Show us your suits

[Sefton]

Here's the one Ray was referring to. Now to wait for it to arrive. Excited ain't the word.

bk

I'd be excited too! What a suit...I was watching that one out of curiosity to see how much it would fetch. I'm afraid it would have been just a bit snug for me (the fit that is, not the price). Congratulations on winning another beautiful suit and on making us all jealous!

 

[Marc Chevalier]

On Wild Root's behalf, I'm posting photos we recently took of one of his greatest vintage Golden Era suits. This is the one he got on eBay several months ago; it was made in Canada in 1941. In our opinion, it has a wonderful silhouette, the pinnacle of late '30s style. The color is a kind of slate blue or steel blue. Look at the superbly angled and pointed peaks on the lapels!

P.S.: I hope that you all are sending your own suit photos to MK, so that he can post them in the suits reference gallery at www.thegoldenera.net

.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

And as for the merry Duke of Windsor ... here is a photo of one of his suit trousers. Note the boxer shorts buttoned into them.

.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Yes, the Duke of Windsor was important to fashion, which profited very well by him. He didn't really invent the so-called Windsor collar or Windsor knot, but thanks to his use of them -- as well as soft-bosomed, attached-collar evening shirts, for instance -- men's fashions changed and relaxed.

It's all a matter of personal taste, but I prefer the way these chaps (Douglas Fairbanks Sr. and Jr.) dressed. Both were influenced by the Duke of Windsor, but I think they surpassed him:

.

 

[Sefton]

And as for the merry Duke of Windsor ... here is a photo of one of his suit trousers. Note the boxer shorts buttoned into them.

.

Boxers buttoned into the trousers! That's something unique to the Duke of Windsor? Never seen anything like that! I wonder if that might actually be more comfortable?

 

[Marc Chevalier]

It was one of the Duke's little eccentricities.

.

 

[Mr. Rover]

I saw those pictures at hte London Lounge. I just figured it was washable/removeable lining. All that sweat from game hunting or golf wouldn't be good for viscose/rayon/silk.

 

[Wild Root]

Thank you Marc for posting my '41 three piece! That was one of Marc's favorite suits in my collection... it's one of mine too! But, since we've talked about German suits a little... here is my German suit!

Look at how well the stripes are matched... something that is said by tailors today that isn't possable to do!

The 23" hem on these are too cool for school!

Now, since Marc talked about the Fairbanks... here is my favorite shot of Fairbanks JR.

=WR=

 

[Marc Chevalier]

I saw those pictures at hte London Lounge. I just figured it was washable/removeable lining.

Nope, it's really a pair of boxer shorts. They're made of cotton.

.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Yes, the stripes are perfectly matched over the shoulders, and from the collar to the lapels. Red to red, blue to blue. Today's "best" tailors -- including the Savile Row fellows -- insist that this cannot be done. But here it is, in living color. Apparently, '30s German tailors didn't know the meaning of the word "cannot" :

.

 

[Sefton]

Look at how well the stripes are matched... something that is said by tailors today that isn't possable to do!

I can't believe that! Sounds downright lazy to me....

Now, since Marc talked about the Fairbanks... here is my favorite shot of Fairbanks JR.

=WR=

That's one of mine too. I stole, I mean, got it from the same place!

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Fairbanks, Jr. does look a bit befuddled there, though.

Did you notice his tab collar? (I have to admit, he got that from the Prince of Wales / Duke of Windsor.)

.

 

[CharlieH.]

Pardon my ignorance on the subject but, what are those little buckles on the trouser sides for?

 

[scotrace]

Yes, the stripes are perfectly matched over the shoulders, and from the collar to the lapels. Red to red, blue to blue. Today's "best" tailors -- including the Savile Row fellows -- insist that this cannot be done. But here it is, in living color. Apparently, '30s German tailors didn't know the meaning of the word "cannot" :

.

It might be interesting to send this off to The Savile Row Tailer English Cut for comment.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Pardon my ignorance on the subject but, what are those little buckles on the trouser sides for?

