Jacket #3, Experimental: Midnight Blue Tuxedo With White Piping And Velvet Collar

In 2009 I created this midnight blue tuxedo using Matthew Lawrence of Paddington, Sydney. I had created a bow tie called the Yves which was midnight blue satin with white piping and I wished to create a tuxedo which would compliment it. In the final analysis I think I went too far. I think I could have pulled back on one or two elements although it is outrageous enough to be tongue in cheek.

We used a Thomas Fisher 140 wool (could be 150, I would need to check) and this wool was exceptional. The photos do not do the tuxedo justice.

The highs: It was the first time I had a chance to work on the details of pants, which on their own are very cool, slim cut, stove pipe trousers with white detail on the jets of the pockets.

The lows: I grew tired of the piping and the velvet on the collar - after a while I wanted something more traditional but this kind of dinner suit can only be worn to fun events, nothing serious. The jacket was rushed towards the end and this meant that quality of production suffered. Further, the satin on the lapels was not thick and plush and the jacket was very rigid and cardboardy. If I had my time again I would have taken more  time to oversee this project.