Resurgence of the Wide Lapels

If you're one to pay attention to fashion, there is no doubt that you know in the world of fashion, every style and trend that's ever been thought of in the history of mankind will eventually make its way back into the modern times. 

For the past 5-6 years, the two most popular suit cuts around the world have been the British and the Italian styles. Both styles are characterized by the slimness throughout the entire length of the body, with the Italian style being tighter than its UK counterpart.

You've all seen these styles displayed in the windows of large clothing retail stores: undersized to tight-fitting jackets with shirt cuff-exposing jacket sleeves and almost-too-short skinny trousers that hit at or above the ankles. Most often, you'll see narrow lapels adorn these suit jackets.

Lapels. Lapels is the focus of this blog entry. 

There has been a resurgence of the wider lapels visible on catwalks, recent tv shows, blockbusters and magazines. For the first time in many years, I'm being asked by customers to design a suit for them that features lapels that are wider than 2.5" or 2.75". 

The above pictures showcase a custom navy suit that we recently made for a really good-looking young man who has been our loyal customer for years. Notice the width of the lapels? Those are 3.75" wide! I'll call our model, Andrew, since he wishes to remain anonymous due to professional reasons.

During Andrew's earlier visits, he would request simple clean-looking suits in various colours but all of them had the same skinny lapels. With his model-like features and towering height, we knew he would carry our suits well. Our business is to make people look good but Andrew made our suits LOOK REALLY GOOD.

Time passed and we saw Andrew again recently. He said he wanted some new suits made but with wider lapels. "How wide?" I asked. "This wide," he replied. His thumb and index finger indicated four inches of width. 

I smiled. "Wow. That's really wide. Um, why don't we try 3.75" or even 3.5" first?" We discussed this topic for quite some time. There was a lot of uncertainty because he hadn't seen himself in a wide-lapel suit before. He'd only seen them on actors on tv.

I didn't think it would be an issue. I knew it wouldn't be an issue for Andrew to wear wide lapels. He is really tall and has 20" wide shoulders. That's a really broad shoulder width. Most men have shoulders anywhere between 17" to 21". 

Here's a good way to figure out the maximum lapel width for yourself before you end up looking goofy: Your lapel tip generally shouldn't cross the imaginary halfway line of your shoulder. Check out the diagram below to better understand what I mean.

I just want to remind everyone that style is very personal. I simply inform people of what is currently the most popular trend according to the fashion industry and what my customers commonly ask for. But if you have a preferred style, say you like the skinny lapels, by all means, rock it and keep rocking it!

So there you have it. Wide lapels aren't out of style anymore. They have come back and is starting to make their way back into men's wardrobes! 

Perhaps try out a new style?

Charcoal Suit & Cognac Shoes

There is always a story to every suit we make. I like Dale's.

He came in one day with an off-the-rack suit that had details he really liked and didn't like. He couldn't decided if it was the right suit for him. I asked him to put it on so I could make an assessment.

It was a medium grey suit that was fitted through the waist, hips and tailored through the thighs. He liked the overall look of it. I immediately noted that some adjustments were need in order for the suit to fit perfectly. With the alteration cost plus the purchasing cost, his suit would run him close to a price that would be the equivalent of one of our custom suits.

Having made that calculation, we decided that a custom suit would be a smarter choice: Firstly, a custom suit would be cut to fit his unique body shape and secondly, he could pick the details he wanted on his suit that he liked from the other suit he brought in. You know what the best part about this story is? ... Dale's new custom suit would cost him less than the store-bought suit with the alterations! :)

Take a look at Dale's suit up at the top. He picked a rich dark grey that is very popular with the gents. When he came in to try on the suit, he happened to be wearing this season's most popular shoe colour: cognac. They pair up quite nicely, don't they? :)

Warning: Balsam Suits May Induce Uncontrollable Happiness... And The Feeling Of Nakedness Apparently.

When Graeme came in to pick up his suit, it became a smiling contest. It was GRAEME VS ANDA & CINDY. I honestly don't think I've seen a more ecstatic customer than this guy. I mean, he was REALLY happy. Not just happy. Like truly insanely HAPPY! Haha! I watched the way his lips stretched across his face from the moment he put on his pants up until the moment he slipped on the jacket to when he looked into the mirror. It went from ear to ear. No exaggeration! And I will quote him: "WOW! It feels so good! It's so fitted and light. It's like I'M NAKED."

