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470 entries across tailoring, shoemaking, cloth and craft Reference publication: we sell nothing and rank nobody for payment Every figure carries its source and the date it was checked

12 entries

Guides

Straight answers to the questions people actually search for: what a bespoke suit costs, how to tell a well-made jacket, what to ask a tailor.

Guides

12 entries
A hand-drawn pattern beside a standard block 01

Bespoke vs made-to-measure

Bespoke means a pattern drawn from scratch for you and corrected over fittings, while made-to-measure adjusts a standard pattern, and hand stitching is not the difference.

 A soft Neapolitan-style linen jacket by a window 02

Bespoke tailoring in Naples: the houses and how to choose

Naples has the world's densest cluster of serious bespoke tailoring, nine workshops close together, all making soft, lightly padded jackets that differ in proportion and price.

 A structured chalk-stripe coat on a dummy 03

Bespoke tailoring in London: Savile Row house by house

Savile Row's tailoring houses charge broadly similar prices but cut very different jackets, from Anderson & Sheppard's relaxed draped look to Huntsman's leaner, firmer cut.

 A finished suit in a fitting room 04

How much does a bespoke suit cost?

A bespoke two-piece suit costs from roughly $4,000 in Naples or Seoul to $12,000 and up in Paris or Milan, before tax and your chosen cloth.

 Shelves of lasts with a finished shoe 05

Where to have shoes made

Bespoke shoes, bought for fit rather than finish, are still made in London, Tokyo, Florence and Vienna, and a first pair takes up to a year.

 A jacket inside out showing its construction 06

Where the value actually is

Value in tailoring and shoes means the same quality for less, found in cheaper cities, makers without fancy shops, and altering clothes you already own.
  1. A cloth swatch held up to the light How to choose cloth

    A suit's weight and weave decide how it feels and performs, while the Super number on the label mostly describes softness, not quality.
  2. A cuff with working buttonholes How to tell a well-made jacket in ninety seconds

    Six shop checks, such as buttonholes, lining, shoulder and whether patterns line up at seams, reveal how well a jacket was made.
  3. A fitting room with a basted jacket What to ask a tailor before you commission

    Eight questions to ask a tailor before ordering tell you what you are buying, who is making it, and what happens if it goes wrong.
  4. A small, well-chosen wardrobe Building a wardrobe, in order

    This guide lists twelve clothing purchases in order, starting with the most versatile pieces so each new item works with what you already own.
  5. A jacket lining with hand-felled seams What “Made in Italy” actually means

    A Made in Italy label only means the last major manufacturing step happened there, so the garment may have been cut and mostly sewn elsewhere.
  6. A linen jacket, fresco swatch and panama hat Dressing well in heat

    In hot weather, an open-weave cloth and an unlined, softly built jacket keep you cooler than simply choosing the lightest fabric available.
Picture credits 12
  1. A hand-drawn pattern beside a standard block: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  2. A soft Neapolitan-style linen jacket by a window: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  3. A structured chalk-stripe coat on a dummy: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  4. A finished suit in a fitting room: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  5. Shelves of lasts with a finished shoe: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  6. A jacket inside out showing its construction: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  7. A cloth swatch held up to the light: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  8. A cuff with working buttonholes: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  9. A fitting room with a basted jacket: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  10. A small, well-chosen wardrobe: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  11. A jacket lining with hand-felled seams: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  12. A linen jacket, fresco swatch and panama hat: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art

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