Unique Chic
The fashion world is going mad for made-to-measure, and nothing whispers luxury more than la grande mesure
Words by Catherine Richards Golini
Parisian tailors at
Eglé create bespoke
shirts and jeans at
affordable pricesIn an age of the fake and the mass-market, unique products are the one true luxury. There’s no limit to what you can pay for bespoke, but much depends on where you go, the cost of local labour and the materials and technique involved. True bespoke, the more skilled of the two, should refer to a unique pattern, while made-to-measure usually means a pre-existing pattern altered to suit your measurements. The initial outlay may be high but when you consider all those don’t-fit-never-worn items languishing in the back of your wardrobe, bespoke starts to make great, sartorial sense.
You don’t get much more unique than a hand-tooled, made-to-measure watch strap from Atelier du Bracelet Parisien in Paris. From toad to python to crocodile: choose from a jaw-dropping selection of natural and coloured leathers and skins. Endless customisation is possible and prices start at €70. At Parisian tailors Eglé, bespoke shirts cost from as little as €120. The company also offer bespoke jeans, where every detail, right down to the colour of the stitching, is decided by you. From €199.
Atelier du Bracelet Parisien
has a shocking array of
animal skins to create
custom wrist bands In Milan, men can treat their feet at shoemaker Riccardo Freccia Bestetti. The new ready-to-wear range (handcrafted) starts at around €600, and his beautiful bespoke footwear from around €1500 – but look after them and they’ll last 30 years. Bespoke for less than €100? It can be done at
E.Marinella where a silk tie, fabric chosen by you, can be made for around €90.
Shoe and shirt makers abound in Rome too, so while he’s getting measured she can visit Bomba. A favourite with Italian film stars, Cristina Bomba’s one-off designs can be made-to-measure. Prices for evening wear start at €380. With the dress sorted, step over to women’s shoemakers Dal Co. Choose from their current collection, more than 1,000 archived designs or, design your own, from €400.
Bomba bespoke boutique offers made-to-
measure one-off
designs for its customers
Shoes are big in Barcelona too, none more eco-friendly or affordable than the espadrille. La Manual Alpargatera, in business since the 1940s, still makes espardenyas (as they are known in Catalan) by hand, and offer an enormous range of traditional styles, all of which can be customised and made-to-measure. You’ll pay little more than €20.
La Manual Alpargateri
makes customised
espadrilles in every size
and colour conceivableExclusivity is the hallmark of historic tailors Bel Y Cia, where a bespoke shirt involving 14 different measurements can be yours for around €285. As an aside, if you’re a man maddened by uncomfy undies, the boxers are renowned. A snip at €90.
In Athens, visit Bespoke Athens for a taste of Greek chic. Run by Vassilis Bourtsalas, who has a passion for tailoring, a bespoke suit is yours for €2,500. If you’re in town for a brief visit consider its made-to-measure service: choose from the top-end ready-to-wear range, where a suit is produced to your measurements.
At the other end of the scale are sandals crafted by Pantelis Melissinos, son of retired Stavros, the famed ‘Poet sandal maker of Athens’. Pantelis (also a poet and playwright) will customise existing styles and make a pair to fit while you wait. Worn by the likes of Jackie Onassis and actor Jeremy Irons, sandals start from €21. Look out too for unique jewellery in Athens: young designer Marina Gouromihou is known for her fun, stylish pieces which can be made to order.
Shop in Istanbul for leather, much of it impossibly soft lamb skin. Insiders say shop around (quality varies considerably), and head for the streets outside the mesmerising Grand Bazaar. You can pay as little as €100 for a jacket made-to-measure. Within the Bazaar and its 4,500 shops, try SH Leather at Yerebatan Cadessi 39 or do what well-heeled locals do and choose off-the-peg at Koç. Alterations are swiftly done while you sip tea.
Bespoke Athens offers unparalleled tailoring
as well as top-end, ready-to-wear suits
And for the ultimate in unique chic, dress your bed in linen sheets, hand-embroidered to your own design. Principe Real in Lisbon, in business for 90 years (and one of the last to do manual embroidery by hand, to order) is the place to come. Prices from less than €50. Bespoke babies take note: Principe Real also produce christening gowns to cry for.
Little Black Book
Atelier du Bracelet Parisien
(28 place du marché Saint Honoré, +33 (0)1 42 86 13 70, www.abp-paris.com)
Eglé
(26 rue du Mont Thabor, +33 (0)1 44 15 98 31, www.eglebespoke.com)
Riccardo Freccia Bestetti
(via Urbano III, 4, +39 (0)2 89 42 34 92, www.frecciabestetti.com)
Silvano Lattanzi
(via Gesù 11, +39 (0)2 76 02 84 99 and at via Borgo Spesso 25, +39 (0)2 76 31 77 11)
E.Marinella
(via Santa Maria alla Porta, +39 (0)2 86 46 70 36) Bomba (via del’Oca 39/41, +39 (0)6 320 3020, www.cristinabomba.com)
Dal Co.
(via Vittoria 65, +39 (0)6 678 6536, www.dalco-roma.com)
La Manual Alpargatera
(C./Avinyó 7, +34 93 301 0172, www.lamanual.net)
Bel Y Cia
(20 Paseo de Gracia, +34 93 301 5347)
Bespoke Athens
(15-17 Anagnostopoulou st. Kolonaki, +30 210 364 5518, www.bespoke.gr)
Pantelis Melissinos
(2 Aghias Theklas St, www.melissinos-art.com)
Marina Gouromihou
(30 Imittou st. Holargos, +30 210 652 1476)
Koç
(22 & 46 Kürkçüler, +90 212 527 5553)
Principe Real
(Rua da Escola Politecnica 12, +351 21 346 59 45, www.principereal.com)
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