Is It Worth It?
By: Jeffrey Scott (Founder, Jeffrey Scott LLC)
We have been asked by several people “Why should I pay more for a bespoke suit?” so we thought it would be a great topic of discussion. For someone who has only purchased a suit off the rack, it is hard to justify paying $1,500 or more for a suit. We get it! It’s not cheap, so we want to give you a few reasons why you should.
The Fit - This is the most important aspect. If you are like most people, you struggle to find a suit off the rack that actually fits! You may be lucky enough to where it is very close, but from our experience, it’s never perfect. A bespoke suit is the solution. The tailor will take several measurements, photos, and observations to determine the best fit. In addition, the slope of your shoulder, the curve of your back, the balance of the jacket to your posture, and several other factors are taken into consideration when creating the suit. After the initial measurements, a toile is created to test the fit. From the toile is where the magic happens to adjust every and any aspect of the pattern so the fit is absolutely perfect (i.e. sloping the left shoulder 1/4” more than the right, or raising the armhole because it may be too low and restricting motion). It is truly a work of art to get it just right.
The Construction - In a quality made bespoke suit, you should never find any fusing, also known as gluing. The canvas of the suit, which is made up of a few layers of horsehair fabric on the inside used to give it its shape, is hand sewn (floating) to ensure the best shape and form to your physique. This only gets better with time, like a leather jacket. It is common with more affordable, off the rack suits, to find the canvas glued together which will separate over time and lose that shape. It tends to be less comfortable, and provide less range of motion, because there is a difference in how it moves with your body. It can sometimes feel ‘bulky’. You want to enjoy wearing your suit! Having our canvas, buttonholes, pick stitching, shoulders, collars, etc. hand sewn will also make the suit more unique than anything else. It can take up to an hr and a half to sew a single Milanese buttonhole on the lapel. Free hand massages for the tailors after that!
The Quality of the Fabrics - While we can’t speak for other custom clothing brands, at Jeffrey Scott, we only source fabrics from Italy and UK because we feel they are THE BEST on the market. The natural wool used in these fabrics and the milling process help create a garment that will last a lifetime. With these fabrics, you’ll notice that the suit will drape over your body much nicer, the wrinkles will naturally fall out after hanging it up for a day or two, the feel of the suit will be much more comfortable (we tend to hear that our trousers feel like pajama pants), and the colors will be much more vibrant due to the dying process when created at the mills.
While there are many other reasons as to why a bespoke suit is a better investment than off the rack, we feel that these are the three most important reasons to consider joining the club. Be careful, once you go custom you never go back! Check out our bespoke suit process here www.jeffreyscott.com/customsuitsdesign
Cheers,
Jeffrey Scott
