Sew Generously Bespoke, LLC

Sew Generously Bespoke, LLC

5.0(1 review)

About

These days most tailors only offer made-to-measure services, incorrectly describing their suits as “bespoke.”

My made-to-measure services are referred to as made-to-measure, and are of highest quality and reasonable price. If I call a suit “bespoke,” it is because I crafted the suit by my own hand, from start to finish. This is a circa 100-hour process involving multiple fittings and full customization.

I have a passion for my work that is unrivaled. I spent the first 10 years of my training ceaselessly sitting at a machine, or with a needle and thimble; I sew buttonholes as meditation on plane rides, I get overly enthusiastic about the roll of a hand-stitched lapel.

Whether you require bespoke or Made-to-Measure services, or just alterations, you can be sure I will do the job with passion and precision.

Instagram.com/sewgenerouslybespoke

https://yelp.to/qTKq/RU8G6yOAOP

I have a pronounced case of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). This drives my work in two ways.

Firstly, the repetitive nature of the work is soothing to my soul. What other would think of as tedium is literally medicinal to me. I sew buttonholes on scraps of fabric on plane rides to calm my nerves and still my body.

Secondly, my obsessive nature drives me to further my skill more and more. I obsess over techniques and skills, always wanting just 1% more from myself this time than the time prior. o am always pushing myself to be a little better, and the push satisfies my spirit.

Besides this, I feel a spiritual calling to sew as well. When I sew, I feel that it truly brings me closer to the heart of the Creator. My sewing is a form of focused meditation, which brings me at times to a place of peace.


Highlights

2 employees
12 years in business
Serves Seattle , WA

Social media


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PO

Priscilla O.

David saved my wedding dress!
... Show more
September 17, 2018

Frequently asked questions

For Made-to-Measure and alterations, no appointment is necessary, though I will be happy to help give an understanding of price ranges.

If you are interested in a bespoke suit, made entirely by my hand, I would love to set time aside for a consultation. A bespoke suit represents an ongoing conversation between a tailor and his customer. You can expect that there will be 3-4 fittings before your suit is complete, and the overall process takes around two months.

I worked at Nordstrom for the first seven years of my career, beginning as an apprentice (learning alterations) and working my way up to assistant manager before I left to make my own way in the world.

Towards the end of that time, I began to seek training from local bespoke tailors. I learned everything from how to draft and cut, to how to make up a suit using the best practices possible.

There are a lot of shortcuts available in tailoring, especially in bespoke. So often, it is possible to hurry through the work the customer will never see or notice. It is always my practice to stay on the narrow road, where true tailoring by hand meets with best practices to create the most exquisitely crafted piece of workmanship available.

My alterations follow a standard price list, with possible wiggle room for special situations (such as beadwork or fine detail that may require more time).

My Made-to-Measure suits begin at $1,200 for a two-piece suit and can go up from there based on many factors, but mostly fabric choice. These suits are high quality, full-canvas construction with hand details finished by myself (such as hand-sewn buttonholes, surgeon's cuffs, etc.). These suits are 2/3 completed in a factory overseas (with very high standards of workmanship) before they are sent to me for final fitting and finishing work.

My bespoke work begins at $4,000 for a two piece suit and can go up from there based on fabric choice or number of pieces desired.

All of my suits are made with high quality fabric - I will not make suits from terrible materials. The "low-end" fabrics I have to offer are some of the higher end choices of off-the-rack retail brands.

In 2006, as I was walking to classes at Western Washington University, I was meditating on a Bible verse that states that "those who sow generously will reap generously, and those who sow sparingly shall reap sparingly."

At that moment, God spoke to me (nearly audibly, it seemed) and told me "You will sew generously, and the nations will reap what you sew and have food to eat."

I knew without a shadow of a doubt, that God was calling me to become a tailor (not a farmer), and that understanding hit me like a ton of bricks. I just stood there stupidly for about five minutes before I decided I'd better listen, so I skipped classes that day to go get what I needed to learn to sew. That is to say, I had no prior experience.

That began a truly spectacular journey which brought me through employment in Nordstrom alterations, apprentices with bespoke tailors, and finally starting my own business.

In keeping with my calling, it is my goal within one year of moving to my space to donate a portion of my proceeds to support food infrastructure relief worldwide, so the people of the world may, indeed, have food to eat from what I sew.

Although bespoke tailoring services (and suit making in general) is ordinarily considered a men's service, I do not limit myself thusly. I make it my goal to be as inclusive as possible with all my work, whether it be alterations or suit making.

All people from all walks of life are welcome in my shop. It's not that I don't care who you are, it's that I do care who you are, and I'm happy you came.

One of my favorite suits I made was a rust red wool-silk tuxedo with espresso facings and a mandarin collar. This tuxedo came out beautifully and the wearer looked fantastic.

But my favorite thing about this tuxedo was that it was being worn for their wedding at the Burning Man festival out in the desert, out in sand storms and desert heat. Seeing the tuxedo covered in sand and dust at their ceremony was very special to me. A suit is best when it has a good story to live into.

Three questions you should always ask if you are looking for bespoke work:

Will ALL your work be done in-house?

The answer should be one word: yes. If it is anything more complicated than that, you are probably being lied to.

May I see a piece in progress?

Any bespoke tailor that is not currently working on a suit that is halfway done is almost certainly having their work done for them in a factory, and using the word "bespoke" unfaithfully.

Do you padstitch your lapels by hand?

Proper padstitching of lapels on a small scale must be done by hand. A padstitching machine costs around $50,000 USD, and you need two of them (one for each side of the suit) for a total investment of around $100,000. If a tailor is padstitching their lapels by machine, but isn't using a $100,000 pair of padstitching machines, they are using a simple blindstitch machine and are doing it patently wrong.

When looking at a lapel from the inside, a hand-stitched lapel will look like rows of disconnected chevron stitches, whereas a machine-stitched lapels will be connected together in one long thread.

NEVER buy a suit from a small-business tailor who does their work in-house and machine stitches their lapels. They are either doing them wrong, or lying to you about doing their work in-house.

First, educate yourself about the canvas construction of suits. Buying a suit that is not of half-canvas or full-canvas construction is not a good use of money, unless you essentially just need to wear something that looks like a suit.

Second, ask yourself how much you want to spend. A good half-canvas suit can be purchased for around $600 if you know where to look (I'd be happy to give recommendations).

Lastly, avoid big brand names. While Armani or Gucci may sound fancy coming out of your mouth, you will be paying mostly for a label (many Armani suits are not even half-canvas construction, and Gucci doesn't ususally take time to match their plaids).


Services offered

Alterations