Breathing new life into the bespoke tradition for professional women
If you wear one of these…
Where do you put one of these?
We all know the traditional answer – in the handbag of course. And we all know the consequences. It rings at an embarrassing moment. You don’t want to be noticed but you have to excavate the handbag to find the phone and switch it off. It stops ringing just when you find it. But for other more aesthetic reasons women sing the praises of handbags. (more…)
Funga Safari… was just what someone needed to tell me last week. Summer was beginning to sink in at last, not just in terms of the weather, but also the shift in colours and textures you can see in clothes shops everywhere as safari collections sprout into view. So after a particularly busy week, I was looking forward to funga safari – literally, ‘halting the march’. In Swahili.
Of course I needed to do a little bit of research to discover that, not being a fluent Swahili speaker. And not surprisingly it was sparked off by my own personal safari (literally, journey) with a commission for a cotton drill dress – with a hint of allure.
So naturally, the world of safari clothing sprang to mind. Khaki colours, bush jackets, belted shirts, pith helmets and slouch hats.
But I was aiming for something which would capture the mood of the safari look without losing its urban elegance; something earthy, sunny and breezy. 
Wearing it should make you feel light and summery.
It has a two-way zip closure – fingertip temperature control – and the sleeves can be rolled up to reveal the contrast in the facing fabric. 
I chose leather detail for highlights to mark the centre back yoke and the zipper pulls on the front and pockets. Just a hint of earthiness there. It’s a bespoke garment of course, but now I’ve finished it, I feel sure the concept will appeal to many others.
To round off my modest foray into safari research, I discovered that the Regimental March of the King’s African Rifles was ‘Funga Safari’, presumably a welcome sound after a long day marching through the bush. So I’ll stop here and let you admire the pictures.
So, why are we always talking about the weather! I’m not one for making rash statements, but I’m willing to stick my neck out and predict that over the next few months the weather everywhere is going to be unpredictable. So the question of what to wear if, like me, you have an active outdoor and indoor life, starts to get tedious. A coat or not? A warm jacket? Will it rain? It’s sunny but it’s cold and windy… How to minimise having to shed layers every time you arrive in a building or jump in the car?
It’s a dilemma I’ve been pondering for some years and I’ve recently realised that our changing weather patterns are making it worse. So I got to work.
Thanks to my experience in the tailoring of country pursuits garments I was already aware of the extremely practical nature of the gilet – a sleeveless jacket often seen worn by ‘county women’ everywhere. Practical yes, but fashionable – very questionable.
Yet why not, I thought? Why not take the perfect answer to unpredictable weather and transform it into something that will look striking in almost any indoor or outdoor situation, without losing its practicality?
Introducing TfW’s Limited Edition Gilet. An all-season, comfortable, light, multi-use, warm, feminine garment which will eliminate cumbersome multi-weather dress problems for good. The gilet is sleeveless, which means freedom of movement. It can be worn over a business suit or under a topcoat. And its two-way zip enables you to adjust the front closure to suit almost any circumstances, whether driving or walking, sitting in a train or cycling indeed.
But crucially, I’ve hand-crafted the TfW Gilet to look good anywhere – at work, evenings out, walking the dog, shopping… 
There’s a selection of classic William Morris cotton print linings …
The garment is made from boiled wool, a fabric shrunk during manufacture so that it will retain its posture whatever the circumstances for the life of the garment.
And something else I learned from my country pursuits experience – handbags can be bad news when coping with windy or rainy conditions. So the TfW Gilet contains carefully crafted, fully lined pockets – for coins, mobile, travel documents, spectacles. And two secure internal zip pockets for credit cards, passes, etc.
An entirely original limited edition – but with unlimited style.
All photos: Keith Hern
We believe your hand-crafted TfW Limited Edition Gilet will not only prove the most convenient all-weather garment you have ever bought, but will ensure you stand out from the crowd on all occasions, indoor or outdoor. Here are some of its features:
Hand-crafted from boiled wool to retain its posture whatever the circumstances - A classic William Morris print lining for a touch of elegance - Sleeveless, comfortable, light - multi-use, all-weather, indoors and out - Can be worn over a business suit or under a topcoat - Suitable for walking, driving, cycling, travelling - Fully lined pockets for coins, mobile phone, travel documents, spectacles, including two secure internal zip pockets.
The TfW Limited Edition Gilet costs £420 (including VAT and postage to anywhere in the UK). For orders elsewhere in the world, please contact us first – email address below. Payment should be in £ sterling (GBP).Your garment will be specially personalised with a hand sewn name tag. Be sure you indicate the name you wish to use as identifier on the order form.
