A Matter of Proportion

So many people complain about the cold weather, but I'm not one. I'd been looking forward to wearing the Polo coat I'd acquired in trade for months. Mid-calf length and dramatic, I like the look of it over a suit as well as thrown on casually with jeans and Shetland sweater.Trouble was, the sleeves were just a whiff to short, maybe half an inch. The coat was fine in its casual setting, but whenever I wore it with tailored clothing, my jacket sleeves would stick out just barely past the coat sleeves. Only a little, but just enough to be wrong. A little shirt cuff beyond a jacket sleeve is one thing, but a coat sleeve should cover all the layers beneath it.

So I took the coat to my man in Cambridge to have the situation remedied. My tailor explained to me that the heavy rolled back cuff was actually a completely separate piece from the rest of the sleeve, and that the way to lengthen them would be to remove the cuffs completely, then re-attach them a half inch lower on the sleeves. 

He explained: "The cuffs, pocket flaps, and belt are all the same width. If I just drop the hem and re-stitch it, everything will be wrong. Most people will sense it, but most of them won't know why. It will take a little longer, but it's the right thing to do." It did take a little longer (and even more than one try), but he charged me the same as a simple sleeve job on a sports jacket. The coat now fits perfectly, proportions solidly in tact.

What's that I'm always saying about finding a good tailor?