This is a part of a series on a bespoke 3 piece suit made for me by the Hong Kong tailor house Tai Pan Row.
Click here to learn more about part III of the series, which I addressed the time I went for the second-fitting, as well as how the suit is finally coming together.
First off, I can't explain how exciting the moment was when I finally received the suit from Tai Pan Row. After all, this is the suit that I spent the most time on designing and choosing the fabrics.
I have worn the suit for a couple of times now; though usually wearing them separately, for obvious reasons.
With that said, this gives me a better position to address the fit, as well as the finishing of the garment.
Out of every other aspects of the garment, it was the shoulder area that I was the most intrigued to examine since they weren't perfect when I went in for the two fittings.
In fact, I was quite concerned before receiving it since I wouldn't be able to go for a third-fitting. What this means is that the tailors would have to get this right or else it would be rather challenging to alter that in the future.
They turned out to be alright. Lightly padded but having a moderate amount of roping, the shoulder style is certainly quite distinctive from both the British, the southern Italian, and certainly the French house styles. I would say it is more similar to the Roman shoulders.
The shoulder itself is not too narrow as well so I suppose this is quite ideal in the sense that the structure would still be formal without being too overpowering.
Another aspect that deserves a lot of attention is just how much effort has been put into hand-making the garment.
While I am certainly aware that Hong Kong tailoring is famous for the amount of handwork involved in the process, this piece from Tai Pan Row clearly takes it to another level.
The Milanese buttonhole (picture above) could definitely exemplify my point; but also it is the demonstration of irregular/ hand-stitching throughout the suit (picture below) that really sends out the message that this suit is something that needs to be paid attention to.
Some would say this decorative element is rather excessive; but for me I think it would be great way to convey that this is a bespoke suit. It is more appropriate to be flashy when it is not a formal business suit.
For the trousers, there are certainly good features that I enjoyed, but also there are things that I consider could be improved.
The area which I really like is perhaps the thick waistband. I left most of the creative design details of the waistband open to the cutters by only suggesting I want it to be a two-buttons one. In return they came up with this round-edged design (picture above) which I found it quite attractive as it resonates well with the buttons.
The part that I think could have been better are the pleats. As shown in the picture, it appears that the pleats are turned open and not forming a straight line as it normally should.
Now this might have been my fault when I've decided to further take in some fabrics to make my thighs look slimmer during the first fitting, so I can't really complain about that. Nonetheless, I think the issue would be mitigated if I send them off for further pressing.
The waistcoat, on the other hand, is perfectly executed.
The more moderate peak lapels, the distance between the buttons, and the length of the back. Sharply on point.
One interesting element that the tailors added to the waistcoat, however, is the inner pocket. (picture below)
Not necessarily something that I would use, but certainly I wouldn't mind having that.
As for the buttons, I think the choice for the dark brown horn buttons works alright, given the fact that I'll mostly be wearing dark brown shoes with it.
However, they are quite muted and almost like black, as shown by the pictures.
I think if I were to change the buttons in the future, I would most likely be changing them into dark brown ones that have some lighter bits so I could wear the suit with lighter color shoes.
Elsewhere I am wearing a navy printed tie from Drake's, a pocket square from Shibumi, and meteorite cufflinks from Tateossian. Socks from London Sock Company and the renowned Alex from Crockett and Jones.
Photography: Matthew Gilver Poon (matthew.thpoon@gmail.com)
