In his autobiography In My Own Fashion (1987) designer Oleg Cassini writes about “the last playboy”, Porfirio Rubirosa (1909-1965). I haven’t come across a better portrait. It also tells a thing or two about Oleg Cassini himself.  Oleg Cassini on Porfirio Rubirosa: “When I think of the man who truly embodied the spirit of those ...

New and old travelling tailors We’ve seen travelling tailors for decades. Savile Row started their American trunk shows in the inter-war period. Bargain tailors and made-to-measure firms from the East have been going to Europe since the 1980s. Low fair airlines and the web haven’t changed the tradition, structurally. However, cross-border acitivity has increased a ...

Industrial production and commodification are great forces. They make more items accessible to more people. There is a price to pay though in terms of quality and refinement. Take a look at ready-to-wear suits. They all appear the same. There is no rich variation in fabrics and designs, in suit details. That would be too costly ...

After commisioning a suit from Malcolm Plews I went to meet more Savile Row tailors. I’ve been to The Row before photographing. This time I was much more effective. Just when I turned around the corner from Vigo Street I bumped into Davide Taub, head cutter at Gieves, who was going out for lunch, I ...

Butler makes things clear. There is no hesitation in his style. Few would dare to ask their tailor to make up a royal blue double breasted suit like the one he is wearing in these photos. It’s a shame. Butler’s Dormeuil mohair suit, crafted by Steven Hitchcock in London, is not only smashing. It is more versatile than ...