Tailor report: Henry Herbert

A few months ago I began a process with Charlie Collingwood, a visiting tailor that had just set up his own business called Henry Herbert. He had initially taught himself to make shirts but, following a stint shadowing a few East End tailors, began cutting suits as well.

Charlie offered to make me a suit in order to review the service. I opted for a mid-grey pick-and-pick super-140s merino wool with a bronze-coloured lining, to make a three-piece single-breasted suit.

At the first fitting I was impressed with the cut of the trousers, which followed the curve of the small of my back very well. This enables them to stay higher up the waist without slipping down and without braces.

The seat was rather tight so I asked for that to be altered. I also asked for the jacket to be shortened – and for this to be taken from the top rather than the bottom as the waist button was already rather low. And I asked for the waistcoat to be cut lower, as four buttons were showing from under the jacket.

At the second fitting the seat seemed a little better, but still tight. The waistcoat looked the same. And I swear the jacket had been shortened from the bottom, though Charlie said this was not the case. I may have been mistaken.

The waistcoat had to be remade, which Charlie agreed to do. This was generous, for the cloth was not cheap. But while it seemed to be an improvement at first glance, and the lapels were cut lower, the fit elsewhere was a little lacking. It stood about half an inch away from my shirt collar and was big at the sides.

The jacket is fine, though there is some tightness across the top of the sleeve. The cloth, I should say, is absolutely lovely and the lining goes very well.

Looking back on the fitting process, it was noticeable that 90% of the comments made about the suit were by me, at Charlie’s inquiry. Chalkings spurred by his own observations were fewer.

Charlie says he cuts the cloth himself, but the suit was made at a CMT (cut, make and trim) house in northern England. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with a CMT house – some good tailors offer a CMT service themselves. And most houses offer a big range of construction options. Indeed, the new waistcoat from Charlie had a ticket in the pocket with the ‘hand stitching’ option ticked.

I think this, however, referred to the decorative stitching on the lapels, which was done by machine for effect. And there is little handwork elsewhere. The lining is all attached by machine, the buttonholes done by machine and the sleeves attached similarly. Short of taking the jacket apart, there is no evidence of handwork that I can see. The canvas of the chest is floating, not fused, but appears to be attached by wonder webbing rather than hand stitches.

In the end, there’s nothing wrong with a travelling tailor and there are two very distinct aspects to his service – the quality of the construction he gets from his outsourced tailors and his ability to communicate the figuration to them. Though of course it makes the whole thing easier if this is all done in the same building.

Charlie’s prices run from £600 to £1400, starting at super 70s and adding roughly £100 for every extra ‘super 10’.

www.henryherbert.com