Dissatisfaction

As I have noted previously, I've been digging even deeper into the world of made-to-measure clothing. Today I fetched my newest suit from Sartoria Rossi. The suit is simple enough: a single-breasted, two-button, side-vented, notch-collared, four cuff-buttoned suit made out of extremely dark blue wool. So a fairly traditional "dark suit" to wear to more formal occasions and to replace tailcoats and tuxedos with (as I'm too lazy and cheap to actually invest in any formal or semi-formal attire).

Anyway, as I fetched the suit, I couldn't help but be slightly dissatisfied. I couldn't precisely point the finger at any specific thing at first, but after some time I came to the conclusion that some problems that I have with the suit are:

1. The shoulder padding could have been slightly (0.5-1cm) longer on either side.
2. The buttons could have been slightly higher (the lower button by 1-2 cm and the upper button by 2-3 cm). An offshoot of this is that now the lapels seem slightly too long and slightly too thin (in reality the lapels are nearly ok width-wise, but the length makes them seem narrower).
   
3. The jacket could have perhaps been slightly longer (1-2 cm).
4. The lining should have been silver instead of the slightly pinkish-grey.

Now, after spending the day thinking about all of this, it's actually fairly evident that most of the issues that I have with the suit are things that I could have and should have directly influenced. But all of these are again things which would have been really difficult for me to know in advance. So ultimately this is another case of needing to use the first purchase as a test to calibrate the system and thus enable successes in the future.

That said, at the end of the day I do have to admit that I'm starting to somewhat like the suit. The quality of the suit seems high enough for this price range and the service I got was very good. So as of now I don't really have anything against Sartoria Rossi, which seems to be one of the better stores in Helsinki when it comes to mens' clothing. One additional thing to note with made-to-measure suits is concerning the cut: you should pay special attention to suits that the manufacturer has made earlier, either MTM or off-the-rack. This will most likely be the cut that your suit will follow, so in this regard it's imperative to find the right manufacturer with the right cut that you like.

In the longer run I'll most likely test out one or two other manufacturers. Learning from this experience, I will most likely begin testing MTM manufacturers in the form of jackets at first. This has the benefit of reducing financial risk and trousers are anyway more or less simple and cheap to make, so calibration in that area may not be as crucial as with the jacket. The next thing I was thinking of extending my wardrobe with, at some point, is a double-breasted navy blazer. Pair that with grey flannel trousers, a blue and white striped shirt and a nice tie and the result will be a very classic and elegant outfit...