Our latest window installation
celebrates the longevity of bespoke tailoring
Huntsman’s latest window display at 11 Savile Row champions the art and craft of bespoke tailoring.
Look closely and you’ll see the patterns of some of our most famous patrons of the past 100 years; McQueen, Bowie, Sir Laurence Olivier, and Princess Anne, but to name a few.
The Garments on display illustrate the point perfectly, that a Huntsman bespoke garment is made to last a lifetime, or indeed lifetimes. You’d be forgiven for thinking that the navy wool overcoat and grey wool blazer in the window are recent models, however, these garments date from 1923 and 1934 respectively and are in almost pristine condition.
Each has been chosen as it tells an important story in menswear over the last 100 years.
The grey wool blazer belonged to Huntsman client Major General R.V. Pollock, a decorated war hero, and is one of the finest examples of the ‘new style’ post-war lounge suits of the time.
For men returning from the war, tailoring and the structures around menswear had relaxed. The formal long coat of the years before the war became relegated to evening wear; suit jackets became shorter, and trousers slimmer. What we now know as a classic three-piece suit today was adopted for daywear as the ‘Lounge Suit’, the example in our window cut in a mid-grey wool.
The Overcoat belonged to Lord Allenbrooke; Chief of the Imperial General Staff during the Second World War, making him the professional head of the entire British Army. A confidante of Winston Churchill, Brooke was his top military adviser at the time of the D-day landings.
The garment itself is in superb condition for its age. The fabric is perfect and the coat has no fading whatsoever, in a deep blue, indeed there are no tears or damage in the lining. The only sign of wear is around the inside pocket where the stitching has come away, which is in keeping with its age and is easily repairable.
This classic double-breasted overcoat epitomises timeless British styling with its roots in military history but it is a style now mainstream in modern fashion and was made famous by figures like Churchill and Brooke. In fact, this style of overcoat is still the only authorised overcoat for Officers in the British Army.
Finally a contemporary example of a classic Huntsman suit, in our signature house cut, made here at 11 Savile Row by the talented individuals who work within these walls and worn in the window by the tailoring mannequin figure. Undoubtedly destined to outlast us all and perhaps find it’s way into our archive in years to come! In our window each garment tells a story, unique to the changing fashions of the time, moreover, each garment is a testament to the talent and skill which is nurtured across generations in bespoke tailoring.
In this respect, bespoke tailoring is and has always been inherently sustainable. The unparalleled skill of our tailors and cutters means that when you commission a bespoke suit, it’s going to be made with the utmost care, craft and attention to detail. It’s this difference that ensures you’ll enjoy your garment again and again.