A year in review - My 2019 sartorial commissions

2019 has been a year of discovery and transformation. Following my sartorial restart in late 2018, my focus at the beginning of the year was rebuilding my wardrobe with the staples and basics before slowly progressing towards bolder decisions as the months went by.

This is a January to December recap of my made-to-order, made-to-measure and bespoke commissions throughout 2019:

JANUARY 2019

1) Igarashi MTM trousers (The Decorum Bangkok)

With one Liverano & Liverano ready-to-wear navy jacket and Orazio Luciano ready-to-wear tobacco linen jacket in my sartorial starter kit, I went with an easy-to-wear medium grey VBC fabric for my first pair of made-to-measure trousers by Tokyo-based Igarashi-san.

Status: Delivered March 2019. I went on to commission my second pair of made-to-measure Igarashi trousers in a brown fresco.

FEBRUARY 2019

2) Delivery of my first two Raffaniello MTM suits (The Decorum Bangkok)

The arrival of my first two Sartoria Raffaniello made-to-measure suits commissioned in November 2018 gave me enough to rotate through almost an entire week.

3) Liverano bespoke suit (The Somchai Bangkok)

Happy with my Liverano ready-to-wear jacket in a navy Drapers wool, I was keen to experience Liverano bespoke. With the help of Taka and Vittorio, I went with a deadstock medium grey Drapers fabric for my first ever bespoke suit. This remains my longest wait for a garment to be completed: one year and three months. Also my most expensive non-property purchase.

Status: First fitting in September 2019, with a second fitting scheduled for February 2020 and anticipated delivery by May 2020.

MARCH 2019

4) Dalcuore MTM suit (The Decorum Bangkok)

I first met the Dalcuore family in late 2018 in Bangkok at an event hosted by The Decorum, and decided on my first Neapolitan made-to-measure suit with them in March 2019. For this commission, I went with a navy Holland & Sherry fabric. This was meant to be my first proper navy suit.

Status: Pending requested alterations, anticipated re-completion January 2020.

5) Third and fourth Raffaniello MTM suits (The Decorum Bangkok)

Happy with my first two Raffaniello MTMs, I commissioned my third and fourth made-to-measure suits with Higashi-san. A light grey Standeven Explorer suit and my first double breasted suit in a Fox Air pinstripe.

Status: Both suits were delivered in June 2019. In total, I have four great suits by Higashi-san.

APRIL 2019

6) Open Weaves semi-bespoke suit (Melbourne, Singapore and Bangkok)

After keeping in continuous contact with Jian and learning about his vision for Open Weaves, I met him and his business partner Arthur in Melbourne and became their second customer (and the first to order a suit). They set up a quick session in my hotel room and got me measured. I went with a medium to dark grey Holland & Sherry Crispaire fabric.

Status: This was a multi-city project. Melbourne-fitted, Singapore-basted, Bangkok delivered. Great service by this well-travelled team. I received the garments by July.

MAY 2019

7) Dylan & Son bespoke trousers (Singapore)

By this time, my wardrobe was dominated by garments from Italy, Japan and pretty much everywhere else but Singapore, my hometown which is also increasingly known for its sartorial talent and craftsmanship. I was alternating my trousers between Igarashi MTM and Echizenya RTW pieces, and it was time to commission my first pair of bespoke trousers.

I decided to go with Dylan Chong of Dylan & Son in Singapore. An appointment was made while I was on vacation in Melbourne in mid-April, for a first session in early May.

I went with an oatmeal toned Drapers four ply fabric. Dylan is so happy with the resulting garment, he is considering cutting the same fabric for himself.

Status: The trousers were completed in November 2019 (due to my travel schedule) with my first fitting in August, final fitting in October and delivery in November. It has to be noted that Dylan's bespoke timeline isn't that long; I just wasn't back in Singapore frequently enough.

These are my favourite pair of trousers so far.

JUNE 2019

8) Salabianca bespoke jacket (The Decorum Bangkok)

With all the staples and solids taken care of, it was time to explore the fun side of dressing up. For my first bespoke jacket, I went with Hojun Choi of Sartoria Salabianca. I chose a vintage brown/beige checked fabric that Hojun acquired from an old tailor workshop. We suspect this fabric could be from the 70s.

Status: First fitting in Oct with anticipated delivery in May 2020

JULY 2019

9) Open Weaves unlined shirt (Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok)

I was in Kuala Lumpur for a conference and met Jian for a first fitting of my first bespoke shirt (also my first unlined) in a white Thomas Mason fabric.

