The question of taking the jacket off reminded me of my grand-mother telling me my grand-father never allowed himself to take his jacket off, even by quite high temperatures when they lived in Angola 😊
Terrific job, Preston! I was enthralled. Loved your historical sleuth-work. But gee, if Nelson actually *was* a design prodigy from age 9, is it possible he originally sought the admiral gig to showcase his fashion cachet? - I've long suspected Prince of doing something like that.
Such a good video. At some point, each member of the gentlemen's gazette should explain their dream suit if they have to rebuild a 1 suit or 3 suit collection
I do not know what I just watched, but I loved it! Wow! No joke. What a nearly perfect production. Internet, you do not disappoint. I am going to watch all your videos.
I purchased two suits a few years back. A Canali, and an Ermenegildo Zegna suit. Both came with the option to get surgeons cuffs- which I of course opted for, because why not? Anyways, with those suits, the sleeves were left blank and the in store tailor made the functioning button holes after the alterations, so no worries about sleeve length. But yes, they stitch first, cut after. Personally, I like it. Hand sewn is nice, hand made is nice, but it's just not practical for the average person's financial situation.
Totally love that 1650s overcoat... now wondering where I'd find a pattern to make one... That brown jacket may not be top end but it sure is a flattering color and fit.
That Omega was the perfect choice. It's cool to hear Federico is a fan of the channel and is working with you all now. May I make a suggestion for the next watch to feature on your channel? A JLC Reverso, it fits just perfectly with the general style and level of formality you all prefer and is the epitome of "classic".
I usually hope having working cufs on all of my jacket, i feel like change in airflow with open or closed cufs is dramatic on hot or cold day. I especially love when they have some kind of adjustmen posible. Lovely seamaster!
I have a Tyrwhitt Signature suit with surgeon's cuffs. Definitely not a high-quality suit, but I paid $28 for it on Ebay. That price raises Raphael's letter grade from D+ to a C+.
I typically purchase made-to-measure suits with surgeons cuffs. I've always held the opinion that working buttons signified a better suit, although that's no longer the case, but you hit on a big advantage in my opinion. In warmer climates I always open a few buttons to catch a slight breeze.
Many historians believe the sleeve buttons started as a single button so that gloves could be secured. Later, more “shiny” buttons were added to distinguish Officers from enlisted men. It was both custom and regulation among European Armies that Officers were not to be targeted on the battlefield so that “leaderless Armies” did not run rampant. Basically the more shiny bling a person wore, the more important and privileged they were.
I knew something about surgeon's cuff, but this video enlightened me more. But I observe that the speaker while wearing a knitted tie having horizontal stripes should have been avoided with a check pattern shirt. I learned such clothing ethics from this as well as other websites.
Thanks for your video team GG ! It's funny that this comes out today as I just went to pick up my finished sartoria partenopea suit jacket with surgeon's cuffs !
I hate when I have a suit without working buttons, I feel like a dandy with decorative buttons. I have a couple like that, what I can't deal with is a pocket that was sewed shut. I had one once so I ripped it open and it worked. It wasn't a full pocket but it held a square.
While not fully confirmed I would also highlight that the idea of cuff buttons goes back all the way to medieval times. The pour pont/gambeson of Chales de Blois shows buttons not just up along the front of the torso but also from just above the elbow and to the cuff. This would be a style of higher fashion based upon the arming jackets that knights and higher nobles would wear. The difference e being they were generally fastened with leather or cloth laces rather than buttons. The buttons did serve the function of granting a tight fit to the fore arm which for a functioning arming jacket would allow the vambrace to be snuggly fit to the limb. Whether or not this is a direct ancestor to what would eventually become our modern day suit jacket, it's an interesting possible thought to think such designs would stretch back so far. Edited for lack of phone texting skills.
Fun fact: if you are competent at doing a basic buttonhole stitch (and, if you truly are making buttonholes I hope you are using an awl as is correct, a chisel as is passable.... instead of a loathsome scissor snip!) you now also know the basic stitch for macrame/lanyard/friendship bracelet, nålbindning (sometimes known as "viking knitting") and the "hardiest rough lace" method of lacemaking, which is a bit of an over-exaggeration for the perfectly pretty victorian art of tatting (which is worked with a tiny shuttle alone, or maybe onto another thread, and I use this method in place of knitted laces, such as detachable collars (like RBG wore), as well as edgings for cuffs, pillows and--shudder--even antimassaccars and *doilies* ! It is an incredibly useful versatile stitch, and is the most basic stitch onto which on can build more complex finishing and/or decoration and/or strength, for it appears in of many traditional embroidery stitches, weaving, tailoring, upholstering, leatherwork, shoemaking/cobbling and millinery, to name but a few!
I used to have flared cuffs with a corner turn when ordering suits some 45 years ago. Flared cuffs continue to be attractive on mens suits and jackets.
A few years ago when I first started out being interested in classic men's wear, I bought a second hand linen jacket by Gant. It had working cuff buttons, but the lowest of these wasn't even cut open, so that it was impossible to button it. Like a bit of very forced sprezzatura. This annoyed me to no end, I just thought it was incredibly silly.
Great video! I love surgeon’s cuffs. I’d take a cheaper jacket off the rack with working buttons any day. I could never understand the non functional buttons. It seems more pretentious than the alternative. Everything on a suit should work and have purpose.
