The leather department on the third floor of Zilli’s manufacturing facility in Lyon, southern France, is a treasure trove.
The house is best known for its velvet calf suede and glazed lambskin – the former super soft and the latter super light. But my favourite of the skins was the peccary (above).
A large pig found commonly in south America, the peccary has a wonderfully soft hide that is easily identified by its sets of three follicle holes, ranged across the skin. Fake skins rarely achieve the same effect, and normal pigs just have one.
Peccary is most often used for gloves and shoes, because the animals are relatively small and because they are still hunted by shotgun – meaning any skin has pellet marks scattered across it (see close-up below). No one breeds them, they all have to be hunted in the wild, so these marked skins are all that is available. “An average jacket will take 20 skins to make. But you might have to source 200 skins to find 20 with enough undamaged hide,” says Jean-Michel Pereira, head of communications at Zilli. Perhaps unsurprisingly given these costs, Zilli is the only company making peccary —›Read More
Following our esteemed and endlessly stylish contributor Tom Stubb's reportage of London Fashion Week in the latest issue of The Rake, we are pleased to bring to life the sartorial masterpieces of brilliant Brits E. Tautz, Oliver Spencer, Lou Dalton, and Rake. Clothes, after all, were meant to be worn in movement, and what better way to showcase this than through this snazzy video from Harry Atkinson.
One of the most valuable but unpleasant parts of using fur in clothing is staining it so that the white skin does not show through between the hairs.
In the images here, the fur department at Zilli in Lyon, southern France is staining the back of several furs. They are stapled onto a large wooden board before being painted and the whole board turned over, so they can be baked dry by heaters underneath the board.
The before and after shots are shown below. When the air or a curve of cloth separates the hairs, no white skin interrupts the luscious black surface. Most of these will be added as collar trims to Zilli's beautiful leather jackets.
Look out for more on Zilli later in the week
Photography: Luke Carby
Zilli would like it known that it only uses the fur from breeding animals
—›Read More
A decade is a long time for anything, not least for something devoted to the rather niche topic of menswear. (We know we’re waiting for the day The Rake turns 10.) Which makes it difficult to imagine that StyleForum just recently celebrated a decade in existence: from Neapolitan tailoring to New York style, from Dolce & Gabbana to Diego della Valle, this virtual drawing room for menswear enthusiasts worldwide – ourselves included – has been a colossally influential authority and companion to the industry.
To mark its tenth anniversary, StyleForum hosted a veritable cavalcade of festivities against the culturally colourful backdrop of San Francisco – quite fitting, if you ask us, considering how the site is at its essence one giant conference between a lot of different opinions.
Among its highlights was a screening of seminal Neapolitan tailoring film O’Mast, along with a dialogue session and dinner afterwards with director Gianluca Migliarotti (himself very dapperly turned out in a Ciro Palermo suit). A vendor showcase the following day brought together the finest of American artisans, including 120-year-old hatter Goorin Brothers, renowned San Franciscan haberdashery On the Fly, as well as a whole lot of George Cleverleys, —›Read More
We recently profiled Sebastiano Borrelli, the head of shirtmaking at Kiton in Naples (above). In this second part in the series, we take a closer look at what makes Neapolitan shirts, and Kiton shirts in particular, so special.
Only two things in the making of the shirt are done by sewing machine. These are the outer edges of the collars and cuffs (so as to present a cleaner, sharper line at the neck and wrist) and the side seams up the body and sleeves (to be stronger).
On the side seams, however, the machine stitching is followed by hand stitching. Someone takes a needle and thread, folds the edge of the shirt over and sews it up by hand. The idea is that this allows the shirt body to move more easily, and makes it less likely to stretch permanently. The machine stitch is merely a back up to keep the parts together. Most shirts use two lines of machine stitching on the side seams. This creates a hard little ridge of cloth that should be less comfortable than a hand-sewn edge.
The bottom edge of the shirt is all finished by hand, delicately turned —›Read More
Here at The Rake, we take it upon ourselves to promote the true values of meticulous craftsmanship, and to stand behind the artisans who purvey these standards. We recently sat down with a few of Singapore’s finest craftsmen for a series of exclusive interviews for The Rake Online.
