Edward Green and John Lobb last comparison

This side by side comparison of Edward Green and John Lobb lasts has been posted previously in StyleForum. Worth repeating for those curious about the shape of English lasts.

Northampton shoemaking

One of two shoemaking epicenters in England, the Northamptonshire region went from 45 shoe factories right after World War II to just five. According to this AskAndy thread, the remaining five are:

• Edward Green
• John Lobb
• Church
• Crockett & Jones
• Trickers

Not surprisingly, these are rather familiar names to those who wear them.

Kilgour's new website

Kilgour has launched a new website. The Savile Row Bespoke, their traditional bespoke offering, entails:

• 80 hours of work
• 4,000 baste stitches through the chest
• Cut, sewn and finished in Savile Row

It appears this conforms to the Savile Row Bespoke Code described in an earlier entry.

The appeal of Brioni

This confessional thread explains the drawing power of the Brioni silhouette. Very sensible for most business settings and works well for a number of body types.

Independent NY tailors v. Savile Row

For those considering the bespoke option, this is an excellent AskAndy thread to mull over on the tradeoffs involved between going local (principally New York) v. Savile Row visiting tailors.

I enjoyed especially the discussion of Dege & Skinner v. Raphael.

More on Jack Taylor

Today I came across a couple of links showing photos of Mr. Taylor and a customer going through an initial appointment.

Another blogger met with the Taylors earlier this year and took photos of the couple and finished garments lined up on a rack (scroll to the February 1, 2006 entry).

On The Fedora Lounge, there are additional photos in a recent discussion thread, this time of an initial measurement with Mr. Taylor's head cutter/tailor, whose name I believe is Sam.

More photos appear in this AskAndy thread, including one that features a Jack Taylor suit with a more set-in shoulder.

Update: Taylor in a Men's Style video interview.