Question:
I went to my tailor last night to have my new suit jacket's waist narrowed a little. This is the first time I've had this done to a suit jacket. He said he'd do it by unstitching the rear seam down the back. I strongly suggested that he do it from the side seams instead.
Which is the correct way to go?
Answer:
Seems like the side seams would be the logical choice -- since changing the center-back seam would skew the side seams a bit to the rear.
Ideally, for alterations of more than an inch or so, the tailor should alter all three seams.
Answer:
As I understand it from an old Etutee post on the London Lounge, it depends totally on where the extra fullness is.
If the jacket fits relatively well in the front but the back is too full, your tailor may be right.
I would suspect, however, that the ideal is to take in a bit from at least the sides and the back if it isn't possible to take some in also from the darts (which I suspect it isn't).
Though taking in the sides makes the jacket look slim, I don't think that's the answer all the time - or at least not the complete answer.
Answer:
IMO, waist suppression and tightness are not the same thing. Most tailors will take in the body from just under the armholes all the way down on the sideseams which tends to just make the body tighter and not to suppress the waist in relation to the chest or hip of the coat. Also, there are four side seams and two darts. The darts are not really touchable, but the side seams are.
Answer:
Both great points. When thinking of TurboTopic's post, a pair of tweed trousers I brought to a tailor -- that was recommended to me -- popped in to mind. The tailor took all the excess from the center-back seam and then the side seams were skewed to the back. The line of the trousers looked ghastly when worn. Of course, the tailoring on a jacket is much more complex and the fit issues become more complex by proxy.
Well, I'm here to learn and one can't progress without making mistakes.
Answer:
OK, thanks for the comments guys. I guess I'll see how it turns out. There's only about 0.75" being taken in on each side from underneath the armhole down the sideseams.
My tailor is Persian and has been working in the industry since he was a child. However, I'm sure he doesn't see too many requests like this and his English isn't great so I'm paranoid about what he understands.
Answer:
Has anyone had the opposite done?
I had a suit that fit great in the chest and shoulders but was too small in the belly...Despos did his magic, it is the best fitting suit I own.
Answer:
I think its more than 2 or 3 inches, both the side seams and back center seam need to be touched. Due to my drop, the waist of jacket is always 4 or 5 inches bigger. The guy I go to always take from both the side and the back.
Answer:
just wondering if this is an easy thing to do and how far can you suppress a waist?
I've seen some jackets with a 38 waist that I want suppressed to a 34 or so, would that be possible?
Answer:
It might look strange, ie. too much waist supression.
It can be done, anything can be done. The question is should it be done?
You have pockets on the jacket that can not be moved, so if you take too much in you throw off the whole jacket. EXCEPT....patch pockets.
Answer:
The tailor may have been correct in only taking in the back of the coat; Cantabrigian's logic is correct. Where a coat is altered depends on a few things: posture, where the coat is bagging etc.
Then again, it could simply be laziness :devil:
As for the question regarding how far you can suppress a waist. Chances are, if you need to go more than a few inches on either side, you are wearing the wrong size coat.
