The Journal
Notes on cloth, construction, occasion, and the art of dressing well.
The Double-Breasted Suit, Considered
The double-breasted suit has spent much of the last forty years out of fashion, then quietly back in it, then out again. Each of these movements obscures a more durable fact: the silhouette is its own grammar, and a man who understands its rules does not need to track its returns. The double-breasted is the most architecturally distinct cut in a man’s wardrobe — and, in its proper form, the most quietly authoritative.
The Black Suit: Considered Beyond Funerals
The black suit has a complicated reputation in contemporary menswear. For decades, it was the suit a man owned for funerals — a single piece in the closet that came out only for sad occasions and was otherwise treated as too somber for ordinary wear. The recommendation in most menswear writing is to skip the black suit entirely and choose a charcoal or navy as the foundational dark suit.
The Showroom in Beverly Hills: Rodeo Drive
Our Beverly Hills showroom sits on South Rodeo Drive, in a building whose neighbors include the most established luxury houses in American retail. The choice of address was deliberate. A custom tailoring house that operates in Los Angeles needs to be where the city's most discerning clients already shop, and Rodeo Drive remains the address that gathers those clients in one block.
This month, we’re thinking about the difference between a suit that fits and one that belongs to you. Notes on cloth, construction, occasion, and the quiet details that make it personal.
The Trousers: Pleats, Cuffs, and the Quiet Detail
Trousers are the half of a suit that men think about least and that, in fact, do the most invisible work. A jacket can be slightly imperfect and still photograph well. Trousers cannot. The lines of the trousers — how they break, how they hang, where they fall on the shoe, whether they pull or pool — are visible from every angle and across every motion. The trousers are the foundation, and they deserve more attention than they typically receive.
On Fit: Why Most Suits Don’t Fit, and What Fit Actually Means
Most suits do not fit. This is not a controversial claim if you watch men in suits with any attention. Lapels gap. Collars stand away from the neck. Trousers pull across the seat. Jackets pinch when arms are raised. Sleeves are too long, or too short, or hide the shirt cuff entirely. The list is long and the offenders are familiar.
The Shirt, Considered: Construction, Collar, Cuff
A custom shirt is, in some ways, a more demanding garment than a custom suit. The shirt is closer to the body. The collar is in constant motion. The cuffs are in continuous use. The fit must accommodate seated and standing posture, raised arms and resting arms, the slight expansion of breathing and eating across the day. A shirt that fits at standstill but pulls on movement is a poorly built shirt.