Gerald Shen and Diana Chan, then, are two fine folks to open this series with. As the co-founders, artisans, and masterminds behind classic menswear accessory label Vanda Fine Clothing, the pair have devoted their craft towards the creation of some of the finest goods that rival – if not outclass – other older, more established ateliers.
They have an unfaltering eye for quality: they make several buying trips each year to such luminaries in the textiles industry as Vanner’s and Holland & Sherry, sourcing for the finest silks and wools to transform into ties – which are constructed as six- or seven-fold unlined creations, highlighting the quality of the fabrics. Pocket squares, too, are made from vintage, out of production kimono silks obtained directly from Japan, made sublime by a subtle but painstakingly hand-rolled hem.
To say that their business has been booming would be a gross understatement – the pair, in fact, find themselves in a constant state of cutting, folding, and stitching for customers from all over the world. To continue discussing their brilliance would be superfluous, and here we let these young visionaries speak for themselves.
On the Tie
On Wearing It
On the Label
On Dressing with Style
Vanda Fine Clothing’s website and online store can be viewed here. Gerald and Diana’s atelier is located at Blk 1014 Geylang East Ave 3, #02-218, Singapore 328729.
Following the last post in this series, showing the last making and some aspects of the making, this post uses the same photo-essay format to demonstrate how this unique design of shoe is lasted.
The last that we saw Tony make last time, together with the cross-hatched, cedar-coloured calf to be used
Daniel soaks the leather to give it the required suppleness, turns it over and begins to last it
The second nail goes in, pulling the heel over to get the right tension
The sides are progressively lasted, keeping the tension consistent
A one-piece shoe will necessarily have a lot of excess, as you can see here. This is very difficult style that not many shoemakers can make effectively, because of the need to get the tension right and deal with this excess
The excess calf needs to be trimmed off the lasted shoe, as seen on the left, and a hole cut for the foot, on the right
The finished lasted shoe, from the bottom. Note how neat the waist area now is compared to the shots above
Corthay shoes and esteemed French blogger Hugo Jacomet recently hosted a screening of La Beaute du Geste - a film shot during a classic car tour last year, where the occupants visited fellow artisans in France and Switzerland.
The event was lovely, populated with just the right people and hosted in the gorgeous Soho Hotel. But everyone was talking about the film, which was truly inspiring. The extent of that success can be measured by the fact that it made cuckoo clocks and chocolates shaped like spanners seem the highest examples of craft. "We wanted to provide a contrast between the craft of Corthay, or Swiss cabinet makers, and the more fun but no less valuable artisans," Hugo told The Rake.
A short trailer for the film, above, gives an idea of the inspiring tone, while below are photos from the event (including one of the author having a rather heated debate with Pierre Corthay).
Hermes last week released a video celebrating 'petit h', its atelier that makes use of waste parts of its making processes and recycles them. Shown below, it is funky and could pass for a decent pop video.
We at The Rake, however, recommend digging a little deeper into the Hermes YouTube channel, particularly the artisan profiles it worked up since October last year. With their quirky music and quick cuts, the style is a mix between off-beat French cinema as reflected in films such as Amelie, and factory documentaries. There are also some beautiful shots of Hermes products - such as the sheets of printed silk running across the ceiling in the first film we pick out below.
Elia Caliendo is an intense and very honest tailor. More than anything, he wants his clients to understand him, and vice versa.
He has this way of looking at you, head tilted slightly to one side and wearing a little half grin, as he explains his view on a particular aspect of tailoring. The little grin reassures you that his opinion is not to be taken too seriously; it is merely the first move in what will hopefully be a mutually beneficial conversation. When you reply, the smile disappears. This shows he is taking your opinion very seriously.
While in Naples last month, I began the process of having a summer jacket and trousers made by Elia. The ordering process meant a conversation about style details, pockets and linings etc. I love the way Neapolitan tailors do patch pockets, so I requested both the hip and outbreast pockets to be of that mode. Elia asked, seriously, genuinely, why I wanted a patch outbreast pocket. The classic Neapolitan style was for a barchetta, a curved welt pocket rather than a patch. I explained how square the English patch is, and how I wanted to differentiate from that. —›Read More
Last week Hong Kong boutique The Armoury brought over to London a collection of its favourite artisans, including Florentine tailor Liverano & Liverano - which has already been covered extensively here on The Rake - Spanish shoemaker Carmina and Japanese glasses maker Nackymade.
