Tailoring Version 2.0

Bring this suiting upgrade guide to the tailor for an even sharper fit.

- Darren Ho

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING, 97 per cent of the world’s population don’t have symmetrical bodies (the other three per cent are mostly models). Our conversations with people such as Brioni’s chief master tailor Angelo Petrucci have confirmed it.

That means the majority of us never quite fit into the clothing we buy off the racks. You’ve probably encountered the problems before – sleeves that are an inch too short or long; shoulder and neck widths that never quite work out.

Over the years, we’ve explained the things to look out for with a made-to-measure or made-to-order suit. However, as menswear evolves, so have the rules of suiting. Here’s what you should point out to your tailor the next time you’re at the boutique.

ARM POWER

Suits can feel constraining. It’s not just because they add another layer of clothing on you. It’s because they haven’t been made to accommodate the movement of your body, especially in the arms and shoulders. It is only in recent years that major fashion labels have begun to rethink how suits can be made, so that their wearers are able to move freely in them.

Thomas Wong, one of Singapore’s best-known master tailors and the former head of the Singapore Master Tailors Association, who has gone on to establish The Prestigious, points out that armholes are often overlooked when it comes to suiting, both by regular tailors and customers. “You may think that wider armholes would offer freer arm movement, but that just isn’t so,” he explains.

In fact, the narrower armhole offers greater freedom of motion without damaging the three-way between the front and back panels and the end of the armhole. The armhole should really end around two to three finger-widths below your armpit, for a good balance of arm motion and structure.