November 2024
By Jonathan Sigmon
This is a blog-style version of a physical booklet we produced in Fall 2024. Regular readers are likely to see some familiar things, as this is intended as a summary of our working approach to tailored clothing these days. For a digital flip-through of the actual booklet, click through here.
For several years we have experienced a steady relaxation of dress codes. Throughout this shift, we’ve seen formal suits evolve largely into occasion-driven attire, as for weddings, fundraisers, and board meetings. Meanwhile there is elevated interest in tailored clothing that suggests leisure rather than work – designed for relaxed social events more often than strict client engagements.
The well-tailored jacket remains the most flattering garment one can wear, and it is refreshing to see folks wear tailored clothing simply for the pleasure of it, rather than obligation to a dress code. Yet this relaxed approach presents a challenge in knowing how to put clothing together. Many go awry by wearing particularly dressy jackets in fabrics of smooth worsted wools, paired incongruently with casual separates like cotton chinos or jeans. In light of this, we guide our clients through this informal way of wearing tailored clothing by focusing on the texture and color of the fabrics.
Fabrics that are highly textured pair more naturally with a variety of less formal clothing. Think of high-twist wools and slubby silk and linen blends in the warm months, and flannels of wool and cashmere, covert twills, corduroys, and denim through Fall and Winter. Shirts in oxford weaves age more elegantly and better complement these tailored garments, compared to more formal smooth poplins and fine twills.
Considering color, we enjoy creating garments in unexpected yet wearable colors such as olive green, fawn, and aubergine. The right jacket colors can enliven one’s complexion while offering
a sophisticated twist on traditional color schemes. Trousers in less common, still-neutral colors are highly versatile yet under- represented elements of a smart-casual wardrobe.
The garments here offer our approach to modern tailored clothing.
This Scottish wool tweed with windowpanes of mahogany, teal, and rust looks substantial, yet at just 11oz is quite comfortable to wear through three seasons. A bespoke oxford shirt in our “popover” style with hidden lower placket adds subtle visual interest.
An elegant olive green and black houndstooth in 10.5oz wool flannel. It’s perhaps best suited for wear without a tie, yet subtle and versatile enough that it dresses up quite formally when needed. Paired here with an oxford shirt and our house favorite dressy trouser, which has a hint of a flannel nap to its soft and smooth twill weave.
Double-breasted sport suit cut from a light 9oz worsted wool flannel, and made with our softest internal construction. The luxury of comfort. Shown here with an oxford shirt and deep paisley necktie, yet it would also pair beautifully over a simple cashmere knit.
—Our House Style—
The Alan Flusser house style has been refined throughout decades of designing and tailoring custom clothing. Our garments have a soft, relaxed silhouette which offers an easy elegance that is comfortable to wear. We like the trousers to sit near the natural waist and gently taper through the leg, creating a flattering and modern shape. The result is understated yet sophisticated clothing that will be enjoyable to wear for years.
We develop your custom clothing based on our house block patterns. From this starting point, we create your unique pattern according to your specific body measurements, posture, and desired silhouette.
We offer three levels of make at different price points to suit different needs. Our in-house tailors in NYC handle alterations and hand-finishing on all garments.
Heritage: Made by hand, start to finish in New York, this has been our house standard for nearly 40 years. Each step in the process – from pattern development to lapel shaping to hand-pressing – is handled by expert tailors in a boutique workshop. Sport jackets from $3,500. Suits from $4,600.
Gentry: Similar in construction to our Heritage line, these garments
are largely made by hand. This includes key intricate steps that are highly uncommon in most custom clothing – including hand-padding the canvas through the chest and lapels, and attaching the collar by hand. Constructed in our partner workshop offshore, this is an incredible value for handmade luxury custom tailoring. Sport jackets from $2,400. Suits from $3,300.
Club: Developed in our house style and with our guidance on the ideal proportion, colors, and fabrics, this is a smart option for those who simply want to look their best. Our custom Club garments are sewn more by machine, with hand-finishing in the armholes and along the collar, lapels, and pockets. Sport jackets from $1,850. Suits from $2,600.
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Two-piece suit from Loro Piana 9.5oz 150s wool. Shown here in our Gentry model construction – handmade in our partner workshop offshore, with all adjustments and finishing completed in-house.
This deep rust wool and silk windowpane offers a rich, vibrant Fall look that is far more wearable than it may seem at first glance. With beige and deep teal paired windowpanes, it’s easy to dress up with with a wide range of trouser colors, such as those twills, flannels, and corduroys shown in the previous spread.
Dusty pink in lightweight cashmere and silk. A fun and luxurious “alternative blazer” for warm-weather wear from Palm Beach to Southampton. With bolder garments, we like to keep the rest of the look rather quiet, as paired here with crisp mohair and wool trousers and a simple white tee.
Above: A departure from the lightweight fabrics we often propose – this travel blazer in a hardy 13oz hopsack hangs beautifully and handles heavy wear with ease. Like the best travel clothes, it can be folded up for hours at a time and shaken out to wear off the plane wrinkle-free.
Off-seam pick stitching and patch pockets keep this one casual enough for knockaround wear, and we like the pockets with flaps for added security when bopping around airports. Both outfits are shown with button-down collar shirts, which frame the face well without a tie.
Flusser Femme – pure wool houndstooth in medium brown tones to flatter her complexion, in a 16oz weight that is wearable from mid Fall through early Spring.
Brown and black houndstooth in a heavier 20oz wool for keeping warm through the thick of Northeast winter. An especially versatile coat style which can be worn as easily over smart casual attire as with more formal tailored clothing.
— Alan Flusser Shirts —
As with our tailored clothing, the key to a beautiful shirt is its proportions. You should look and feel at ease in our shirts, while still having some shape through the body, and we pay special attention to the collar and the cuffs. The shirt collar is essentially the frame to your face, and we design a collar that is flattering and makes you look your best. The sleeves are cut a touch long, and the cuffs trim, so that the cuffs sit properly at the base of the wrist and stay there, even with movement.
Our Approach
We start by making your pattern and a sample fitting shirt to evaluate the fit. After this fitting, we adjust the pattern and produce your shirt order. There is a three-shirt minimum on the initial order, with no minimum on future orders.
Our made-to-measure shirts are made for us by 100 Hands in India, which is widely considered one of finest shirtmaking factories in the world. Your pattern is drafted from a robust pattern-making system, and the shirts are sewn with incredibly fine needle-work. This presents quite a nice value, from $300.
Our bespoke shirts are made for us in Manhattan, by one of the last boutique workshops making true bespoke shirts in the USA. Your pattern is drafted from scratch, the fabrics are hand-cut by knife, and fabrics from all of the world’s best mills are available. From $525.