HAHA!! Well, I'm glad our suits make you feel so naked, Graeme! ;)

When I asked if he wanted to be featured on our blog, he... Well, you can see for yourself how it unfolded:

Can you show me those pearly whites, Graeme:

Let's have a look at that back side:

I'm going to do a close-up, if you don't mind:

Show me your million dollar pose, please:

 Can you demonstrate to me how you're feeling right now:

So, overall, how would you rate this suit:

So, as you can see, feeling naked makes you THIS happy. 

Thanks so much, Graeme, for letting us take pictures of you and putting smiles on our faces! 

Epilogue: Graeme didn't want to take his suit off. Oh trust me. He really didn't.  He said proudly, "I'm going to wear it right now to show my girlfriend." He slung his backpack over his shoulder and walked out the door...with a smile still plastered on his face. 

So who won the smiling contest? Not sure, really. Because Anda and I were definitely smiling even after he left. :D

For The Boys: Mixing Business Attire with Casual Wear

In today's post, I will be showcasing two of SPRING 2012's hottest trends for guys--mixed together!

Trend 1: Light grey anything!

Trend 2: Bold patterned shirts!

WOAH!

I'm really a big fan of blazers. Whether you're a guy or a girl, you really have no excuse to not have a blazer in your closet.  A clean, simple blazer with a slim-cut is a staple closet item.  It never goes out of style, ever! 

Gents, if you have a full suit, consider wearing it as separates like Nathan. What he has done here is literally mix a business suit jacket with a casual shirt and jeans to create a hip and urban look. 

 

You can't possibly go wrong with a suit jacket like this. Keep it lean and simple.

A lean cut means the jacket should hug your curves, including the small of your back. Lean does not mean undersized. Lean does not mean uncomfortable. If you get pulling in the front of the jacket when you have the top button done up, that means it's too tight! 

Black and white shirt with white cuffs and collars! My FAVOURITE COMBO. So glad I convinced him to get one made! No more boring white shirts, Nathan!

Stay Warm in a Hot Chocolate Suit

Holy! Wait a minute here. It's January?! I looked outside my window this morning and thought it was still November. Darn rain clouds! It's easy to forget what month we're in considering most of our months are indistinguishable. Fluffy white snow would've been a more welcoming sight.

Us Van City folks are experts in staving off the evil wet winter blues, aren't we? We're world champions of perpetualy cold, dark, drizzly weather.  Vancouver is where you'll see day blend seamlessly into night. So seamlessly, that we can't even tell day from night or night from day. Waking up would be a big confusion if it weren't for those alarm clocks screaming into our ears in the early morning, to remind us to get our little butts out of bed and into work.  We make our fellow Earth mates down in the Southern Hemisphere confused. They wonder why we put ourselves through such needless torment--living up here in the North and all.

Winters are always tough here. It's never truly the ideal white winter that we all dream of. We get mostly the wet stuff in Vancouver. 

Alright, it's not that bad. There are perks to living in this gloomy city: If you wait long enough, say maybe about 9-10 months, you get a wonderful 2-3 months of mild summer. What's not to like about that?!

That's one perk. I'll let you figure out the rest when you warm weather folks come here.

While all you Southern Hemisphere people get to bask in the abundance of sweet sweet sunlight, us Vancouverites have gotten pretty creative when it comes to keeping ourselves toasty. Fuzzy blankets, blazing fireplace, woolie socks, steaming hot cocoa, brawny boyfriends to curl up to, sizzling hot girlfriends to cozy up to, fine tailored suits, and...

YAH, that's right! We have nice suits! And Balsam Tailors make them. TAKE THAT!

Balsam Tailors make scorching hot suits. That's how we roll up on the West Coast. ;)

And George here, is decked out in all Balsam gear. Shirt + Suit.

You've got mad skills George! Hope you're keeping warm in that h-h-hot chocolate suit.

And thanks for sending in this picture!