Black

[Senator Jack]

You know the old film noir cliche 'She was all over me like a cheap suit'? Well, what I seem to have here is basis for that statement. We're so used to finding the high-quality goods that survived, we're scratching our heads over something that doesn't live up. There's not one label in this suit and I don't see any frayed stitching to suggest there ever was a label. I'm starting to think it was home-made.

I'll measure the cuffs and report back.

Regards,

Senator Jack

 

[Martin Stall]

What is the purpose of this dart just below the jacket pocket welt? I have to rumage, but I think I only have a few jackets with that dart.

Regards,

Senator Jack[/QUOTE]

Methinks that dart is simply the continuation of the chest dart, after it was cut in two by the pocket. In that case, the chest dart should just continue above the pocket.

 

[Senator Jack]

Welcome to the Lounge, Mr. Stall.

So it's just bad planning. I know little about the actual tailoring/sewing process, and so I figured the chest dart would be made after the pockets were cut, as part of a final fitting. The pocket dart does line up with the chest dart. I guess that's actually a good thing to look for when you're about to plunk down some jack for a vintage (or any) suit. If care wasn't taken in that cut, we can presume there were a couple of other things that were let by.

Regards,

Senator Jack

 

[Baron Kurtz]

I don't know if that's carelessness. I just got a very well made 30s tweed jacket in the mail and the side dart (to the left/right of the chest dart depending upon which side ye're looking) continues below the pocket.

bk

 

[katiemakeup]

Senator, is your cat taking all of your pictures? Hmm. Maybe a timer.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Hmm, black pinstripe with a bum-freezer jacket ... Just send it on to me, Jack.

bk

hahaha, this very sentiment was brought up last night!

he he. Still on that one, is he?

That (above) is a fine suit, no doubt. Just for you, Jack. And it's black, even. Currently languishing in a vacuum pack somewhere in Walthamstow:

bk

 

[Senator Jack]

he he. Still on that one, is he?

Yes, and I still go on about a girl I spent one great weekend with twenty years ago. Have any pictures of her to torture me with?

Senator, is your cat taking all of your pictures? Hmm. Maybe a timer.

Don't think I haven't said to her more than once, 'Tallulah, why can't you take my picture?'

Methinks that dart is simply the continuation of the chest dart, after it was cut in two by the pocket. In that case, the chest dart should just continue above the pocket.

I was on the train last night when I realized how the dart couldn't be made till after the pocket is cut. Making it before would make the pocket pucker. (Pocket pucker?) Someday, I'd like to watch a tailor make a suit from beginning to end.

I don't know if that's carelessness. I just got a very well made 30s tweed jacket in the mail and the side dart (to the left/right of the chest dart depending upon which side ye're looking) continues below the pocket.

I suppose the thinking was that the flaps will be covering that dart anyway. I wonder if there are any modern off-the-peg suits that have it or if computer aided design has taken care of all this.

Still more black to come.

Regards,

Senator Jack

 

[Fletch]

Someday, I'd like to watch a tailor make a suit from beginning to end.

I'd just like to HAVE a tailor make a suit from beginning to end...

 

[herringbonekid]

I don't know if that's carelessness. I just got a very well made 30s tweed jacket in the mail and the side dart (to the left/right of the chest dart depending upon which side ye're looking) continues below the pocket.

bk

some do, most don't.

 

[herringbonekid]

I was on the train last night when I realized how the dart couldn't be made till after the pocket is cut. Making it before would make the pocket pucker. (Pocket pucker?)

not so.
the pocket welt couldn't be sewn on if the jacket wasn't darted first, then cut.

 

[Matt Deckard]

If we are going to talk black let's talk abot black... no pinstripes or charcoals.

 

[Mr. Rover]

Weirder and weirder.

I'd lean towards 30s too. How do the trousers drape? Do they look 30s (billowing out to the hips and straight down to the ankles w/ little taper)? Width (circumference) of cuffs?

I'll get some pics of my black suit tomorrow morning. The trousers are in need of serious work, but i gues they're wearable enough for photogs.

bk

p.s. Magic carpet works best for me.

I personally prefer Flying Monkey Express Courier.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

wot, no pigeons?

bk

 

[Baron Kurtz]

The Baron in Black.

If we are going to talk black let's talk abot black... no pinstripes or charcoals.

okay . . . Plain black it is. Apologies: Black is REALLY hard to photograph without perfect lighting and someone to actually take the photos. My itsy-bitsy camera just don't cut it, even though it has a timer . . . Spots are camera artefacts. These suits are in pretty good shape, all told.

Black DB NRA:

Who knows why i look so angry in this one, but there you go.

Black 2-button SB NRA with very high button stance and *the* pink Portis hat:

And the waistcoat:

bk

 

[Senator Jack]

Both of those rigouts are great, Baron, but I'd say absolute jackpot on the DB. How is it a wide brim hat fits your features perfectly, yet on me it seems cartoonish? (I'm still having issues with that 2 3/8" pearl I bought) Maybe it's the beard!

Regards,

Senator Jack

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Thanks, SJ. I like the DB best, too.

Re. wide brims. Do you have a particularly thin face? i have a 3" brim Stetson 15 that looks okay too. Don't have any pics, and it's residing in England right now, but believe me, it looks fine on me. I do have to balance it with wide shouldered jackets, though.

yes, you really need to grow a straggly, Guevara-esque beard. That'll solve all ye'r problems. The Baroness keeps hounding me to shave it before i return to the UK. I just can't be bothered.

btw. none of those are over 2 1/2 brim.

bk

 

[Senator Jack]

I've always thought my chin was too short for my head, so anything large on top makes my head look top-heavy. Discovered this when I once got a too-high pompadour/rockabilly haircut.

I'm presuming both of those suits are mid-30s?

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Both have NRA tags so 33-36. (in fact, the Sb in the pic is paired with the waistcoat and trousers of the DB suit.) They appear to have been made from identical fabric, though were found in polar opposite parts of the country. I need to check in natural sunlight plenty of that this "winter" - but i'm pretty sure the various bits and pieces of the suits will be interchangeable.

bk

 

[pycraft]

A man should look as if he had bought his clothes with intelligence, put them on with care, and then forgotten all about them. – Hardy Amies

I'm going out on a limb here, but I've seen that quote attributed to the godfather of all of us here - Beau Brummell.

As regards black suits, I have a couple; aside from the corduroy one with frock coat (!) my conventional lounge suit serves two purposes, both derived from the fact that black, particularly matched with a white shirt, can add a sense of drama. I feel the black suit can be worn at smarter events outside work - weddings and the like - without looking like I've turned up in a work suit. The majority of business suits in the UK are grey. Conversely, wearing black to some business events means wearing a black (or navy) suit means you can be slightly more attention-grabbing without being glaringly obvious about it (ie resorting to 3pc tweed). That's not to say I shun grey suits, but they are more a form of uniform than other colours.

As mentioned (and pertty obviously) the cut is important as the "silhouette" of the suit is more than just a metaphor if you're wearing something so light-absorbing. I find that Ozwald Boateng does the trick.

 

[Mr. Rover]

How is it that back then they set the buttons so far apart on a DB and nowadays I have to fight a tailor to set them far apart (which ended up not being far enough).