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ChalklineTailors · 74 Hope Road · since 1994 Book a measureBook

Eight weeks, three fittings

How a suit gets made

Nothing about it is quick, and that is the point: each fitting is where a ready-made suit would have gone wrong.

Your date

Can it be ready in time?

Put in the day you need it. We work back from it.

A wedding, a graduation, a first day. We work back from it: 8 weeks, three fittings, and a week in hand.

    1. Week 0 — the measure

      An hour at the shop: twenty-odd measurements, how you stand, how you want it to feel, and the cloth chosen from the book. Your pattern is drafted on paper that week.

    2. Week 3 — first fitting, basted

      The cloth is cut and loosely sewn with white thread so we can open any seam. This is where the balance of the jacket is set: shoulders, back, length.

    3. Week 5 — second fitting, forward

      Sleeves and collar are on and most seams are set. We check how it moves: reaching, sitting, arms up.

    4. Week 7 — final fitting

      Finished, pressed and buttoned. The last small corrections, usually a sleeve length or a trouser hem.

    5. Week 8 — collection

      On a hanger, in a bag, with a note of the cloth. Bring it back any time for alterations; they are free for as long as you own it.

    Book the first measure