20 Responses to “A Bespoke Tailor. Online.”

1. Abby Says:
   June 8th, 2005 at 2:35 pm

   Any suggestions for places to buy good clothes inexpensively in Boston? Filene’s Basement has really gone down hill.

2. jj00 Says:
   June 9th, 2005 at 10:55 am

   As weird as it sounds, I’ve been shopping at my local Goodwill recently. They have TONS of clothes, they’re cheap, it’s considered better for the environment, and I’m helping Goodwill with what they really need – money.

   I took a friend there when we were looking for Halloween costumes. He found this 800 dollar suit for 12 dollars. After the party, he decided to keep it and get it tailored.

3. doremus Says:
   June 9th, 2005 at 2:01 pm

   Try the Garment District in Cambridge. They have a lot of suits- though more in the in the fall/winter, it appears. I got two great, designer label suits (Perry Ellis, Boss) for $15 each.

   And when I can afford a $3,000 suit, I’m tracking down Thomas Mahon because the English Cut blog has infected me with the desire to wear one.

4. Abby Says:
   June 9th, 2005 at 3:54 pm

   Thanks doremus. I have a very petite frame and tend to do best in European clothes, especially FRench. I have a great thrift store dior wool top, and I’m still looking for the place to buy $25 ferragamos which I was able to do 10 years ago in FB.

5. BobS Says:
   June 9th, 2005 at 6:26 pm

   Chris, I wonder whether you have any Gay Talese stories to share with your guest and listeners from your days at The Times. I’ve heard him talk about his tailor father and his lifelong appreciation for good suits, and wonder how much influence they had on his well-tailored prose. Does an affinity for “style” in one part of a life work some magic?
   If anyone doesn’t recognize that name (or wants to see his suit), go to http://gaytalese.com and http://www.gaytalese.com/biography.html

6. sjc Says:
   June 9th, 2005 at 8:28 pm

   Hey gang, very interesting show tonight. I noticed that a Error 404 is occuring on the blog? No doubt you’re all over this.
   Geez, guess I better not return to Marshall’s for my next “coordinated seperates” suit.
   sjc

7. Potter Says:
   June 9th, 2005 at 9:13 pm

   My mother always loved clothes. She is still very fashion conscious and thinking about her wardrobe, what she is going to wear when she steps out, at 91.

   For my high school graduation she gave me the gift of having a custom made suit ( that was in the late 50′s). A few more lovely ones that she sponsored formed a collection over the course of my college years in the city. That was before I left New York for Boston (with my suits) and started wearing bell bottoms and thrift clothes ( the late 60’s).

   We were very far from wealthy. My mother worked as a secretary when fewer women worked. So it was quite a gift. She sent me to “her tailor “Benjamin Silling who worked in the garment center.

   Ben lived in the apartment house down the block from us in the Bronx. He had worked for the house of Davidow, those makers of very fine three piece women’s wool suits, that is, suits with coats to match. My mother would rip out their full page advertisements in the Sunday New York Times Magazine sections and show it to “Silling’ and he would be only too happy reproduce something for her. I think he had a crush on her actually. But what an artist and craftsman Silling was! He loved his work. It was second nature for him to “build� a piece around a figure. He sewed a lot by hand too. He ripped a seam by tearing it apart quickly, never tearing the fabric. And I remember his strong sweeping chalk strokes.

   We went for three fittings, picking from swatches of the best and latest buttery and nubby wools. We had measurements taken, came back to try on the rough, then back again for the final fitting. We often chose flamboyantly colored linings. Hot pink. I remember a yellow silk lining in a dark green suit that had tan woven leather buttons.

   I mourn leaving these clothes behind; I moved around too much those days after. But we had a revolution to foment and a war to protest. Maybe someone found them at the Goodwill or the Salvation Army.

   Now I am inheriting, from my mother’s closet, what remains of Silling’s work.

8. vanbertozzi Says:
   June 10th, 2005 at 7:59 am

   I LOVE USED CLOTHES.

   My collaborator Hanna Rose Shell and I are making a documentary video (working title “SecondHand”) about the history of used clothing. We’ve talked to some very funny and intelligent people about behind-the-scenes of secondhand clothing: Bruce Cohen who started the Garment District/Dollar-a-Pound, Bobby Garnet of Bobby from Boston (of the finest vintage stores I’ve ever seen), Lenny of Keezer’s…

   These are folks who make up a pretty small community, they all know each other. The history of used clothing in America goes way back obviously, and was one of the first instances of recycling—ragmen used to go door to door collecting cast offs and re-selling or recycling the materials into whathaveyou (paper, shingles, padding, etc). Most interesting for Hanna and myself , is the way used clothing has followed waves of immigration and often gets caught up in family business dramas.

   Anyway, if anyone is interested in seeing our movie (when we have a final cut or somethin) lemme know!

