The Indochino Signature Collection

We don’t often pay proper tribute to the men of the 1960s—those dapper gentlemen who
enjoyed whiskey, casual entertainment, and the finer things in life. And yet we should, especially
when it comes to their style. An extension of the Hedonist Collection and a callback to the
hard-working, male-dominated ‘60s, the Signature Collection introduces new customization
features, including four new linings and gold color buttonhole. The result? A sartorial homage
that combines smart, classic tailoring with modern elegance. 
(taken from the Indochino Signature Collection Lookbook)

Today, Indochino added a couple of new items, basically in the same vein as the Hedonist Collection. There are a number of new pinstripe suits and even a tweed suit - but not your classic Harris Tweed, it's navy blue suit (100% cotton). Another instant favorite of mine is The London Grey 3-piece suit.

The Navy Walker Suit

London Grey 3 Piece Suit

I got a couple of questions regarding new Indochino Outerwear and me feeling was right - there are three new pieces introduced with today's Collection, inlcuding The Luxe Coat and The Black Double-Breasted Overcoat. I was personally hoping for a cool tweed jacket (Harris Tweed!), but perhaps with the next round! Some of the coats look pretty cool and I'm actually in the need for one to wear above a suit.

The Luxe Coat

Something I completely didn't notice when scanning through the new items and originally wrote this - there are more customizations (actually, the whole process of "designing" your suit was overhauled). Thanks to Frank Stallone for letting me know in the comments section of this article. If you click on "Advanced" a new screen pops up and you cannot only choose the familiar customizations, there are now also options to choose natural shoulders with less padding and higher armholes for more movement in the arms. I have to say that those additions are well thought of and really add something that many users have been requesting for some time. For the new suits there are some more linings (funky and now easier to choose - bigger pictures) and extras such as more lapel choices or golden threads on the buttonholes. 

Dolbeau Custom Ties

from the Dolbeau Lookbook
http://www.dolbeau.ca/

Ok, so for once this isn't about Indochino but about another online custom company - more specifically Dolbeau, maker of custom neckties and bow-ties. A few weeks ago I was chatting with a fellow Indochino aficionado (Chad) about ties. Him being a rather short guy and me being rather tall, we both have our occasional problems with ties. If I want to have a bolder, bigger knot they often come out too short while Chad sometimes ends up with ties too long for his size. I did some research on custom made ties then, but did not really find anything. Today, I stumbled across an article on Valet Mag, introducing Dolbeau Custom Ties.

I'll quote from Valet Mag here to describe in a nutshell what Dolbeau is all about:

When David Caplan and David Gross started Dolbeau, a just-launched line of neckwear, it was based on three simple principles: Local manufacturing, high-quality handmade goods and easy online customization. The result is an easy-to-use website that allows you to choose from a wide range of ties (both traditional and bow ties) and tailor them to your taste. The two-tone ties—ideal for sporting a little sprezzatura—can be ordered in three widths, with your choice of tips (standard, flat or dagger) and in lengths ranging from 54 to 66 inches. The bow ties are reversible and also come in three styles with your choice of buttons (might we suggest the leather?). The debut label is hard at work on some ties cut from rich suiting wools due out later this fall and recently finished the work on a collaboration with local Montreal shop Rooney, which has just hit the store's shelves. (Valet Mag Online, September 21 2010)

Valetmag also adds a coupon: Enter the code VALETMAG for 20% off your purchase (valid through Oct. 21).  I was in contact with David from Dolbeau about a tie purchase and they completely changed their international delivery prices now - from 40$ per item down to 0$ - fantastic! I ordered the Stratford tie and I'm very curious to see how it fits with my recently ordered Indochino Ultimate Grey Suit!

More about Dolbeau here: http://www.dolbeau.ca/

New Brown Suit and new Ties

Hedonist Brown 3-Piece Suit

Indochino had a smaller update today, introducing the Hedonist Brown 3-Piece Suit (click pic above) and some new ties. It's true this is just a small update, but I really do like some of the new ties and have actually been thinking about a brown suit. I'm not into 3-piece suits very much, simply because it would look out of place at my workplace, but the look is pretty sleek. 

Indochino Blueprint Windowpane Suit Review

A while ago I ordered my second Indochino suit - I always promised a review, but never really found the time to take pictures and write a bit about it. The suit I bought was part of a monthly collection and no longer available, but the review and the pictures are still helpful I guess! This link should take you to the new arrivals on Indochino, there is a new collection introduced pretty much every month.

I didn't need another suit in a solid color, so the Blueprint collection came just right. I managed to get one of the last Windowpane Blueprint suits (I have written about that collection earlier, but the images are gone now), chose one of the new linings (pretty funky, but not entirely fit for business use) and took 1 inch off the jacket length. I did this, because my girlfriend kept telling me my other suit jackets are too long and look "old style". Little does she know about the rules of suit style, but it does seem that shorter jackets are quite in fashion now. Anyway, I got this one jacket a bit shorter, but I won't do it again. It looks cool from the front (in my opinion), but it doesn't quite cover my bottom and while mine isn't fat (yet), I don't feel very comfortable knowing that. Be that as it may, enough of the words and on to some photos.

