Tag Archives: Suits

The English Cut Suit

English suit tailor

There is nothing as thrilling as an English cut suit made in England using British cloths. Perfectly fitting, every bespoke suit should be every man’s dream and should do one thing only: make you feel good. The bespoke suit should be accompanied by a bespoke service: an exquisitely cut suit matched by an exemplary service.  meeting the high standards of Savile Row.

The Double-Breasted: The comeback kid?

Double Breasted

We have had an increasing amount of requests for double breasted suits. GQ magazine have devoted some of their pages to showcasing double-breasted suits too. Indeed, the V-shaped man in the double-breasted suit is making a comeback, adding stylish swagger to city streets and cool tailoring to corporate offices. The double breasted silhouettes and swooping lapels, broadened shoulders and extra chest, are once again making a resurgence.

Double-breasted jackets have their origins in English sportswear and the classic double-breasted jacket originated with the frock coat, worn in the early Victorian era, in the 1820’s and 30’s. Today, the double breasted has made a return to the contemporary collections of the world’s finest tailoring houses.

Most double-breasted suits have two rows of buttons, three on each side. The middle button on the left is usually buttoned, as is the inner button, called the jigger button, which keeps the jacket flaps in line. They are complemented by the rich and conservative fabrics, from the best English and Scottish mills. Now is the time to think of one!


Henry Herbert rings the wedding bells

Bespoke Wedding Suit

We were privileged to be invited to make the shirt, waistcoat and trousers for this young gentleman for his wedding day. He selected a crisp white shirt, with the fabric from Acorn Fabrics in Lancashire, a double breasted waistcoat, using a luxurious Scottish cotton from Harrisons of Edinburgh and a pinstriped pair of trousers (with a subtle orange tinge to the stripes). The combination looks great and his bride seems happy with the result!

Autumn is approaching…make a getaway in a three-piece.

When you think of the three-piece suit, you think of the Thomas Crown Affair, or Al Pacino in The Godfather Part II, looking as fierce as any actor ever. You think of high-powered attorneys and CEOs roaming the courtrooms and boardrooms of the 1970s.

The question is: Do you ever think of yourself in one?You might want to start. The three-piece suit no longer suggests you have the corner office (or a tommy gun); it suggests you have style. Of course, it’s not as easy as one two three. You need to know how to wear it and where to wear it. The three piece offers a razor sharp suit. It even has other uses as recently reported by the New York Times. Whatever your use for a three-piece, every well dressed gentleman should have one.

Glorious Seersucker and All That Jazz

Seersucker Wedding Suit Seersucker The Coolest Cloth

Seersucker Wedding Suit by Henry HerbertTailors

Henry Herbert was extremely privileged to make the above suit: privileged on two counts in fact. The first, because the suit was created for the wedding of Ray Goold (above), a wonderful and talented musician. Ray plays with the Solent City Jazzmen in Southampton. The second, because Ray asked for an extremely rare, but special, fabric for his suit – Seersucker. We chose a seersucker fabric from Holland & Sherry. Unfortunately, the photograph may not do it justice, looking at it on a computer, as seersucker fabric is woven in such a way that it gives a glorious texture and is great, either as as suit or stand alone trousers or jacket. Richard Green for The Big Black Book (Illustration)

Beat the blues, choose blue!

Fabric: English wool

Fabric source: Peebles, Scotland

Cut: Slim, Single breasted

Occasion: Everyday

Notes: A terrific looking blue wool suit made by Henry Herbert Tailors, accompanied by smartly polished shoes. A great example of how striking this colour fabric can look in a well cut suit. You can also see a video of a blue Henry Herbert suit here.