Send your details:by email to: contact@tailoringforwomen.com
(If contacting us by email, we will advise of alternative payment methods.)
or by post to: Tailoring for Women Ltd, 61 The Exchange Building, 132 Commercial Street, London E1 6NQ, United Kingdom. Telephone: +44 (0)7950 401881
If contacting us by letter, please enclose a sterling cheque made out to: Tailoring for Women Ltd.
You will receive the hand-crafted TfW Limited Edition Gilet approximately 2 weeks after payment is received.
Please give us the following information:
For measurement advice, click on the image to enlarge:
How many garments do you require? If ordering for more than one person, please be sure to include measurements and name tag details for each recipient. Let us know also if you require the garment(s) to be sent directly to other recipients – names and addresses.
What do Lou Reed’s jacket, the waistcoats for the UK’s Olympic shooting team, and our latest commission (a corset) have in common?
All are orders that used leather.
Genuine leather is one of the oldest and most luxurious of all natural materials and can be both functional and decorative. It is made from the hide of an animal, including birds and reptiles, by a process of tanning; the word comes from the Latin for oak bark, tannum, and it is from this that the tannin used in the process was originally extracted.
Tailored garments initially bring to mind wools, cashmere, silks, cottons and linens. These all go through a similar process of cutting, padding and pressing to make the traditional fitted clothes with which we are all familiar. So, there is a certain degree of uniformity throughout, irrespective of the fabric type. Leather too can be used in a similar fashion, although it requires a different set of skills and tools because of its unique properties. Hides come in many different shapes, sizes, textures and colours, and much care has to be taken in selecting and matching them, particularly if more than one is used in the same garment.
A leather needle is essential for both machine and hand work. Its 3-sided point enables one to cut or pierce the skin instead of puncturing it. Weights are used for pattern layout, and prior to sewing, the parts of a garment are set in place with clips, glue, or sometimes even a stapler.
The process of sewing too has its own peculiarities. Depending upon the weight of the leather you may have to use a heavier thread or a longer stitch, so it is always worth testing the settings on the equipment first. A teflon or “walking” foot on the machine is a necessity, and seams should be glued and flattened with a dry iron or a small roller after the loose ends of the thread have been tied instead of being back-stitched.
Over time a you will need to apply a little after-care to your garments, and for this be sure to keep a tin of dubbin or a bottle of neat’s foot oil to hand!
Almost any item can be made from leather, and it will be suitable for most seasons or occasions: check out the corset above!
From 18th - 20th September the Revival Meeting takes place at Goodwood. A celebration of vintage cars, airplanes and clothes, all resonating with the theme of calling back to years gone by.
As the fashion world goes through its cyclical stages once more, ‘vintage’ is a word that seems increasingly popular, covering anything within the time span of 20 - 80 years old.
Near my studio in Spitalfields there are a number of outlets that specialise in vintage clothing. Absolute Vintage is one such example. Over time, these garments have had many a good outing as well as changes in ownership and some will benefit from a ‘tune up’. One of my clients purchased a crepe dress from Love Saves the Day (New York City) to wear both for her daughter’s wedding in Knightsbridge and a gala opening at the Victoria and Albert Museum. In order to bring it back into its prime it required a certain amount of dying, shaping and re-beading, but the result was striking and original, with no danger of anyone else turning up wearing something even remotely similar. (Check our post about ‘the A word‘)
Alternatively one could have something made specially that embraces this trend towards nostalgia. In a 
recent post I mentioned a couture piece we made that reflected the designs of André Courrèges. We have recently extended this to similar garments from a range of different fabrics.
Working with vintage clothing also bings considerable benefits when it comes to training new talent. Some of the older techniques used are seldom to be seen on the high street where mass marketing loses much of the subtlety in construction.
So why not embrace a little bit of history…there is still many a good tune played on an old fiddle.
Photo: thanks to Victoria & Albert Museum
We were sifting through the archives of press cuttings and images the other day. I am preparing to speak at a seminar for the V&A later this year and I was searching for pictures of some of the ‘old guard’ in Savile Row. It is extraordinary how much I have forgotten over the last two decades of working in London.
And what an interesting journey, going right back to the beginning when I started with a clientele made up almost exclusively of performers. I set out very quickly to learn the techniques of making a tail coat and suddenly found myself kitting out the violinist Gil Shaham, and the conductors Barry Wordsworth and Tamas Vasary. I later made a much more feminine version for the singer Hilary Summers. You can see Hilary here with the Michael Nyman Band in another outfit we made for her.
More recently came the coverage for the Commonwealth and Olympic shooting teams, and the British Embassy magazine in Japan.
Dealing with press exposure is an illuminating process. A number of my clients come from the corporate communications and PR sector, and I have learned a great deal from them about the expertise that lies behind an effective press campaign. It is one thing to get a novelty item in the Evening Standard about dressing a teddy bear, quite another to make a consistent impact in the fashion pages!