Indochino Windowpane Suit

Blueprint lining

more posing

Blueprint lining details

and a last one

The suit itself feels great. A bit stiffer around the lapels compared to my first Indochino suit, but that might just be due to the updated construction used (I didn't cut my suit open for inspection, but they are supposed to have canvas in the lapels now). Buttons are sewn very solidly again, no lose threads anywhere, the Indochino master tailor this time really earns his name. 

The whole jacket fit perfectly fine right from the start, for some reason the pants turned out really tight though. My tailor managed to widen them by about an inch and they fit better now - as long as I don't gain any weight, that is. If you ask yourself why I didn't get the jacket remade an inch longer - the reason is simple, the Windowpane fabric was sold out then. I'm looking forward to the next collections - I got my measurements figured out now hopefully (will add an inch to crotch and obviously 1-1.5 to jacket length for the next one though).

Best,
Lorenz

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Indochino Suit Bag Suggestion

Suit bags are essential, especially for short term trips where it does not make sense to bring a big suitcase. I usually carry the suit in suit bags separately anyway, to avoid wrinkles. My favorite bag can be folded in half and fixed on the edges with two simple clicks. Furthermore, it includes handles, so you don't have to carry it on the metal part of the hanger. 

my favorite suit bag can be folded and includes handles

Up until now I didn't really use my Indochino suit bags (they send one for free with every suit), but for a recent trip I wanted to give them a try. Unfortunately, the 2 bags I have seem to be faulty. As can be seen in the picture below, the end of the zip is not done properly, so you cannot actually close the zip. In fact, the bag becomes completely useless, as it just opens up after a while. Well, you could use it to put a suit in a suitcase, but not to carry one around.

Indochino bag: zip cannot be closed

It'd be great if you could take a quick look at your bags and see if they have the same construction mistake (let me know in the comments). If yes, I'll write Angie a quick email about it - that's something that should be very easy to fix.

Update: 
As usual, Angie was very quick to reply and very helpful. Indochino is already looking into the problem and I'm sure they'll fix it soon. Also, I wasn't aware that the Indochino bags can in fact be folded (like my favourite bag), so they are easier to cary around:

"Also, our suit bags are designed to be folded. There should be a pocket, place the hanger through the hole on the opposite end of the pocket side and then fold and put the pocket over the other end and through the hole.  It should be a half circle and say Indochino upright on it." Angie, Indochino Customer Service via emai

Indochino's thoughts on the Fashion Industry

"To the critics, here's our succinct thought abt the fashion industry."

So, Indochino doesn't agree with GQ et al.? I would have thought they endorse those magazines and the Fashion Industry, being proud to respond to trends quickly with their monthly collections. Or do I not get the message of the photo above?

The Indochino Hedonist Gentlemen Collection

I'm a bit late this time with the news, my little Greek holiday hideaway experienced an electric blackout, preventing me from checking my emails and writing about the new Indochino Collection and the updated Indochino Website. The functionality/structure of the website remained pretty much the same, but features updated photos of most products, new background images, new fonts and some other changes that I will go more into depth incl. screenshots. My first impression was that everything seems much more fashion forward now, with female models and probably a different photographer.

As mentioned earlier, the big new collection is called "The Hedonist Gentleman Collection". 

The Hedonist Gentleman Collection features luxurious velvet and elegant pinstripes, inspired by the hard-working, pleasure seeking 1950's and 60's man. The “Hedonist” updates those classic styles with slimmer silhouettes and colorful customization for added personality and fun.

The biggest surprise of the new collection are probably the 3 velvet (made from cotton) suits (and one blazer), available in 2 browns, velvet and navy.

The Borsalino Brown Velvet Suit

Overall, the suits have broader lapels (compared to the slim lapels of the previous collections) and I'm sure many of you will be happy to see that many suits now have detailed fabric descriptions (thread count, weight, etc.).  Furthermore, the model's suits are now also a bit longer again, more suitable for work environments.

Apart from the velvet suits, the new collection also brings a new Navy fabric and a couple of pinstripe fabrics, like the Mason Grey Suit pictured below. Some of the fabrics are a bit on the heavier side, suitable for winter.

The Mason Grey Suit

But not only are there new products, Indochino also used the opportunity to remove some older products, including the just recently introduced (and controversial) Unibomber Jacket. The low number (3) of outerwear products currently available suggests some more to come with the colder season.

Apart from the new suits, a couple of shirts have been added. Dark fabrics, which I personally dislike, but I assume many people like.

Usually, coupons quickly lose their validity once a new collection gets online, but I did a quick check on some and they mostly still seem to work.