From Thrift to Custom

The Bold Italic has thrown a men’s fashion week in San Francisco, and I managed to get a piece in about turning used finds into real daily wear for the Montgomery Street set. But one of my goals with the piece was to get something custom-made, and I did, but it didn’t make the edit — that’s okay, because I still have a new, custom shirt!

Spoon Tailor is run by Andrew, who explained to me that he used to be an engineer for Cisco. He has a small, neat shop on Sacramento between Kearny and Grant, and offers incredible prices and even more incredible service at the price.

He normally charges $85.00 for a custom piece, which is as cheap as anything online or in New York, but I cashed in on his ongoing “grand opening” deal and paid only $72 — as little as you might pay at Century 21 or the Nordstrom Rack for something name-brand.

Now I have a red and white pinpoint-check shirt with a white, double-button collar and french cuffs. I blame a subconscious fixation on Slingers for such a Rat Pack, Goodfellas choice. But it has my initials embroidered on the left cuff in serif script, so naturally I love it to death.

Sure, it was made in China like everything you might buy off the rack, but I feel like whatever premium I paid was one paid to skill and risk, not interest and fees. And Andrew, who offered to whip me up a suit for $699, is good people: Once he has your make and measure, you can order whatever you want and have it delivered to your office downtown.

Please do take advantage.