A respondent to a recent post asked the question; is buying a bespoke garment considered a good return on investment considering the initial spend? Putting aside for the moment matters such as fit, design and satisfaction of requirements, I thought it provided an interesting challenge. So I decided to investigate something from my own experience; my favourite ‘hacking jacket‘.
I made this garment twenty years ago, just after I came to London. The fabric is a 100% worsted wool special edition tartan that I picked up at Holland & Sherry in Mayfair. I wanted a key piece for my wardrobe that would be flexible enough to wear with tailored trousers, or jeans and trainers; for more formal or informal gatherings. I use it throughout the autumn, winter and spring, and probably a minimum of once each week. Erring on the low side this has given it around 600 outings in its lifetime (20 years) and it still has a long way to go! The reasons for the length of its lifespan lie with the fact that the nature of its construction means it can be altered, the quality of the fabric makes it durable but still elegant, and it can resist the trauma of visits to high street dry cleaners without falling apart.
The original cost would have been in the region of £750.00 which means that so far it has cost £37.50 per annum, and of course this is diminishing. How does this rate with what you would expect to pay in the high street?
Prices, as you might imagine, have changed since the late 80’s. So I contrasted this with two of my passions; Mars bars and shotguns. Pretty extreme!
In 1989 the price of a Mars bar was 26 pence, and a standard 12 bore Holland & Holland ” Royal ” Model shotgun £21,100. When I went to the local newsagent today, a Mars bar cost me 65 pence. I didn’t have sufficient loose change in my pocket to pick up a shotgun; they now retail at £55,250.
So putting all this together I would suggest that the current price of a hacking jacket, from around £1500, is pretty much in line with the current pricing structures, and a good return on investment.
Not only that… but you get what you want!
P.S. I just had an evening with one of my closest colleagues on the ‘Row’. John Reed (see ‘Folding a Jacket‘) reminded me about the fact that we are all different, and the beauty of bespoke is that it respects and responds to our differences.
I opened the Financial Times this weekend to a splash of advertisements for engagement and wedding rings, although for me none as elegant as this stunning example from Lucie Campbell in Bond Street.
Despite the Arctic conditions here in London, minds are turning to warmer thoughts and spring nuptials. I have completed two weddings so far this year, with a third underway and still more around the corner. As we were laying out each garment it occurred to me that there are some common issues that might be worth bearing in mind as you start the planning process.
So, here are ten thoughts, in no particular order, that will help to reduce your stress levels and preserve the bank balance as the day draws near:
Good Luck!
Photo: thanks to Lucie Campbell, New Bond Street, London
With due acknowledgement paid to Rogers and Hammerstein, I thought this week’s post should be devoted to a garment I am personally becoming quite attached to; the happi coat.
This loose fitting Japanese jacket originated as a lightweight over-garment that became a traditional part of a shop keeper’s uniform. The family crest, shop name or emblem was printed on the back of the coat. In Japanese restaurants the chefs often wear something similar to a happi coat called a hippari. However, rather than having the traditional obi tied around the waist it has a small belt that ties inside the foreparts. Today, happi coats are still used by some shop keepers, however you see them more usually at Japanese festivals.
It is an extremely practical garment that folds, packs and travels well, and no doubt this is in part what lends it such popularity. The traditional garments can be made in cottons or linens but there is no reason why they couldn’t be made from most any fabric.
I made this one recently for a client.The fabric I used is a hand woven ’shot silk and its irridescence is captivating.
Flattering, as it drapes on all figures with its soft shoulder line and proportion that skims the hipline, its belt can also be decorated with beads or perhaps something similar to the traditional netsuke.
I received this picture recently from Japan. This particular happi was a small token of thanks I made for a friend who
had treated me to a day of kabuki drama at the Kabuki-za followed by an evening of sushi and sake with her family. Here she models the finished garment with her arms tucked in to show the shape of the sleeves!
It is made from a length of kimono fabric woven by one of her forebears. The width of the roll of fabric fits within the traditional standard, around 15 inches, whereby one length would make one of the foreparts, two lengths joined together would form the back, and another length would wrap around the arm to form the sleeve. This foreward thinking in the manufacturing process eleminates much of the cutting.
I think that there is something almost uncanny about these garments that has also been remarked upon by my clients. It may well be that the feeling of freedom these garments give somehow encourages a different sense of poise when you wear them. Maybe it is the way in which this garment highlights the character of the person who wears it rather than it becoming the centre of focus.
Whatever it may be, I now wear them all the time as my signature garment when I am working in the studio.
Photo: thanks to Japanese gifts
With over 20 years amongst the Savile Row fraternity, and with a background in banking, Carol Alayne is acknowledged as one of the finest womens tailors in Mayfair today.
Tailoring for Women • +44 (0) 7950 401 881
61 The Exchange Building • 132 Commercial Street • London E1 6NQ