The three are pretty different in terms of size and style: Carmina runs a Goodyear-welting factory in Mallorca, to produce its ready-to-wear shoes, while Nackymade is just one guy, Naoki Nakagawa, who makes all his glasses himself in Kobe. Liverano, with one tailor (Antonio, pictured bottom) and a handful of tailors, sits somewhere in the middle.
Despite some tropical-style downpours, doubtless brought all the way from Hong Kong for the occasion, the trunk show went well and even brought in some passing shoppers who spied the temporary display in the windows of —›Read More
This is Seb. Sebastiano really, but Seb to us. Because we’re just that fond of him.
Sebastiano is head of shirtmaking at Kiton, overseeing the 40+ team of cutters and sewers that makes all of Kiton’s shirts in Arzano, just outside Naples. His full name is Sebastiano Borrelli. He is a scion of the famous Borrelli shirtmaking family, but left to join Kiton because of an encounter with the rather inspiring Ciro Paone, Kiton’s founder.
“He said to me, ‘how do you make the best shirts in the world?’” Seb recalls. “After some discussion of technique and manufacture he stated, ‘I want you to set up a shirtmaking department for me. You will have complete freedom to do whatever you want; cost is not an object. Just make the best shirts possible’.”
That kind of offer is inspiring, but it also brings a sense of responsibility: “I remember that always, that desire and trust in me,” Seb says. “It’s what drives me to innovate constantly.”
Recent innovations around the department include a long-sleeved polo shirt in gossamer-light cotton. Cut exactly like a shirt but with a short, square body to enable it to be —›Read More
Precious few factories are set up in the UK these days. Even fewer make high-quality menswear. We therefore welcomed enthusiastically the news back in 2010 that Emma Willis would be setting up her own shirtmaking factory in Gloucester. Perhaps the greater news, however, is that two years later the factory is still going, has expanded in products and staff, and is receiving visits from royalty. Last month the Duke of York (pictured above, centre) visited the factory, saw a shirt being cut and made, and interviewed two young trainees.
Such visits do wonders for the motivation of budding craftspeople. I found a similar atmosphere among weavers at the Corgi knitwear factory in Wales during a recent visit. Because they can do short runs at short notice, Corgi is often used by fashion designers, and the local girls crowd around Style.com after the fashion shows, looking for their pieces on the catwalk.
Emma Willis now has a far larger number of local staff enjoying this success, with the teams of cutters, machinists and finishers all doubling in size since 2010. They include Megan, pictured above cutting out a pair of boxers, and Lyn, who hand weaves —›Read More
Following previous posts on The Rake examining the design and measuring for a pair of Gaziano & Girling bespoke slip-on shoes, we take a look here at the making process at the G&G factory in Kettering, just outside Northampton.
The first stage, based on the measurements taken last time, is to form the wooden last. This echoes the shape of the foot, allowing a shoe to be made on its structure that will perfectly fit the customer.
In the pictures above and below, the last is at an early stage and Tony Gaziano is using a heavy-duty surform rasp to take off thick layers of the wood. He will then move onto a lighter-weight rasp before finishing off with sandpaper of different grades.
After a fitting the last can be adjusted, either by taking the surform rasp to it again (to reduce the size) or by adding layers of sole leather (to increase it). The leather is soaked for a couple of days until it is very malleable, and then cut or rasped itself once glued onto the last, in order to gain the shape of the foot.
The last is checked periodically by placing —›Read More
It has been said that golf is a sport in which the most feared opponent is yourself. Here at The Rake, we believe that the saying applies to a lot of aspects of life, just as the sport of golf embodies a lot of our philosophies. From being bold while maintaining a gold standard, to the classy and polished nature of the fine men who choose this game of adversities obscured by the occasional miracle, golf and the makings of a rake do not fall too far apart.
Many readers, we know, put aside their double monks during their downtime and don a pair of spikes to travel to beautiful golf courses around the world. One example must be the oldest golf course in the world, the elegant Old Course in beautiful St Andrews, Scotland. Each autumn, Old Course joins Kingsbarn and Carnoustie Golf Links to host the European Tour’s distinguished Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.
In line with this, Dunhill's Paragon boutique in Singapore is playing host to a miniature golfing green from the 11th to the 24th of April, and is inviting its patrons to show off their putting prowess. A draw will be held —›Read More
