Tailored suits, or indeed any tailored fit, be it a pencil skirt or a tuxedo jacket, has a lot to do with the signature fit of the maker. Every house has its own set of 'blocks', these are the basic patterns that each garment is created from, unless the designer works with drapery. The subtleties within the block, which is the basic outlines of a bodice, skirt, pants, dress and jacket, is often what makes you fit one designer better than another. The original cut suits your shape and it’s always variations of the same fit.
Suits for women are trickier than suits for men, we have curves to shape around. That’s when great tailoring coming into play. Each designer has a style in which they craft the clothes we love, using textiles that work not just for the collection or the season, but the drape and fit of the curves mentioned above.
Stella McCartney, a big favorite for a lot of us, uses a tailored drape, working with the fabric’s weight, to create garments that feel both grand and relaxed. If you've ever put on one of her dinner jackets, or her tailored pants, you understand what we are talking about. Fitting the shoulder and arm, the hip bones and waist, the rest fits elegantly, often described as 'over-sized' but more correctly labeled as well-fitted. It’s the kind of elegance in tailoring that makes the woman wearing it feel unrestricted, but still very chic.
Directional Fashion
When shopping for women's suits, be it a skirt suit or pantsuit, or maybe just a blazer, know that the flexibility of these items can be tremendous. No longer are ladies suits associated exclusively with nine-to-five, a grey suit no longer automatically spells 'lawyer'. Heels off, sneakers and denim jacket on, or vice versa, keeping the jacket on and whipping on some heels and a pair of jeans. It’s a five minute solution to just about any occasion between 6 and 8 p.m. We also love how street style has influenced the way women wear tailoring, in particular, the popularity of high-waisted, floor-sweeping pants that make the legs go for days. Crisp tailored shirts, heavy knits, miniskirts and sandal heels, the inspiration right now is bountiful.
By building up your closet with these kind of investment pieces, you have the right direction to take any outfit in, at any season. Add your most frivolous purchase from last season, that sequin dress, with a dinner jacket and loafers. Wear a navy suit with the wildest pair of heels you own. Put on a pencil skirt with your man's turtleneck sweater. Good tailoring means you'll feel great in the clothes you’re wearing, which is surely the whole reason why we should shop.