Ruminations on the A. Caraceni Bespoke DB Suit
Last summer, I commissioned a navy chalk stripe suit from Augusto Caraceni of Milan. A year and three fittings later, I received the finished garment. Here are some thoughts about the suit and how it compares with my Steed DB suit.
Left: Caraceni, Right: Steed
I didn’t give many instructions to Carlo and Max, intending my first commission to reflect the unadulterated Caraceni house style. Various online lore had made me expect Caraceni to be an Italian interpretation of the drape cut, of which Steed is a foremost proponent. But my suit turned out to have a very different silhouette compared to my Steed garments.
The chest fits quite closely, with little drape. The shoulders are about 1″ narrower than Steed’s, but they are strongly defined and thus give more presence than measurements would indicate. The generous lapels further reinforce the effect of those shoulders–1/4″ wider than Steed’s.
A. Caraceni double-breasted jackets are known for their ability to be buttoned either as a 6x2, or in the 6x1 configuration. My specimen is no exception.
The soft canvas and the presence of two anchor buttons instead of one, are what make this transformation possible. Steed’s construction is also quite soft and I’m sure that it would be trivial add this feature to a Steed DB suit.
A. Caraceni doesn’t put as much effort into pattern matching as one would expect. First, the good parts: patterns around the pockets match very well, and I appreciate the fact that the waist darts don’t make the lines disappear.
However, the pipings on the besom pockets aren’t made of the same fabric as the suit, which avoids having to match patterns there. More importantly, the collar doesn’t match, either in the front or the back.
This isn’t a departure from their usual practice. I raised the topic of pattern matching with Carlo and Max at the final fitting, and they insisted that doing it on the collar isn’t possible. Carlo allowed me to examine his own suit–indeed, the master cutter’s collar didn’t have matched patterns either.
Personally, I don’t really mind the pattern not matching at the gorge, but I do expect it to match at the scruff. This is a puzzling blindspot in their otherwise impressive workmanship.
And it is impressive. In fact, this is the finest-finished garment that I own. Caraceni took the time to blunt all the corners, including the collar, the hem, and the sleeve ends. The hand pick-stitching is expertly executed without being crassly abundant. The buttonholes are exquisitely made. Steed’s buttonholes are equally well done, though I find Caraceni’s teardrop-shaped rendering a bit more attractive.
The Caraceni lapel buttonhole. Not a Milanese buttonhole though. Parisian tailors named the “boutonnière milanaise” after the silk gimp made in the region, rather than the origin of the buttonhole itself.
The sleeves have four buttons, featuring three working buttonholes and one sham hole, as is typical in bespoke. Usually, the reason for the sham hole is to make it easier to lengthen the sleeve for a taller second-hand wearer–the tailor simply needs to rip it out and add a new working hole at the other end. I was bemused, therefore, to find that the sleeve has no reserve fabric at all; this is a sleeve that can’t be let out from the hem.
It’s the first time that I’ve seen a sleeve finished this way. It certainly makes for a very neat look for those who care to notice, at the expense of future alterations.
I can say unequivocally that my Steed suits are more comfortable and offer a greater range of movement than my Caraceni. This can be attributed to the ease around the armholes that’s inherent to the drape cut, as well as Steed’s roomier sleevehead. Perhaps there is room for improvement in my pattern that could narrow the comfort gap; this is one of the matters I shall raise with Carlo and Max on a future visit.
All things considered, I love my new A. Caraceni suit. It’s very different from my Steed DB suit, but to my eyes they both look good in their own ways. I haven’t made up my mind as to which silhouette I prefer, though Steed has a fair lead in the comfort department.
The out-of-box fit is excellent, but as the first commission, it inevitably isn’t perfect. Particularly, the fit around the waist could be tidier. I’m sure that my concerns will be expertly addressed on my next visit to the A. Caraceni atelier in Milan.
