Suitsupply Made-to-Measure Program: Fabrics and Fitting (Part 1 of 3)

  • April 15, 2014
  • Written By Timothy Nguyen

There has been a lot of talk about Suitsupply as the best entry level off-the-rack suiting brand but if you search for a review of the MTM program the only things you will find are forum entries or articles without sufficient information. No one has anything that really broke down the whole experience. I figured since I need a suit for an upcoming wedding that it would be the perfect opportunity for me to share my experience.

Suitsupply gives you two choices when it comes to their MTM offerings, the Blue Line Personal Tailoring & the Suit Up Personal Tailoring.

Here are the differences:

  • The Blue Line starts at $699 and the Suit Up starts at $749
  • 60 fabrics to choose from vs 600
  • Half canvas vs. full canvas
  • Super 110-120 vs. Super 110-200
  • The pattern for the Blue Line only goes down to size 34 vs. the Suit Up goes down to 32
  • The Suit Up line also has a whole bunch of customizing options over the Blue Line available for you to choose from.

Please keep in mind the MTM program is only available at a brick-and-mortar Suitsupply store. Luckily the Houston store opened back in December.

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I chose to go with the Suit Up line because I am a size-32 suit at Suitsupply and the proper adjustments I would need are not offered in the Blue Line.

Fabrics:

The price of the Suit Up line fabrics start at $749 for cotton and linen fabrics. From there you move on to Super 130 wools which are the same ones used in the Sienna line.
Suitsupply_116 The off-the-rack Sienna will cost you anywhere from $649 to $779 while the Suit Up fabric choices in the same range are $899 or $949. I was planning to get a Sienna so I figured since tailoring would cost me a few hundred dollars anyway that it would be smarter if I just paid a little bit more money and went for the MTM program to get a better fit.

In case you were wondering about the Blue Line fabrics, I did see them as well. They are comparable to the $469 – $599 offerings which are still pretty great. You just have fewer colors and patterns to choose from.

Walking into the store I knew I wanted to get a solid  so it really narrowed down my choices or else I would’ve been sitting there for hours trying to make up my mind. I fell in love with some of the patterns, namely the window pane and checks but I wasn’t there for that so I had to move on. The photo above is the color that I actually chose (the one with the tag).

Suitsupply_101

Fitting:

Ask anyone and they will tell you that one of the most important part about owning and wearing a suit is the fit. A big problem I have with off-the-rack suiting is my shoulders measure 16.5 inches and I am 5′6″ so finding something that fits correctly is very difficult. Although Suitsupply’s size 32 fits me well in the shoulders off the rack I just didn’t like the length — the jackets were still too long for me. The problem with shortening suit jacket is the pockets end up being too close to the bottom which throws off the proportions. Shortening the sleeves also creates a similar problem; the button cuffs can’t be too close to the end of the arm. I have a Suitsupply Lazio and the sleeves weren’t shortened from the top like they should’ve. This meant that I didn’t just lose the functioning cuffs — the suit looks silly because the buttons are too close to the end.

The Suit Up program is advertised as having “60 points of measurement to ensure a perfect fitting garment.”  How it works is they will bring out a fitting jacket closest to your size then pin the needed adjustments.  As seen in the pictures below.

Suitsupply_105 Suitsupply_106 Suitsupply_111 Suitsupply_108

Length being measured. I asked about pocket placement and if you shorten the jacket in the MTM program the pockets will be placed proportionally (phew). Button placement can also be adjusted as well. I had the top button moved up an inch or so.
Suitsupply_110In order to insure a good fit you have the option of adjusting the seat, waist and taper. I was also informed that the hem would be left raw to ensure the correct break point, so don’t worry if you don’t bring your shoes to the initial fitting.

Suitsupply_109

Overall I was very impressed with the amount of adjustments that could be made to the garment.

This concludes part 1 of the series. Please check back soon to see the next installments:

 Part 2: Styling and Personalization

Part 3: Final Fitting and Review

Special thanks to: Clinton, Made-to-measure specialist of Suitsupply Houston.

Photos courtesy of: Levi Lemaster – instagram.com/le_master  & Suitsupply 

 

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