British vs. Italian vs. American - Suit Fashions & Silhouettes

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Gentleman's Gazette
#suitfashions #suits #suitsilhouettes

SHOP THE VIDEO:

00:00 Introduction

Between the British, Italian, and American suit styles, each has its own unique geographic characteristics; in particular, the Italian suit has regional variations with different qualities. Some suits also contain hybrid elements of multiple tailoring traditions.

01:05 The American Suit
01:41 The English Suit
08:32 The Italian Suit

So why did we choose these three? Well, we're in America and if you asked John Doe on the street where a proper suit should be made chances are they'll say Italy or England. So how do the Italian, the English, and the American school of tailoring compare? Well, there's certain broad strokes but a suit from the Milan is different from a suit from Rome and it is from let's say, Sicily or Naples. The same is true for English suits, maybe in a less extreme version. A suit from Savile Row is very distinctly British, a suit from Manchester or Dover is probably not as refined and just a little different in the way it looks. While the tailoring industry in the US is nowadays limited to a few centers where they're still made, you can still have the classic sack suit style as popularized by Brooks Brothers. Of course, suits often contain hybrid elements and different varieties but we'll try to shed some light on them so you can clearly see if a suit is Italian, English, or American. Of course, let's not forget that the suit by Giorgio Armani from the 80s or 90s looks very different from an Italian suit today.

So which suit style is best? Obviously, that is a very subjective question. Personally, I think there are interesting elements in all of them and I often like to mix them and not just use one of them. I like to have the typical British pinstripe suit that is businesslike but maybe have a slightly softer canvas because overall, I like softer canvas suits. Sometimes though, having a really heavy padded canvas that makes you look like a Cavalry officer is desirable too. I don't think you have to just pick one thing and just wear that but you can develop your own style.

At the end of the day, what a good suit will always do is take features that are asymmetrical in your body and balance them out so it looks overall harmonious. If you're interested in a more youthful casual look, definitely go with an Italian style. If you want something a little more seasoned and mature, go with a British style.

[muchasgracias]

I do believe the only 'suits' people from Manchester wear are tracksuits and shell suits.

[billysinge]

Raphael, the kinda guy to tailor his birthday suit for that classic tapered look.

[nicuhosu]

Please, please, please make a video on the French, German and Austrian styles too! I realise there is no good reason for it to be a high priority, but learning these such things is why I always click so fast on your uploads!

[OmarAbouZied]

That pin-striped, double-breasted, English suit is perfection. It's the sartorial equivalent to the Rolls-Royce radiator grille. Would you, please, offer details on its availability?

[tootsgarcia]

americans - ice cream that's melting under the sun
british - ice cream that's too frozen, you have a hard time scooping
italian - gelato.

[ClaudeMagicbox]

The best and clearest point of the video is “the american suit is named after the french term ‘saque’ meaning a potato sack”.
Ciao dall’Italia.

[SpaceTraveller]

I get my casual suits for work in Italy, if I need something more formal I go to London and for something stylish, Tokyo is definitely
my destination.

[benbenpotato]

I fell in love with Italian suits after watching the movie "Bicycle Thieves", a classic movie made during the Italian Neorealism film movement. It stars the average working man, with a casual suit that almost looks comically too large for him. But it's brimming with personality, not to mention the movie itself is regarded as one of the best movies ever made, although it is quite sad, made in a time of hopelessness of living post WWII. anyway I'll stop feeling about movies now

[hrdive]

You and Hugo jacomet should meet up. I’d love to see two people that have such a strong passion and knowledge of the sartorial world talk to each other and share that with us

[hydrogenated]

The Japanese word 背広 should really be romanized as "sebiro". Unfortunately, this word is not really used anymore, and they just say スーツ "soo-tsu" to mimic the word "suit".

[ROMANTIKILLER]

As an Italian who had lived in the UK and now resides in central Europe, I usually like to wear English suits in the fall-winter season and Neapolitan suits in the late spring. Which given their origins in connection to local weather I guess makes some sense...

[chlorophyllthirdy]

The change in lighting makes the channel look more professional, I'm not sure if that was your take for this episode. The improvement on video quality is impeccable!!!

[aesma-daeva]

I was actually looking forward to you covering this concept, Raphael.
Although, I have not personally had the luxury of owning a tailored suit from Savile Row, from what I've seen, Henry Poole and Huntsman seem to have the most magnificent bespoke garments, out there. Also, there seems to be a great amount of quality tailoring starting to take form in countries such as Singapore, which utilise a mix of the styles you mentioned earlier, in your video.
All in all, this was a great video; keep up the good work!

[MultiMrMiles]

Italian/ Napels is incredible, also the mills, just got an awesome Loro Piana sports jacket

[charlesvanderhoog]

The colours black and dark blue used to be quite expensive which is why they were regarded as 'chique' (US: chic), a proof of being well-off. Your best suit or most expensive suit was black. Till this day, black, anthracite and navy blue are considered chique. In the old times, you could make something black, but to have a black that would be resistent to washing so it kept being black, that was quite another matter. Even today, that is difficult.

[Christ_the_only_way]

The German suit in the 30s and 40s with Prussian heritage by its wasp shillouette is very cool and I love the German suit fashion and it’s militaristic touch (mostly non-flashy suits, wide shoulders, small waist, thicker material, mostly wool)

[abdalrahmanshananier]

I haven't watched your videos -or any other YouTube video for that matter- in a long time, but your videos haven't lost any of their excellence.
I honestly enjoy and learn from each one of them.

All the best

[Dmhlcmb]

This video was better than anything the history channel has aired in two decades, so interesting. Please keep the content coming!

[edi]

It's funny how suits and fedora have become formal, when they used to be the casual attire...
Also, Austrian peasants did wear suits as you can still see in Trachten. They didn't have a single formal fibre to them, but were tough and kept them warm.

[Edward]

You have a great public speaking voice. Thanks for the information on suits