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bsdlite's avatar
13 years ago
r3, link
bsdlite
thinks darkness is his ally
i have many off-the-rack (otr) and thrifted men's clothes--jackets, trousers, and suits in particular--and i'm trying to find a decent alterationist in bozeman who is capable of taking these garments through the final stretch on the journey to the perfect fit.

all of the garments i'm working with fit me well enough in the most fundamental places. this means: suit jackets and sport coats fit properly in the shoulders, button stances are sufficiently stylish so as not to need alteration, general silhouette of suits and jackets is appropriate and won't need alteration. basically, the otr sizes are optimized, and the only things that remain are tailoring the garment to my particular proportions. basically, i'm not going to ask the tailor/alterationist to do anything that would compromise the proportions, silhouette, or button stance of the jacket. that's just asking for failure.

understand that i am no tailor myself, nor do i claim to know much (anything) about sewing or altering garments in general. i'm just here to document my experiences.

i've decided to catalog my adventure for the benefit of others (and for future reference!). here are my criteria:

1. effectiveness of communication

how effectively did the tailor gather information about my requirements? how upfront was the tailor about the costs? did the tailor communicate what they are and aren't comfortable doing to a particular garment?

2. efficiency of production

how fast did the tailor return the garment? did they tend to over- or underestimate the amount of time a particular alteration would take?

3. thoroughness of preparation

how many pins did the tailor stick in the garment (not always a good predictor)? how completely was the garment fitted before the production began? how much did the tailor remember about me on repeat visits?

4. quality of alteration

of what quality was the alteration? is it clear to a casual observer that the garment has been altered? how long did the alteration last (most important on hems/sleeve length changes)

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the changes i'm asking for are based on jackets i've seen on models, what i've seen on people that i like or dislike, and information from the following forums and articles:

* a mans guide to clothing alterations
* the alterations every man needs
* ask andy about clothes forum
* styleforum
bsdlite's avatar
13 years ago
r13, link
bsdlite
thinks darkness is his ally
annette's sewing

tl;dr: outgoing, efficient, enthusiastic, informative, experienced

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encounter 1: took a pair of unhemmed indochino pants (classic navy blue suit pants) to annette on wednesday, telling her i needed them hemmed for an event on friday night. she had me put on the pants, then pinned the pants about where they should be if i preferred a full break. i told her that i preferred minimal break, so she carefully repinned so that the front of the pant covered about 1/3 of the laces and the back of the pant reached about 1/2-1" below the top of my shoe heel. she also ensured that there was a slight drop between the front and back of the hem to encourage proper draping as i walked.

she told me that she would write down to do the pants on thursday, but would certainly have them by friday

it should also be noted that i approached annette over the phone with the proposition that she alter my jacket, as well. she told me confidently that she would not be able to do anything meaningful to the jacket in that time limit. i appreciated that honesty. i'll be taking the jacket in to her on monday and see how she pins me up!

update: she got the pants back to me today, one day before schedule. she called at 12pm and told me to pick them up before 3. not bad! the cost was $15, and i'm not sure if this is the "rush" rate or the standard rate. for the indochino suit, i can make up to $75 of alterations with full reimbursement.

encounter 2: took my indochino jacket in today to have this alteration done. annette was skeptical at first, thinking that the length was "classic," but changed her mind after i insisted that she pin it up one inch. she was impressed that the pockets still seemed to be in the correct position relative to the rest of the jacket after the shortening, and also noted that the waist looked far more suppressed--the jacket was too long and ended up hugging my hips, throwing off the whole silhouette.

the sleeves on this jacket were the same length as my shirtsleeves. she pinned them up just over 1/4", exposing exactly the right amount of sleeve. she won't be able to finish these alterations until after the holidays--that's unfortunate, but at least i know!

-----------------------

alterations performed:

1. pant hem the pants seem to break exactly where i intended them to. compared to ella's hem job on my black suit pants, this hem seems sturdy. from what i can tell, annette performed a cross stitch to complete the hem. they're well pressed around bottom. very happy!

2. jacket shortening

3. jacket sleeve shortening

--

update: took way long. she finished today. $80 for jacket shortening and sleeve shortening.
bsdlite's avatar
13 years ago
r5, link
bsdlite
thinks darkness is his ally
judy at the sewing shop

tl;dr: quiet, opinionated

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encounter 1: after wearing my black pronto moda suit to a dinner party last night, i realized that i love the silhouette, lapels, shoulders, and everything about the suit. i also decided that it could use more waist suppression , a minor reduction in the length of the left jacket sleeve, and a slight reduction in chest size (my shoulders are broad relative to my smaller chest). i also needed the pants' waist reduced by 1", the pants re-hemmed (as ella's hem job completely fell apart on the left leg), and preferably a reduction in the excess fabric around the butt and thighs. a tapering of the trousers below the knee would be nice, as well.

judy pinned me up nicely, and her pins added just the waist suppression i wanted. she also reduced the size of the chest, but was concerned that it would now be too tight. i assured her that it still fit well (there was no pull on the top button, and it felt fine during shoulder rotation--these were my two metrics). she talked me out of altering the left jacket sleeve, noting that with my barrel-cuffed shirt she could see the same number of pink stripes protruding from each jacket sleeve after most movements. i agreed. we'll see if i change my mind again!

she pinned up the trousers with slightly too much break, so i told her i prefer little break and would she please pin a little higher. she was fairly intransigent in her position that the pants should leave little if any room above the heel welt on the shoe. i put on the dress pants i was wearing for the day to show her about what i preferred, and she nodded in agreement. we'll see how they turn out!

judy was straightforward about the turnaround time: i could expect to retrieve the suit in two weeks. we'll see how much it costs!

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update: it took 3 weeks (given, this was prime holiday season). $43 for chest reduction/waist suppression, pant seat reduction, pant hemming.
lucas's avatar
13 years ago
link
lucas
i ❤ demo
thanks so much for writing this up!
bsdlite's avatar
13 years ago
link
bsdlite
thinks darkness is his ally
yasui, previously of williams clothier
bsdlite's avatar
13 years ago
link
bsdlite
thinks darkness is his ally
ella's sewing