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Tailors That Recreate Clothes...

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15K views 16 replies 11 participants last post by  rsmeyer  
#1 ·
I was curious about personal experiences with tailors (anywhere in the world) that will take an existing jacket or coat and make a recreation with newer cloth, maybe altering the size a little, etc.

Has anyone done this and can recommend a tailor?

I have a gabardine double breasted US army trench coat from the 50's which is an incredible piece of clothing. It was one of the Eisenhower remodels which tightened up everything and made military wear rather fashionable. The tag says Copyright 1949. The poor coat has been a bit nibbled by mice and thoroughly abused over the years. All the repairs make it natty, which the original design of the coat is brilliant.
 
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#2 ·
This is always a tougher undertaking than people imagine because you don't have a pattern and it's very hard to back engineer one. You can do it though but I doubt it will be exactly the same. Even if it looks it, it may feel different here and there.

There is tons of nuance just in the shape of a sleeve so recreating it inch by inch in 3 dimensions is very tough.

Maybe you or a resourceful tailor could get hold of the pattern somehow?
 
#3 ·
There are plenty of HK tailors that claim to do this.
I am curious if anyone has done such and what their experience was.
 
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#4 ·
Preu Pummel said:
There are plenty of HK tailors that claim to do this.
I am curious if anyone has done such and what their experience was.
Click to expand...
LOL:icon_smile_big:.

That's my professional opinion after sourcing manufacturers there for a very well known luxury label.

If anyone seriously knows someone in HK that can do this though I would like to know about them.
 
C
#5 ·
I had it done in Spain in 1961 and in Ecuador 1966/7.
Didn't work.
My Spanish suit, which was copied from
a classical Brooks Bros sport coat, turned out looking
very European from that era. It was admired when I got
back to the US because it a was a bit exotic and fit better
than the Ivy League RTW uniform that my crowd wore.
A girl commented that I looked like someone in an
Italian movie. I outgrew it in a couple of years.

The Ecuadoran suit was copied from a Paul Stuart two
button natural shoulder model probably from Southwick.
I used Polish refugee tailor who did a lot of business
with the expat community. Frankly, the result made
me look like a provincial Ecuadorean official. At the time,
most of the well-dressed locals who travelled and
could afford it, wore high-end US or European
RTW, even though they could get local "bespoke"
for considerably less. Such was the quality of the
tailoring art.
 
J
#8 ·
David Reeves said:
This is always a tougher undertaking than people imagine because you don't have a pattern and it's very hard to back engineer one. You can do it though but I doubt it will be exactly the same. Even if it looks it, it may feel different here and there.

There is tons of nuance just in the shape of a sleeve so recreating it inch by inch in 3 dimensions is very tough.
Click to expand...
All very true.

It sounds like the coat is finished, however, so you could have someone take it apart and use it as a pattern, which will get you close. Then there is the issue of how it is made up, which will also affect the appearance. If Huntsman tore down an A&S garment to use as a pattern but made it up their way, it would look nothing like the original.
 
J
#10 ·
jefferyd said:
All very true.

It sounds like the coat is finished, however, so you could have someone take it apart and use it as a pattern, which will get you close. Then there is the issue of how it is made up, which will also affect the appearance. If Huntsman tore down an A&S garment to use as a pattern but made it up their way, it would look nothing like the original.
Click to expand...
I would love to see how something like that would turn out...
 
#11 ·
I sent a pair of pants to Ravis Tailors in Bangkok a couple of years ago and had them copied with mixed results. They copied the style perfectly, but missed on some of the measurements. I emailed some changes in the measurements and ordered another pair of pants. This pair was closer to what I wanted, but due to some issues with the quality of the work I haven't ordered any more. On one pair I had to move a button because it wasn't aligned and on the other I had to move a belt loop because it was not properly spaced.

Cruiser
 
P
#12 ·
jefferyd said:
All very true.

It sounds like the coat is finished, however, so you could have someone take it apart and use it as a pattern, which will get you close. Then there is the issue of how it is made up, which will also affect the appearance. If Huntsman tore down an A&S garment to use as a pattern but made it up their way, it would look nothing like the original.
Click to expand...
This should produce "close", but it will not produce exact. In the 40's and 50's many shirt makers - including Gant and Troy Shirtmakers - took the Brooks button down apart, traced every part, but still could not replicate the "Brook BD Roll". Many soft drink companies have a "cola" beverage which when chemically analyzed is the same as Coke- but it doesn't taste the same. A good tailor will be able to make a pattern and produce a garment that will work for most individuals. If you are VERY particular, it may not work for you.
Paul Winston
Winston Tailors
www.chipp2.com
 
B
#13 ·
Hello:

I live in Seoul, Korea. I'm sure a Korean tailor in Itaewon (a section of Seoul known for its foreigner-friendly amenities and restaurants) would be willing and able to copy your coat, though the finished product remains to be seen.

A couple of weeks ago, I walked into a Korean tailor's shop in Itaewon and he made me three morning coats based on a picture. The finished products were satisfactory. I assume he had some basic pattern to work from, although that's no certainty. My point is that they're rather skilled, resourceful and willing to take on the odd job. Korean tailors are inexpensive, too, though probably less so than those of Thailand... I will say that i was happily surprised.
 
#14 ·
Thanks, Cruiser & bodybydada. That's the sort of stuff I was looking for.

bodybydada said:
Hello:

I live in Seoul, Korea. I'm sure a Korean tailor in Itaewon (a section of Seoul known for its foreigner-friendly amenities and restaurants) would be willing and able to copy your coat, though the finished product remains to be seen.
Click to expand...
Hey, body. Thanks for the reply! I used to visit Korea for business and stay at the COEX hotels near Itaewon, and I always wondered about the tailors in the mall area. Their shops looked very welcoming.

Could you give me the specific name of the tailor you used for your morning coats? Thanks! :)
 
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#15 ·
Preu Pummel said:
Hey, body. Thanks for the reply! I used to visit Korea for business and stay at the COEX hotels near Itaewon, and I always wondered about the tailors in the mall area. Their shops looked very welcoming.

Could you give me the specific name of the tailor you used for your morning coats? Thanks! :)
Click to expand...
The tailor's name is Sam ( 셈 ) but he speaks no English, so I'll refer you to his tout, Yahoo, who can serve as a liaison and interpreter. (His English is so-so.) +82 10 5757 1014 -- good luck!

cheers
 
R
#17 ·
paul winston said:
This should produce "close", but it will not produce exact. In the 40's and 50's many shirt makers - including Gant and Troy Shirtmakers - took the Brooks button down apart, traced every part, but still could not replicate the "Brook BD Roll". Many soft drink companies have a "cola" beverage which when chemically analyzed is the same as Coke- but it doesn't taste the same. A good tailor will be able to make a pattern and produce a garment that will work for most individuals. If you are VERY particular, it may not work for you.
Paul Winston
Winston Tailors
www.chipp2.com
Click to expand...
The current Brooks shirts certainly do NOT replicate the original collar roll.
 
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