Photography credit: Petra Exton

Harris Tweed suit by Henry Herbert Tailors

Fabric: Harris Tweed

Cut: Slim, Two button

Occassion: Country

Notes:  A Henry Herbert suit, made with the mystical Harris Tweed.  A finely cut suit that looks striking on the young man wearing it – Marcus Jaye, creative director of The Chic Geek.  The remarkable Harris Tweed is the only fabric in the world that is governed by its very own Act of Parliament 1993:  “Handwoven by the islanders at their homes in the Outer Hebrides, finished in the Outer Hebrides, and made from pure virgin wool dyed and spun in the Outer Hebrides.” The Act ensures that all cloth certified with the Harris Tweed Orb complies with the definition in the Act, and is genuine.

Photography credit: Petra Exton

The pinstripe suit by Henry Herbert Tailors

Fabric:  Pinstripe flannel

Fabric source: Huddersfield, England

Cut: Traditional, Single breasted

Notes: An excellent example of a bespoke pinstripe suit, which remains as popular (and striking) as ever. This creation by Henry Herbert Tailors was made as a single breasted, two button suit with a pure English wool from Duffin & Peace in Huddersfield – believe it or not, there are still some English mills left.

Linen Ahoy!

Bespoke Savile Row Tailored British Linen Suit

Fabric: Linen

Fabric source:  Edinburgh, Scotland

Cut: Slim, Single breasted, Two Button

Occasion: Everyday, professional

Notes: A glorious looking blue linen suit from Harrisons of Edinburgh, which Henry Herbert made for a magazine editor (and former Royal Navy officer) in London. Linen is an excellent choice for staying cool whilst looking sharp in the warmer months.  You can just see a flash of the special lining that he chose too. He also requested brace buttons, which sit discreetly inside the trouser waistband, together with a fishtail finish to the rear of the trousers. A great looking suit which sits well on his tall frame.

Just what’s inside a Henry Herbert shirt box?

Every shirt we make is handmade to the highest Savile Row standards. We use the finest cottons, Mother of Pearl buttons and brass collar bones. The packaging, shows the care and attention we take when delivering every shirt.  This is a bengal stripe shirt on its way to a customer.

Photography credit: Petra Exton

Navy birdseye suit

 

Navy birdseye suit

Birdseye suit

Navy birdseye is perhaps the ultimate cloth for a timeless and all season suit. Don’t just take our word for it, ask James Bond. A navy birdseye suit was the clothing of choice for Pierce Brosnan in Goldeneye back in 1995, and just like James Bond the cloth and the suit proved timeless, indestructible, and stylish to the end.

Birds eye is an unusual and special pattern. From a distance it appears solid but up close it creates a subtle surface full of depth without being distracting. It has more depth and a far richer effect than a solid worsted especially when you choose a dark grey or a navy fabric.

It’s a mature, traditional fabric with a traditional but timeless pattern of small circles. Bird’s Eye has a tiny dot in the centre that’s hard to see from a distance. The pattern, like the name suggests, resembles a bird’s eye and is characterised by the small pupil-like centre dot. Many people confuse the birds eye pattern with nailhead, but there is a subtle difference that definitely adds texture to plain colours – birdseye cloth has distinctive round larger dots on a diagonal layout. A navy birdseye suit like the one that Pierce Brosnan wore – is unbelievably stylish, though you hardly every see it worn anywhere these days because it seems to have fallen out of fashion with the younger crowd. Recently though it seems to be making something of a welcome comeback as men search for something traditional but slightly and subtly different.

For me navy birdseye is the ultimate traditional cloth for a timeless, all-season suit that is definitely contemporary enough to be worn today and is also durable for regular office wear. When you see someone wearing a well-cut navy birdseye suit you know that he is seasoned. Personally I love the birdseye weave. To me it gives you a mature look that is both perfect for every day wear and durable enough for a hard day in the office. The navy birdseye is one of my favourite patterns for a suit because it creates a subtle surface interest that has a great depth to it without being too distracting. It’s also a very welcome variation from the usual plainer suit cloths helping you subtly stand out from the crowd without people quite knowing why.

Will a navy birdseye suit you and your style? Of course it will.