Evolving Style with the Bespoke Raglan
How Time Helps Your Style
Updating the bespoke raglan
“Go easy on yourself, it’s the first time you’ve done this” is something you will hear me say a lot in the atelier. Clients often come to us for the first time and expect everything to be perfect when they may not know what perfect means to them yet. I see our job as nailing the proportions and fit as close as we can, and then gently guiding and assisting you to find your own style within those parameters. It’s a process that evolves over time. And the more times you do it, the better you get at it.
I think it’s useful to think of each and every garment as a learning experience, one that you wear, enjoy and learn a little bit from upon each wear. For example, you can’t possibly know about a pocket style you’ve never seen before, and you won’t know if you like it until you try it. So it’s worth making your initial garments in a style that’s somewhat familiar to you. And then making any changes slight, and incremental over time.
The bespoke raglan pictured above was our first ever sample when we were looking into the style. Therefore we kept everything pretty simple and didn’t deviate much from my current overcoats. I chose a colour (navy) that I’m comfortable with, and kept the pockets welted, the same as all my other overcoats. The only thing I added was the belt, but safe in the knowledge that I could always remove it later if I didn’t like it. Making changes that can be undone is how we advise clients to approach change, as much as practicable.
This bespoke raglan was first crafted in November 2022, so a little over 3 years old now. I kept the length and waist within the parameters advised by our Portuguese partners and then let it be.
3 years later and i’ve now taken the waist and seat in around 2” and shortened the length around 4”, whilst retaining the cloth in case of future changes, as the cloth is no longer available. Pictured below in our new atelier.
These changes were made simply due to experience. I’ve worn the coat a lot, and despite its length looking nice in photographs, it just felt a little too long.
Same with the waist. I wanted to feel the coat contouring me a little more, and the room afforded on the original pattern felt a bit big. I would never have known this at the time of ordering, so it was the right decision to make it longer and wider, as it could always be reduced. Better that than making it too short and not being able to do anything about it.
But I also needed time to wear in the style and figure it out. I didn’t know exactly how I wanted it to fit. So I took the time to figure it out. It’s worth doing as it’ll pay back in the long term
I’m now a lot more settled with my length and shape. And moving forward, have a much more solid base to work from.
So all in, I suppose the lesson here is to go easy on yourself and never underestimate how useful wearing clothes and experiencing them is.
So test things, be inquisitive, and continually evolve your style. And we are here to help
Scott
Cloth - VBC House Wool (Sold Out)
Alternative 80108 from Drapers Archive Overcoats - Avaialble as of 22/01/26
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