If you want to stay in shape, order something from Anderson & Sheppard. The company comes through the US just a couple of times a year – twice on the East Coast and once on the West. Which means if you order something from one of their San Francisco trunk shows and can’t follow it up with a visit in London, your final fitting will be scheduled two years after your initial meeting. Pretty good reason to not gain any weight.
The A&S team were back in the city this past Monday and I went to see them to be fitted for a new houndstooth tweed sport coat. As goes the old A&S tradition, they skip the basted fitting and move straight to forward, which means the coat is a little further along than other tailors might have at this stage.
The fitting went well. Danny Hall, their new Head Coat Cutter, noted some small changes here and there – a half inch on both sides of the chest will be let out for comfort, the right sleeve lowered a touch, and the shoulders narrowed a little (shoulders are typically cut large for fittings since it’s easier to take them in than let them out). I also noted that the pockets were supposed to be flapped instead of patched, but that’s an easy enough change. Overall, the try-on seemed a little slimmer than my Steed commissions, but I won’t know for sure until I get it back.
While there, I talked with Colin Heywood, their Managing Director, about some trousers. One of the interesting things about the A&S style is that you don’t need to choose between slanted and on-seam pockets. Generally speaking, it’s easier to get your hands into slanted pockets, which is why I prefer them, but on-seam pockets have the advantage of following the side seam (which are normally exposed when the pocket slants forward).
The A&S house style solves this by always having the side seam follow the pocket line, which gives you the best of both worlds – easy access and a clean look. The solution is so obviously better that I wonder why high-end ready-to-wear makers don’t use it.
We also flipped through some swatch books for my next order. I’ve been thinking about getting a wool gabardine suit – gabardine being a smooth twill with ribs that are more pronounced than cavalry. You can see the difference in the photos above: the first is wool gab and the second calvary twill.
The upside to wool gabardine is that it wears warmer than plain weaves, such as tropical wool or hopsack, which makes it nice for the cooler months of fall and spring. The downside is that it can’t really be worn as a sport coat. I’ve been thinking about getting a tan suit in the material as a sort of “in between” – something a little more formal than a sport coat, but doesn’t say “business” like a navy suit. The alternative here is a chunky hopsack, such as the Loro Piana one pictured above. It doesn’t feel as special to me as a suit, compared to wool gab, but at least the jacket can be worn on its own.
Anyway, still lots of time to decide since A&S won’t be back in town for another year. One upside to the slower travel schedule, I suppose.
Incidentally, for anyone interested in the tweed, it’s from Abraham Moon. No Man Walks Alone will have a Sartoria Formosa sport coat made from the same fabric this season. Greg over there tells me it won’t be in the shop for another couple of weeks, although you can see a photo of it now on their Instagram.
(photos from me and Anderson & Sheppard’s Instagram)