Status: Delivered Aug 2019

AUGUST 2019

10) Kayjen Dylan MTM shirt (Singapore)

Continuing the Singapore exploration, I ordered a made-to-measure shirt from Matthew Lai of Kayjen Dylan. I chose a blue and yellow striped fabric by Soktas.

Status: Delivered Oct 2019.

11) Vanda MTO ties (Singapore)

I’ve always wanted to pay Gerald and Diana of Vanda Fine Clothing a visit and finally made it to their workshop. Better late than never. Our conversations are always fun.

I ordered my first two ties - one in striped Shantung silk and the other in vintage rust-blue overcheck jacketing wool.

Status: Delivered Aug 2019.

Vanda ties are my favourite - I consider them the best tie maker in the world.

12) Chester Mox MTO wallet (online order)

My five-year-old "affordable luxury branded" card holder was in bad shape with frayed lining and stitching and it was time for a new wallet. At the recommendation of Jian, I checked out Chester Mox and went with their #57 "build your own" slim wallet in navy, mandarina and grey.

Status: Delivered October 2019.

SEPTEMBER 2019

Didn't commission anything... my bank account needed a break...

OCTOBER 2019

13) Drakes MTO shirts (The Decorum Bangkok)

I've always been intrigued by Drakes and have several of their ties and pocket squares. During their trunk show in Bangkok, I ordered two made-to-order shirts.

Status: Delivered Nov 2019. Unlined shirts are not easy to get used to and I'm starting to love them.

14) Lu Yang bespoke shoes (The Decorum Bangkok)

By this time, I became close friends with The Decorum Bangkok team, who regularly experiment with and assess the work and quality of respected artisans before launching them to their clients.

Bespoke Shoemaker Lu Yang was in town and the team asked if I would like to join them as they tried out his work. Being of Chinese heritage, I decided it was appropriate to lose my bespoke shoes virginity to this Hangzhou-based rising star who came in 17th place at the World Shoemaking Championships 2019.

Lu Yang is a real pleasure to talk to and what's really interesting is that he is self-taught. During the measurement, he discovered that my feet are almost perfectly formed and proportionate. That's because I adopt proper postures and have been wearing correctly fitted shoes throughout my lifetime. I am apparently one of only four clients (out of 50 plus) with such healthy feet.

I went with a seamless wholecut oxford in museum calf.

Status: Anticipated completion in mid to late 2020.

15) Subsequent Open Weaves garments (Bangkok and Singapore)

I continued my journey and friendship with Jian and Arthur of Open Weaves - commissioning my second jacket and two odd trousers. Jian in particular is an exceptionally close friend and became my sartorial nephew as we share the same family name.

Status: First fittings of the jacket in Bangkok and trousers in Singapore. Anticipated completion Jan/Feb 2020

NOVEMBER 2019

16) The Anthology jacket (via Vanda Fine Clothing in Singapore)

Every man needs a tan jacket, and the night before this appointment with Willy and team, I tried on QL Wee’s Raffaniello bespoke linen tan jacket (below) and realized I could not live without one.

I went with The Anthology during their Singapore trunk show and decided on a Caccioppoli linen.

Status: Next fittings and completion dependent on my travel schedule, but I hope to see Willy and team in Taipei.

17) Vanda MTO tie (Singapore)

Inspired by Junjie's pocket square by Vanda Fine Clothing, as we both share the same Chinese name, I ordered a brick basketweave tie with my Chinese name sewn on by hand by Diana.

Status: Delivered Dec 2019. I wear this tie a lot - way too much. It's got my name on it!

DECEMBER 2019

December turned out to be a month of reflection and forward planning. No significant commissions or purchases other than my first leather folio (which doesn't have a zip though I won't say more 🤐) which should be delivered by February 2020. The pipeline is quite robust as I am anticipating the completion of two suits (Liverano and Dalcuore), three jackets (Salabianca, Open Weaves and The Anthology), two pairs of trousers (Open Weaves) and my first pair of bespoke shoes (Lu Yang).

As the year and decade comes to a close, I look back and wonder how life would have been like if I wasn't bitten by the poisonous sartorial bug. I'm thankful to have been poisoned, for all the friendships I've made along the way, and for all the fun and happiness that came out of this new obsession.

The new year and new decade will being new possibilities - for me, this is the start of more great things to come.

Thanks for reading this and I wish you a very happy, healthy and bountiful new year.

(Photos are a combination of self-taken shots and those airdropped by friends and store owners/team members - thanks for letting me use your images as part of this post.)