When I bought my first suit as a youth graduating high school (1977) there was no option. All suits had cuff buttons. Lower quality suits had non-functioning buttons just sewn on. Better suits had fully functioning buttonholes....but not so close together as today's suits.
A bespoke suit will usually have functional buttons. It's a more "high-end" solution and there's no need to worry about the fit. But in case of ready-to-wear jacket I wouldn't insist on having surgeon's cuffs because adjusting the sleeve length then becomes tricky or even impossible. One is very unlikely to use the feature anyway and most people don't care about these details. In the past the situation was different because a man would be expected to wear this type of jacket even while doing physical work.
By and large, surgeon’s cuff is nothing but a sartorial fun fact which no more has practical nor aesthetic function in men’s fashion nowadays. As you said, some men want to show off that they have expensive bespoke suit with working buttons - would it impress me? Nope, certainly not, because in reality they have no advantage over those who have permanent stitched buttons. Nevertheless the quality, historical background and substantive aspect of your video is good as always !
Wouldn't it make way more sense that style or to prevent snagging they had a tapered sleeve, which required button so you could get your hands thru the sleeve and then secure your sleeve. I'm not a Historian, nor do I know anything about the buttons, but that's my very first guess.
I agree with your conclusion. I have a suit that is MTM by a bespoke tailor with surgeon cuffs on the jacket. It's a neat feature and I like the history of it, but overall it's not necessary. I simply added the detail because it is was my first experience getting a suit made just for me. If someone wants to save money on MTM or bespoke tailoring or is buying an OTR suit, skipping on the surgeon cuff is a valid choice.
*2 thoughts* Having surgeon cuff doesn't mean high quality, I just saw a few BR suits with it just last month, *but its absence can be a heads-up for low quality especially when you are shopping online*. surgeon cuff can still be adjusted for half inch without throwing the sleeve off balance. Yes, suitsupply usually have short jacket sleeve, and its overcoat sleeve is at the same length as jacket. I highly recommend buying costume made suitsupply as its only about 15% more expensive than RTW. They have quite some options for materials and styles.
Another great video with a bit of history. Thank you for the neatly paced and informational content! One question: Assuming the average gentleman owns a car, how on earth do others get by with styled hair and proper winter headwear? Hats are nice, but hardly keep your ears warm. Any tips around this topic?
Hello, I am one of the chaps who wrote this video, and this is a question that I have often been asked. It depends on what kind of hairstyle you have, whether it's waxed, standing, long or pompadour styled; England was never cold enough to warrant them, but you could always look at ear muffs (that wrap behind the head) if you live in a cold climate. These are subtle and don't affect the top of the head. Perhaps a deer stalker if you're looking for something classic. You can untie the flaps to cover your ears. If it's really cold I recommend a fur trapper hat. At any rate keeping yourself warm and safe is much more important than looking good.
@@AntiqueMenswear I've noticed the freezing red ears when our chaps go out in that Minnesota winter... My uncle always wore a huntsman's cap in winter... with interior flaps to cover the ears. I throw fashion to the wind and wear a trapper hat (but I work outdoors in all weather... a more fashionable hat would be literally gone with the wind...) BTW any more info on that 1650s overcoat? quite stunning. Tried to find a pattern and more pics, but no joy. Some fascinating stuff on your own channel... subscribed!!
@@AntiqueMenswear Much appreciated! Some outfits are more about form than function, however health should come first. Would be great to at least see an article on the topic. At first glance, there is nothing relevant about "winter headwear/hats with styled hair". There are plenty of articles about hairstyles in winter though.
Hello from Philippines. All my coats are custom fit, worth $10,000 each or more.. but i noticed a thing that i just founded out when i was checking videos here THEY DONT HAVE BUTTONS IN SLEEVES 😭😭 is that bad? 😭 Im so nervous right now because these stuffs are so so expensive. I didn't notice it because i just wear them without really being aware of it I looked at generic suits and coats from designer brands literally right now, im seeing buttons in sleeves too
I am very happy with the fit of RTW jackets, except of the sleeves, which are always too long (about 1.5-2“) for my arms. Thus I need to have the sleeves shortened, and working button holes make this nearly impossible.
Have we even considered, if they do not function, why do they have buttons? Purely decorative. When will we get jackets without the buttons altogether? Perhaps I'll start that trend.
I personally hate working cuffs on RTW jackets since I always need to get the sleeves shortened. I stay clear of any RTW jackets from Charles Tyrwhitt since all of their cuffs are working cuffs. I love that they have different lengths in each jacket size, but I need a size 38R for best jacket length but for best sleeve length I need a 38S. If they just went for sham cuffs I could order a 38R and get the sleeves shortened for a fair price.
Well in serbia and (ex yugoslavia ig) we had the joke that soldiers and poliece men had buttons on the sleeve to discourage face wiping XD but the joke is for example croatian, yugoslavian and serbian military coats and shirts are barely buttoned on the arms...
Why was my comment put on mute? I watch this channel consistently for 4 years, and when I decide to make a comment you put it on mute? It was in no way offensive or controversial. Since you love censorship I have other channels to spend my time and clicks on. Good day, sir! Unsubscribed.
