how the suit has settled down, occasionally the tailor or customer may feel the suit needs tweaking at this point. |
| True bespoke tailors don't all work on Savile Row. Savile Row is merely the collective term for the best tailors in Mayfair and St James London. London took over from Paris as the Mecca of tailoring in the 1600's. |
