Men’s Tailoring 101 – Know Some Important Terminology Part – 2

There’s always a perfect suit out there for everyone. But, searching for the right suit could take you on an emotional roaster-coaster ride. This journey becomes even more overwhelming and exhaustive if you are completely out of sync with the basics of the men’s tailoring world.

As perplexing as it can get, deciphering complex men’s tailoring terminology is important to get the suit that seamlessly fits your body and personality. In our last blog, we prepared a glossary for tailoring terminology that’s frequently used by the tailors. Here, we will add more in the glossary to make it easier for you to pick the best option:

Lapels are referred to the jacket collars that fold out at the front and meet shirt collars. They usually come in three distinctive styles:

• Notched – A triangular indent in the lapel sits right on the chest and meets the collar of your shirt.
• Peaked – This type of lapel is broader and juts outwards along the collarbone and is ideal for a formal suit.
• Shawl – Shawl is a more relaxed draped form of the lapel and doesn’t have a notch.

One of the frequently used terms is “bespoke” and “made to measure”. While they both sound similar, they are two separate terminologies.

Made to measure are cut and sewn by machine and made using an existing pattern which is later fine-tuned to fit your measurements. On the other hand, bespoke garments are cut and sewn without a machine. Additionally, the design and pattern are created from scratch and so it fits perfectly into your unique body type. In bespoke design, you get more choices for fabrics and design elements as compared to those that are made-to-measure.

A pant break is often referred to as the fold of fabric that forms right at the front of your leg and just above the shoes when you stand. Let’s simplify it for you – A pant break is a point when the hem of the trouser breaks its silhouette.

There are two types of pant break:

• No Break Pants
• Full Break Pants

A no-break offers a clean and streamlined look and perfectly works for men with slimmer body types or who are just above average tall. No break means the hem sits right above the shoes.

While a full break means the hem makes significant contact with the shoes and creates an elegant looking ripple just above the hem. This type of break looks great for older men or for someone who loves the classic style.

The term silhouette refers to the shape of the suit’s jacket. The silhouette of the suit sets the style of your appearance. There are three basic types of silhouettes:

• Sack or Brooks Suit Jacket – This silhouette refers to a shapeless jacket featuring narrow shoulders. Here, the jacket hangs on the body representing the classic shape and beautifully covers the wearer’s asymmetries.
• Structured Silhouette – Considered as the most formal silhouette, it’s basically inspired by the military uniforms. The shoulders here have inserted pads with a trimmed waist. It is the perfect silhouette for men with the classic V-shaped body.
• Fitted Silhouette – This silhouette is best suited for men with a toned body. It has a tailored fit and comes with minimal padding and high armholes that accentuate the wearer’s best assets.

Vents are often referred to as the cuts that are seen on the back of the suit jacket. These vents can make a difference in the way a bespoke suit shapes the back.

There are two types of common vents:

• Center Vent – Here the slit can be seen in the middle of the jacket and is quite commonly used for casual suits.
• Side Vent – These are seen in the jacket with two slits on both sides. The side vents are ideal for formal suits.

Waist suppression is a term used to describe the cinching of the jacket’s waist to highlight the ideal “V” shape of the wearer’s torso. Most of the off the rack suits are loosely fitted, so the tailor can rectify this by suppressing the waist. When the tailor compresses the waist, it helps you to hide little flaws to make you look more masculine in appearance.

If you want to get more details on bespoke tailoring, contact a specialist from The Suit Concierge.