Bespoke big shot

Umberto Pitagora is the Obi-Wan Kenobi of suit making: One of the few bespoke tailors left in the world today, the 75-year-old has a clientele that's among the 1% of the 1%. When the US Connecticut-based tailor was a teen, he wanted to be a mechanical engineer, but once he'd sewn his first pair of pants, he was hooked. Here, Pitagora dispenses 60-plus years worth of sartorial wisdom.

- MARTIN MULKEEN

■ You never finish learning. Nobody wants to learn anymore because it takes a long time. I started when I was 10 years old in my hometown of Nicastro, Italy. I used to go to the tailor shop after school to stay away from the streets. When I finished eighth grade, I went to work in the tailor shop to learn. I’m still learning after 63 years.

■ You feel good when you create something yourself — like a sculptor or a painter. I made my first suit in 1959. I was 19. First, you learned how to make the suit, then you learned how to cut. It was a grey and black suit with pin dots for my sister-in-law’s brother. I’ll have to ask him if he still has it.