Note: Suit 101 is a weekly series that discusses on the finer side of menswear. Last week, we talked about Vitale Barberis Canonico, one of the oldest and largest mills in Italy. But the mill is one part of the suit game. Tailoring is, in my opinion, what makes or breaks a suit. Thus, a post must be dedicated to the science and art of tailoring – in edible chunks of course. 1. Anatomy of a suit Like body parts, there are parts to a suit. Parts of a suit: I shall not go on a lengthy tirade on each parts of the suit but the image above is self-explanatory. If…
-
-
Suit 101: Vitale Barberis Canonico
When I hang out with my guy friends, the first thing I always — always — observe in a guy is the shoes, followed by the watch and belt. If they have a formal wear on, the white shirt, the suit, the way their trousers drape around their ankles, socks (it matters!), cufflinks (if any) and the choice of adornment (pocket squares, ties, bows etc). Yes, I am that anal despite growing up in a country that does not have a strong suit culture. It did not help that I lived in Milan for almost six months, and have a strong interest towards menswear, particularly the suit. When it comes to the suit, the…
-
(Insert luxury brand here) Made in Sweatshops
Gucci made it to the headlines again — and this time, for the wrong reason. A recent report claimed that Chinese employees for Libero Mondo — one of Gucci’s subcontractors in Italy — worked 14 hours a day on handbags, instead of the contracted 4 hours. Worse, Libero Mondo’s Arnoldo Guidotti proclaimed that Gucci is fully aware of the exploitation, and Gucci buys those bags from Libero Mondo for 24 euros. In store, a Gucci bag retails for approximately 1000 euros. Kering (once Pinault Printempts Redoute or PPR), Gucci’s parent company, responded that they would include additional measures to ensure that incidents like these would never repeat again. Yet, in 2002, Brylane — a US based clothing supplier for Kering —…
