What is Wednesday.
This weekly Wednesday post is aimed at answering some of the more basic and critical aspects of tailoring and the terminology we use to describe them. It stems from realizing that I’m constantly throwing out different terms with my clients and quite often they’re unsure as to what I exactly mean. The goal of this section then is to alleviate this terminology gap and provide you with some know-how to talk tailoring with a little more ease.
What is…the button stance (and where should it be positioned)?
The button stance simply refers to the button which you fasten to close the jacket – the top button on a two-button jacket (right) and the second button of a three-button jacket (left). For the record – only one button should ever be fastened. The single button acts like a fulcrum enabling the jacket to pivot freely on that point; when two buttons are fastened it acts like a tube and the fluidity of the jacket is lost.
In terms of positioning – the button stance is generally found at the base of the rib cage roughly three inches above the belly button. Typically this will be the thinnest point of a man’s torso and hence on the jacket as well; it allows for a gentle sweep inwards from shoulders and then outwards back over the hips.
One other aspect to keep in mind – the angle of the lapels. On the three-button jacket you will notice the angle is higher with the lapel softly breaking a few inches above the button stance. The two-button on the other hand has a lower angle with a sharper break occurring right on the button stance itself. Both are stylistically beautiful and correct – it simply comes down to which aesthetic you prefer.
As always I’d love to hear your opinions on this or any sartorial subject for that matter. Better yet book a free appointment and we can banter in person and see if we might be a good fit to work together.
Take care – Michael
info@martinfishertailors.com
