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Custom Men’s Suits

educo | Posted in General Discussion on

Hello everyone again,

My brother has asked me to make him a custom suit. I have never made a suit before and although I have tons of tailoring books about menswear, I have yet to dive in. How do I start? Are there articles or books that can help me make this for my brother? I think this would end up being a huge learning experience for me.

Replies

  1. solosmocker | | #1

    My suggestion would be to first make him a sports jacket to get your feet wet and then dive into the suit. Mens tailoring involves some interfacings that aren't readily available to the home sewer. You can order them online and a search should help. My mind is currently drawing a blank on the one I am familiar with. Does Hammacher and Greene sound familiar to anyone? I used to do a lot of tailoring but its been a while. I found it very satisfying and I am sure you will too.

    1. wlric | | #4

      Are you thinking of Greenberg and Hammer in NYC?
      wlric

      1. solosmocker | | #5

        That's it! Boy, I twisted that one around, didn't I? LOL

        1. WorkWearexpert | | #9

          Men's suits are hard to find. It should be fitted by the once using it. Men's suit are expensive though but men are used with it. Its not common to them what the price is as long as it is fit to them. Matches all the criteria's in using them. lol!

  2. tmorris1 | | #2

    The suit coat is where you will run into issues. Do you make a lot of women's jackets?? If you do, then you will most likely be just fine. If not, I would go out to look for a clearance fabric that is a similar weight to the suiting that your brother wants. Make a test suit with no lining etc so that you can make all of your alterations and get accustomed to the fabrication process. Make careful note of any changes that you need to make in order to fit the suit properly and transfer these changes back to your pattern. When it comes time to make the suit, you will breeze through it. Good luck
    T.

  3. flossie | | #3

    I made a suit for my son (25 years old) a couple of years back, using a Burda pattern. I took my time and used the same techniques I would use to make jacket for myself and it was a great success. He wore it on a number of occasions as did several of his friends and as they are all really"cool" I assume this means it was as good as a real one!  As other posters suggested make a trial jacket first to get the fit right and you should have no worries.

    PS - I bought a second hand suit jacket from op (thrift?) shop and took it apart to see how it was constructed and then re-used the shoulder pads.

    regards Pauline(Melbourne, Australia)

     

     

  4. zuwena | | #6

    It will definitely be a learning experience, primarily in doing the interfacing, chest, lapel and neck padding, and the proper insertion and use of sleeve heads and shoulder pads. I suggest that you look through "Classic Men's Tailoring" or "Classic Women's Tailoring" by Roberto Cabrera (Assistant Professor, Fashion Institute of Technology, NYC) before starting out. The books are available in Barnes and Nobel and can sometimes be borrowed through interlibrary loan of the public library system. Good tailoring will require a considerable amount of time, putting together a jacket and pants according to a pattern will not necessarily require the same output. Try it as a light weight summer suit project first, which will not involve all of the same elements that must be done when tailoring a fine wool. Z

    1. educo | | #7

      Thanks ALL for the messages. I do have the tailoring book mentioned. I have made a women's suit and my initial plan is to make a muslin version and move on to a cheaper fabric ( my neighborhood spot is great for that!) and then move on to the big boys. Could anyone point to me a good measurement chart for men?

  5. laurensophie | | #8

    There are some nice store by whom searching you may get your brother best suit like amazon, ebay, gotapparel etc.

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