9. Ahoyhoy.org » A Bespoke Tailored Suit Says:
   June 10th, 2005 at 11:56 am

   [...] temalan sweat shop or in China. With that in mind, I listened to a piece on NPR’s Open Source, about an English bespoke tailor, Thomas Mohan who runs a weblog c [...]

10. Hugh Jessup Says:
    June 15th, 2005 at 4:43 pm

    I loved listening to this show. Thomas Mohan was elegant in his discussion of the lasting values of a hand-made, hand-cut clothing. On used cloths, Keezers in Cambridge is still a good stop.

11. bft Says:
    July 19th, 2005 at 9:15 am

    A clothespin doctor!

12. CalorieLab Calorie Counter News » Archives » Obesity warning labels on Levi’s? Says:
    September 25th, 2005 at 4:08 am

    [...] r breath or measure themselves under the beer belly rather than slightly above the navel. (Tailors are more experienced in obtaining an accurate waist measurement than physicians a [...]

13. mlillich Says:
    December 27th, 2005 at 9:59 pm

    T. Mohan was indeed charming and earnest.

    Nagging at me through the broadcast, though, were the politics and economics of fine tailoring.

    On one hand, we in America have the luxury of relatively well-made clothing at bargain prices at Wal-Mart and its retail betters. The Dickens mentions on the broadcast were interesting: A suit of clothes presented to the orphan cost a month’s wages for a working man.

    On another, how do we square a $3k suit w/ the $1-2 per day roughly one-half the inhabitants of the planet subsist on today? Both hands hold many related questions.

    I dunno. Do clothes make the man/woman? I think not. But I’m just an anti-fashion maven from Indiana. – Mike

14. UAB Web Communications Group Links at infOpinions? Says:
    October 9th, 2006 at 1:14 am

    [...] client on PRI (Public Radio International) via social media – English Cut More on the PRI placement of English Cut Enlish Cut blog Social Media Club and Web Repor [...]

15. hk Says:
    February 8th, 2007 at 2:12 pm

    Mr.Kelly, Material Guy. Visit him at http://www.hongkongcustomtailor.com
    Mr. Kelly has always lived in a material world. He’s from a long line of cloth merchants and knows that the fine art of getting a good deal on cloth is as important to his business as the quality of the cloth itself. When he makes a score and buys somethinglush for less, you make a score. Mr. Kelly gets to brag that his prices are the lowest in town. And you get to brag that you got a
    suit worth way more than you paid. Decades of experience and his love of material goods have now led Mr. Kelly to develop N.J. Ramchandani,® his own private label fabric. He wanted it to be a year-round, truly global weight. Which
    simply means it’s a first-class international travel fabric. One of the world’s top
    European mills worked with Mr. Kelly to develop this cloth. Everything about it
    says money. Except the price. Mr. Kelly.
    The Custom of
    New York Since1972.

    Custom Shirts, Custom Suits, Tuxedos, Blazer Buttons, Cufflinks

16. eurotailors Says:
    May 24th, 2007 at 6:31 am

    http://www.eurotailors.com/

17. eurotailors Says:
    March 28th, 2008 at 7:40 am

    Have you ever realized that when you buy readymade suits you get a choice of only a few colors & styles, also finding the perfect fit are quite difficult? Wouldn’t it be better to choose from over 2000 different British & Italian fabrics and get a tailor made suit at a similar price that you pay for readymade suits?

    We are a company based in Hong Kong and have been providing custom made suits & shirts since 1997. With representatives in major cities around the globe we can arrange to show you the fabric samples and take your measurements, or you can also place your orders online with the help of our measuring guide. There are over 2000 fabrics to choose from along with all the latest styles.

    All our suits and shirts are produced by highly skilled Shanghainese tailors in Hong Kong and delivered in about 4 weeks, express delivery can be made in 2 weeks at a minor extra cost. In case you are not able to find what you are looking for then please let us know your requirement may it be in words or by a photograph and we could arrange it for you.

    We also have an outlet at the Hotel Intercontinental Budapest where you are most welcome to visit us. Though we are not located in streets like Savile Row (London), we have still been able to offer made to measure suits to many VIP’s from around the world.

    Experience an easier way of shopping for bespoke suits & shirts at Euro Tailors

    Kenny Surtani

18. alexpeterson Says:
    October 16th, 2008 at 6:13 am

    We recently launched on online tailoring website where you can choose every last detail of your perfect suit! We supply only the best British fabrics and offer one to one advice. And if you prefer a personal fitting then we can arrange that also. The site features a range of innovative interfaces to help making the process of designing a suit and getting measured as simple as possible. See for yourself –

    http://www.cadandthedandy.co.uk

19. garyp Says:
    October 22nd, 2008 at 3:15 am

    There is another online tailoring website. http://www.tajtailors.com.hk . Does anyone has experience purchasing from taj tailors

20. Robert Bell Says:
    July 2nd, 2010 at 5:07 am

    Pickashirt.com’s objective is to offer you a quality custom hand tailored shirt to your measurements and your designs that is affordable and painless to order.

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