The wearer can tighten the buckles to make the trousers fit better at the waist. It's a good option for someone who prefers to wear his trousers without suspenders or a belt.

.

 

[herringbonekid]

beautiful suits* Wild Root !

you said you prefer the american over the english style, but taking a double breasted as an example what would you say are the main differences ?

to me there's more similarities than there are differences.


* its starting to feel slightly masochistic coming here and viewing all the great suits.

 

[havershaw]

Root,
I have to change my clothes now, as I've drooled all over my nice gabardine shirt...thanks a lot.
Baron, glad you got it. I did really want that suit...but I have a lot of suits. And for me, waiting three months to wear the thing is too painful to handle. it would have been a slightly snug suit on me, at any rate.
That German suit is fantastic. I have a Canadian suit to show off when it return from the tailor's as well (had it for a hwile, but I realized a more snug fit would be better).

 

[Tomasso]

On the Prince: What Marc hates about his suits, i LOVE. I love the idea that he was small, knew it, and didn't try to make himself out to be what he wasn't. There's a lot of propaganda in the tailoring industry about "correcting" "flaws" in someone's physique. The fact is the man WAS tiny (i think about the same size as me). He didn't try to mask this. He had an athletic shape. He didn't need to create one.

bk

btw, i'd say the suit PoW is wearing above has shoulder padding. Any more would make him look unbalanced. One of my problems with american suits - even from this era - is that the shoulders are way too big.

The DOW did, in fact, wear his suits cut with a bit more shoulder, drape and length, in his latter years(as was the fashion). I think that it served him better.

As for a tailor intentionally cutting a suit to disguise the shortcomings of a particular physique, well that's what tailors do for a living.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

The question is (and this is not the place to discuss it - i believe there's a body fascism thread elsewhere) whether lack of height or lack of shoulders or lack of chest area or too much bulk around the midrif can be described as "shortcomings" or "flaws" to be "corrected".

I'm for the natural, minimally padded shoulder and slender fitting jacket with a minimum of drape. La:

I HATE DRAPE (as it has come to be known - ie. the jacket is simply too big for the individual, but is described as "drape" and "fullness across the shoulders" when the fact is that the shoulders just look massive and there is simply too much fabric in the chest area).

bk

 

[BellyTank]

I'm with you on this, Sir Baron.

I don't have an athletic figure- well, I do apart from a growing(growling) belly(tank) and still, a closer fit is actually far more flattering than a drapey suit, which is actually quite 'fattering'.

As Women have discovered but Men aren't really offered- a garment can just skim over certain areas and actually accentuate the positive and eliminate the negative- if it's just right. As opposed to augmenting body shape.

I find that my favourite vintage linen suit, which has very high waisted trousers and a snug, 3 btn. jacket, does indeed flatter my form- the high trousers accentuate my height and terminate above my belly. The use of braces/suspenders, rather than a belt, is a positive step in concealing a waistline, which with a modern trouser and belt, would be eating the trouser. Also the jacket's nipped in waist gives me a more visible 'waist'. The higher gorge helps too.
Shirts that aren't too blousy and full also help.

I've mentioned it before but look at a contemporary suit, with low waist trousers- on any male physique- not flattering. A tall man will look tall-torsoed, which is the upside-down of what looks good.
A shorter man will look like a squashed caricature of the former.

There's an easy æsthetic to flattering suit shapes and most of it fits in with the '30s style, which I prefer; high-waist pants/snug jacket/natural but canvassed shoulder, maybe a little horse hair stuffing to take up the compound shoulder contour but not wide, nor padded-out.

And BTW, I have a good set of shoulders, which I own.

If people were to try a modern jacket one size smaller but in a long fitting, it might be some kind of lesson.

I'm starting on a large bottle of St. Feuillen Bjere d'abbaye, brune, so I'll stop here.

Writing that is.

Three Cheers for Belgiske Beers!

Keep the faith Baron-

B
T