No brand records, we have the brand sheets for that. No look suggestions, we have Panache for that. Here are some basic tips that each of you can learn and implement. All in five minutes flat. Or almost ! Good viewing. Christopher.
Dear friends, it is Friday.
And you know what that means?
Yes of course, that means you're on the weekend...
But also that it’s time for a new episode of (Very) Well Dressed!
And today, we're going to answer a very basic question , but one that continues to be a source of frustration and errors, sometimes even after three, four, five years of experience with the style...
What to do when you are between two sizes?
It's great to know, in theory , how an "ideal" piece of clothing should fit us, down to every detail.
We would have our little list to check, and we would look for the perfect cut on the shelves until we found THE right sleeve length, THE right bend, with the volumes just right for us...
But in practice, this is rarely what happens in ready-to-wear fashion.
1. What you can't find "the perfect fit" for in stores
Ready-to-wear clothes are cut to fit as many people as possible , not to be "perfect" on a single individual.
It's a simple pragmatic calculation :
If you have 100 men to dress, it is better that 50% of them have sleeves that are too long (imperfect, but "wearable"), than to end up with 30% of them with sleeves that are too short (unwearable) .
This is how ready-to-wear works
We can deplore this, but we must also keep in mind that without these “mass production” logics, clothing would never have become so affordable for the “popular” and “middle” classes.
Ready-to-wear already existed in the 19th century, but it was only after the Second World War that it became so absolutely established.
2. The art of good compromise
So we have to face the inevitable imperfection when choosing the size.
Which, in practice, means making compromises.
When you're hesitating between two sizes, it's basically because you have to choose between one imperfect solution and another.
- “Am I okay with the shoe being slightly tight in width?”
- “Is it better if the shirt fits me perfectly but the collar is too big, or if the collar is just right but the shirt is a little tight?”
- “Will my sweater, which was a little tight when I bought it, loosen up?”
3. No style without touch-ups
I always said that unless you have a "cabin model" body
This statement shocks many people, who are somewhat put off by the idea of having to pay even more for a so-called “ready” to wear item of clothing.
But despite their significant cost, they are the essential asset for our “unique” bodies to dress them in clothes with standardized cuts.
We are therefore going to talk about the alterations that are possible for each type of clothing, and those which are not .
Example: the length of a shirt can be altered, but not randomly because of the buttons. Many learn it at the cost of a permanently ruined shirt...
You may be surprised to see that this is the most central topic of the video.
And for good reason, when faced with an imperfection in ready-to-wear clothing, the real question that resolves everything is...
“Can I edit this properly or not?”
...
Good viewing !
PS: In this video, I wear...
An ABCL Garments shirt
