Cad and the Dandy - Suit Buying Course - Lesson 1

Enrol for The Tweed Pig Technical Certificate in Suit Buying Here

It's the new year and you may be considering a little self-improvement. If you keep putting off studying for that degree in Classics at Cambridge and the keep-fit DVD you bought remains in its wrapping, you might consider The Tweed Pig Technical Certificate in Suit Buying. The Tweed Pig is offering this course for free, in conjunction with our friends at Cad and Dandy. When we say in conjunction, we mean that Cad and Dandy used their considerable expertise to put the learning materials together.

The course will be delivered in lessons over the next couple of weeks (lesson 1 below). No student fees, no living in shared accommodation with scruffbags, flip-flop wearers and teabag hoarders. At the end of the course, you will have acquired all the skills you need for commissioning your perfect suit. Something that will stay with you forever. We bring these lessons as a public service, to reduce the number of poor quality and ill-fitting suits that stay in wardrobes unworn. Have a pencil and paper handy to take notes, and good luck.

About our Instructors

London tailors Cad and the Dandy, operating out of the City, Savile Row and Canary Wharf, believe that high-quality suits should be accessible to all. They offer three grades of tailored suit: machine stitched, half hand-stitched and fully hand-stitched. Once they've captured your shape in a pattern created by hand you can choose from their vast library of fabrics and linings.

Lesson 1 - The Rules of Fitting by Cad and the Dandy

1. Length of the jacket

   . The fad of late seems to be shorter jackets - not something a tailor likes to see, but the standard rule is that the jacket should be long enough to cover your backside, normally where the thumb knuckle is when standing with your arms by your side.

2. Fit of the Collar

   . All too often jackets either sit away from the neck or there is a ridge that forms behind the neck. You should also care how the suit looks from behind not just the front.

3. Fit across the back

   . The jacket should sit cleanly across the back. There should be minimal creases, any that form horizontally are normally an indication the jacket is too tight.

4. Sleeve length

   . It is important to show ½ to ¾ of an inch of shirt cuff.

5. Tailoring of lapels

   . Pay special attention to lapels and try and avoid skinny ones! On a jacket that is well made lapels should roll softly to the point where the jacket buttons. This is all part of the handwork that goes into a bespoke suit.

6. Waistline fit

   . The amount of 'shape' at the waist derives not just from the fit but the cut. As a tailoring house Cad and the Dandy cut a strong waist but never a tight jacket.

7. Trouser fit

   . Belts with suits should be avoided, a trouser and the wearer look cleaner and smarter without. They should fit smoothly across the seat by sitting correctly on the wearers waist, not like a low slung pair of jeans.

8. Trouser length

   . Trouser length is a personal one but ideally Cad and the Dandy like to see a slight break at the top of the shoe front and the trouser to hang straight at the back.

Lesson 2 coming soon. Class dismissed.