By Riwa Beydoun
A Stitch in Question
Although ready-to-wear designer brands have monopolised a modern man’s style, a true gentleman will say otherwise. Truth be told, the most authentic logo you can wear on your shirt is your own set of initials provided, of course, that the shirt is hand-tailored and impeccably finished. And if you think that embroidering your monogram on a tailored shirt may seem a little Bollywood, you might have another think coming.
Arab men with a zeal for bespoke suits call monogramming tacky or ‘false advertising’. Somehow it makes more sense to wear a flashy watch or drive a large car, but the suit must remain first and foremost, impersonal. Needless to say, there is an on-going controversy between the ready-to-wear generation, and the authentically bespoke culture of our fathers.
Stitching, which is a simpler technique than embroidering, actually requires a keenness for fine needlework and an eye wary of vulgarity. A devotee of bespoke shirts will dub embroidery crude but stitching is, actually, a noble and rare art. The initials should be stitched just below the fourth button and a little to the left (counting the collar button).
In the past thirty years, designers have reinforced the idea that their logo is to be found on the front pocket of a button down or polo neck. So, it might seem commonsensical that an amateur might ask to have his monogram on the pocket of a hand-made shirt. Big mistake. A hand-tailored shirt does not include a front pocket. Only a bespoke suit jacket does and, of course, a gentleman will always keep his jacket on.
Initials were first sewn on the inside of a shirt collar, or beneath the last button, in order to better identify garments during travel. But those monograms were so finely worked they deserved to be seen, and so a new culture of hand-stitched initials made their way to the front of every shirt. Always within the same colour range or ton-sur-ton, they should blend into the shirt and yet be somewhat eye-catching.
People can tell a lot about your savoir-vivre just from where you choose to place your moniker. If you opt for the front pocket, it is not rude but more plainly, naïve. A good try, but still, naïve. Secondly, if the initials are on the cuffs or a single cuff, this is the epitome of being risqué. The sleeve of a man’s shirt is always peeping out of his jacket and the arm is a very active body part, so putting your initials there borders on being ostentatious. The only proper way to wear your name on your sleeve is to find a sensible use for it. Cufflinks, provided they are subtle and dainty, can afford that mélange between practicality (keeping the cuff closed) and aesthetic expression (initials).
So, if you don’t want to cross tasteful lines, then have your initials beautifully stitched just below the fourth button on the left side of your shirt. Tailors in the South of France go so far as to make boxer shorts from the same material as that of the shirt, then add their customer’s initials to the leg – which is the most, well, private place.
Stitching your initials is, certainly, an act requiring confidence in and of itself. One that does not rely on a designer label to prove your worth. It’s high time that your name, alone, suffices.
