One of the delights of being a blogger is the creativity that it has brought to my life. I've been involved with the creation of menswear a couple of times before, but not to the extent that I have with tailor Alexandra Wood's Spring/Summer Collection for this year.
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| Blue Holland & Sherry mesh cloth summer blazer |
Our aim was to offer a versatile collection that allowed ready-to-wear or made-to-measure items to be used for a wide variety of purposes, from business to casual and holidays. We've done this by rooting the collection in classic shapes, adding comfort for warmer weather with soft, unstructured tailoring and lightweight wools, fusing a very British style with the practicability of Italian tailoring in warmer weather.
We've selected the best cloths from Holland & Sherry and, for one signature blazer, Dashing Tweeds, that allow the clothes to be cool and crisp for travel, work and play. Items available as made-to-measure enable customers to select details like buttons, lining and so on, giving even greater flexibility to the collection.
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| Blue seersucker blazer |
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| Burnt orange merino blazer from Dashing Tweeds cloth |
Here is how we came together to make the collection:
"Alexandra and David spoke on a number of occasions over two years before finally coming together in 2017 to design a made to measure navy, corduroy suit. This sparked Alexandra’s imagination so she asked David if he would like to contribute to her new summer collection – he was only too happy to say yes.'I was delighted to be able to work with Alexandra on this collection. Over six years as a blogger I’ve learned much about what it takes to help men look their best and it’s a privilege to be able to blend these creative instincts with the Alexandra’s skills as a tailor. I wanted to include items that could be worn alone or with others in the collection and which offered classic shapes and colours for work and formal but allowed a more individual style when needed for casual and holiday wear'.Consumers are demanding more choice and more freedom to select their own lining, their own button colour and even their own construction, so Alexandra and David have designed a collection that merges ready to wear with made to measure; bringing the gap closer than ever before.'The concept of slow fashion is being adopted more than ever before, and men are willing to take the time to make their wardrobe perfect. Our new collection offers a unique ready to wear buying experience: customers choose a ready to wear item that they love, but have a consultation where they spend time making it their own by choosing details, just as they would as for a made to measure suit', Alex said.The collection also reflects the need for customers to have more diverse and flexible wardrobes, so Alex and David have designed a range of smart suits, smart and casual sports jackets, smart and casual trousers, and a mix of shirts that add colour and contrast to all of the pieces created.'There is a new wave of ‘blended dressing’ which combines smart and casual wear. Men are allowed to be far more relaxed in the workplace now so there’s a real need to be able to mix and match items and to wear clothing that’s a lot more comfortable without being sloppy', David said.The summer 2018 collection also includes a lightweight travel suit. 'With our customer's jet-setting lifestyles the last thing they want to do is to think about pressing their suit when they get to the hotel. We have created a super lightweight 7.5oz travel suit that can simply be folded, or worn, and won’t crease by the time you’ve reached the other end. As you’d expect with any of our suits, the fabric is smart, durable and high quality; but the construction is super light and comfortable', Alex explained.The collection will have a price option to buy ready to wear and to upgrade to made to measure.Alexandra Wood began as a Savile Row men’s tailor in 2007 and has created suits for the some of Britain’s best-dressed men including GQ columnist and author Tony Parsons, Comedian Rory Bremner, Wimbledon tennis player Marcus Willis and MP Chuka Umunna. She now has stores in three locations – Savile Row, Bishop’s Stortford and Shoreditch – where she offers bespoke tailoring, made to measure suits and limited edition ready to wear items'.
For more on our collection, click here. Please note that the blog will earn a commission from sales of items from the Collection. Otherwise, I've received no compensation for involvement in this collaboration.
Here is a small selection of items of the Collection with links to purchase them:
Vibrant blue two piece suit
Red white stripe shirt
Blue mesh blazer
Blue Seersucker sports jacket
Plain navy travel suit
Plain charcoal travel suit
Beige check travel suit
Pale blue/white stripe shirt
Grey Fox,
ReplyDeleteThis is a very worthwhile project and I wish you and Alexandra every success with it.
On the evening of the presentation I purchased the red striped shirt as shown above. I am a sixteen and a half collar but Alexandra only had a seventeen collar. As such I expected the sleeves to be a little too long. However. the opposite was true - they were too short and the cuffs too tight to do up over a watch. Of course I realise that as a comercial venture every little bit of material that can be saved is more profitable when multiplied by a large number of shirts but I would not have expected that amount of economy at this level ot tailoring. As you are both now offering the oportunity to personalise one's purchases you might want to give some consideration to a range of sleeve lengths and widths.
David I believe (and sincerely hope) you know me well enough by now to know that my comments are not criticism but are genuinely intended to help in any way they can. So please don't you or Alexandra take offence. I wish you both nothing but success with the project.
Very best wishes,
Snapper
I agree Leon - can you contact Alex for a replacement?
ReplyDeleteGF
Thank you Leon, I have responded accordingly via email.
ReplyDeleteKind regards,
Alexandra