It was close to 100 degrees (38 C) in Beverly Hills yesterday, so naturally my companions were getting fitted for tweed jackets. The jackets were by Savile Row's Huntsman, and the cloth in question was Huntsman's 2011 house tweed, which is woven for that firm on Scotland's Isle of Islay. It is 14 ounce 400 gram stuff that is about as light as tweed can reasonably be made and remain authentic, woven in four colorways. Still, give thanks for air conditioning.
Both jackets shown are Huntsman's house cut with single button fronts. They have one piece backs instead of the usual two, so that the pattern is not broken up.
Huntsman cutter Dario Carnera explained that the sleeves on the jacket in the second photo were only hung for the fitting. They will be removed and replaced with the check aligned with that on the body of the coat before the final product is delivered in about two months time.
By then the temperatures may even permit wearing tweed without collapsing from heat exhaustion.
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7 comments:
The thought of tweed in the heat makes me feel quite ill! Nice coats though.
NJS
Love it! However, why one button fronts?
You only use one of them, don't you?
That looks a bit like Master Glasgow, in the second picture.
I wonder home much of a compromise is involved when the tailor comes to the client? I'd think that Huntsman would encourage several fittings if the client could easily get to London. I don't imagine it's realistic to have numerous fittings with a traveling British tailor.
The traveling tailors do several fittings, but they do encourage the client to come to London too, if possible. But after several commissions they get to the point that they can cut it down to one or two fittings.
I think those are truly wonderful tweeds. But I wonder if it wouldn't be better to have less distinctive patterns. Those are so unique that unless you have a very large wardrobe, others are apt to notice "that tweed coat again." My own inclination is that when I see something great, I buy it. The result is that I don't think I have enough basics. Your views?
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