Bespoke Tailors

The Gentleman’s Wardrobe

Redwood & Feller are bespoke tailors that provide excellent service to all their clients. The art practiced by bespoke tailors embraces several skills and a master tailor controls them all. Bespoke tailors work on the principle of classic proportion.

Edward J. Rowland has all of these skills in his fingertips but perhaps even greater importance is his eye for detail, proportion and scale coupled with a natural empathy for cloth. All these factors combined, help to create the best tailor made suits for any occasion.

The bespoke tailor by tradition takes his key measurement from the scye or ‘shoulder’s eye’. This ancient word describes the opening in a garment for the insertion of a sleeve. The traditional skills of bespoke tailors come together in harmony in order to produce the larger creation but it is the attention to detail, scale and perspective that produce the ultimate effect.

Custom Tailoring

Elliot Rowland, second generation of bespoke tailors, has inherited a passion for tailoring and taken the family tradition to another level.

The skill of custom tailoring places an emphasis upon the art of measuring to the personal figuration of each client; the cut is according to their individual shape, rather than basic measurements. Of equal importance is the focus upon the finish garment, ensuring that it is exquisitely put together with exceptional care and attention to detail.

Please visit Elliot Rowland’s own website for a more expansive outline of the philosophy of custom tailoring:  elliottrowland.com

The Bridegroom

The best possible complement to a beautiful bride is an elegant groom at her side. Permit Redwood & Feller to assume full responsibility for the way the groom will look on his wedding day. We can take care of the groom and his best man, ensuring they look the part and feel great.

Our personal bespoke tailors service for the bridegroom and his attendants includes all the accessories including the correct socks and shoes, cuff links and handkerchief.

We have frequently been commissioned by family and friends of the groom to guide him through the demands of the day and this even extends to the clothes to take on honeymoon.

We have gift vouchers and financial packages available for friends and family to collectively sponsor the groom’s wardrobe as part of a joint wedding gift.

Formal Dress: Otium Dignitat

Black tie and indeed white tie require precision dress. Too little and something may appear lacking. Too much and the effect may be ostentatious and cause unease. Our approach is to provide guidance, along with style and flair.

For all such occasions, Redwood & Feller’s clients have come to depend upon an all too rare but essential commodity, something that Mr. Rowland after a lifetime of experience, describes as the essential quality of ‘otium dignitat’ or dignified ease. Wearing formal dress but feeling relaxed and at ease is essential if you are to enjoy the occasion.

Overcoats

Overcoats, or topcoats as they are sometimes called, occupy an entire category of English tailoring history on their own and have originated in sport, battle and country activities of the gentry. The surtout or greatcoat is the forerunner of the overcoat. Often made from heavier worsteds, they are nevertheless exquisitely cut and moulded to the body.

The overcoat has developed over the years into many different shapes and styles, some of which are still around and have stood the test of time. Redwood & Feller have the skills and knowledge to recreate all styles, such as the great English tradition of the raglan, chesterfield and the covert coat. Many others have been relegated to history’s closet at await another era when they will no doubt be rediscovered at great acclaim, all over again: the Ulster, Inverness, paletot and the nineteenth century frock coat.

In the twentieth century, overcoats had become lighter, worn in spring and autumn and widely known as a topcoat. After the war this was taken over by the raincoat and trench coat; the heavier style was called the overcoat. A constant element of the overcoat was that it always provided protection but remained stylish.

Covert coats are often related to British culture and style and are synonymous with the English and the City of London. The word ‘covert’ in this context is derived from the French word couvert, which means place of shade.

Twill-woven fabric is used to create covert cloth by combining two different hues of an identical colour thread which creates a marble effect. This is a closely woven cloth that is a durable, smart and long wearing material.

The covert cloth has several distinct features and Redwood & Feller are conversant with them all. We always ensure that on the hem at the bottom and on the cuff of our covert coats, we apply a four row railroad stitching, which traditionally is always cut higher than the knee. This coat also has two pockets, one on each side and an additional ticket pocket.

The stitching is an representation of how the practical demands of one era came to dictate the fashion of the next. When riding through harsh gorse-covered countryside, the hem and cuffs of a gentleman’s coat would get torn. To begin with, the stitching was intended to both mend and reinforce the garment. With the passage of time, the rows of stitching came to be a subtle badge of honour, denoting an accomplished horseman.

Gift Vouchers

We have a range of gift vouchers, which also serve to act as a letter of introduction of prospective new clients to discuss their requirements with us. These can be set at any value and redeem for all of our services.