A man in a classic navy bespoke suit, white open-neck shirt and brown Oxford shoes in a softly lit studio

01 The silhouette

Anatomy of a bespoke suit

A suit.A world within.

Explore the construction of a bespoke suit, from the canvas beneath the cloth to the lapel roll and hand-finished buttonholes.

One suit. Every detail considered.

Closed navy jacket revealing plain body canvas and dense irregular hand pad stitches in the exposed lapel

02 The construction

It startsbeneath the cloth.

Between the outer cloth and lining, a canvas layer supports the chest and shapes the jacket. It gives the coat structure while allowing the cloth to move naturally.

Full canvas* / Structure without stiffness · Womenswear: half canvas

Inside the jacket Canvas study

Close view of emerald, gold and cobalt paisley lining with the commissioned London Bespoke Club woven label

03 The inside story

Personal,inside and out.

Quietly tonal or full of colour, your lining is another expression of your taste. Choose how much personality you reveal when the jacket opens.

Your lining / Your point of view

Close view of the navy notch lapel, its soft roll and hand-worked silk buttonhole

04 The lapel

Character,in a single line.

Lapel width sets the proportion. The roll gives it shape. A hand-worked Milanese buttonhole adds a raised line of silk, a small detail with a distinct character.

Milanese buttonhole / Hand-wrapped silk

Navy left sleeve with three fastened horn buttons and an unobstructed hand-finished buttonhole nearest the wrist

05 The handwork

The smallest detail.The human touch.

Working cuff buttonholes open and fasten, rather than serving as decoration. Here, each opening is finished by hand in silk.

Working buttonholes / Hand-finished in silk

The complete navy suit, returning to the full silhouette after a study of its construction

06 Your commission

Nowimagine yours.

Explore cloth, compare construction and discuss the suit you have in mind at our Toronto atelier.

Book an appointment

Scroll to discover01 / 06Made personal. In Toronto.

Closer still

The details of
bespoke suit construction.

Explore the construction illustrated in this menswear suit. The Milanese buttonhole and silk-worked cuff buttonholes are standard in both our semi-bespoke and bench-made tailoring, with no surcharge.

Illustrative cutaway with plain body canvas, inset navy borders and dense irregular lapel pad stitching

STUDY / 01

What does canvas do in a suit?

Canvas is the internal layer that supports and shapes the jacket, distinct from the lining against your body. In full-canvas construction, it extends through the jacket front. Both our men’s semi-bespoke and bench-made suits use full canvas.* The cutaway also shows pad stitching in the lapel, where stitches help form its roll.

* Our womenswear tailoring uses half-canvas construction in both tiers. The other construction and finishing details described here apply equally to womenswear.

STUDY / 02

Choosing your jacket lining

Lining covers the inside construction and helps the jacket slip comfortably over your shirt. It also offers room for personal expression: a quiet colour, a contrasting tone or a pattern you enjoy. We guide the choice alongside your cloth and the way you intend to wear the suit.

Raised Milanese silk buttonhole on a navy notch lapel

STUDY / 03

Lapel roll and the Milanese buttonhole

The lapel roll is the curve where the lapel turns back from the jacket front. The Milanese buttonhole is a separate finishing detail: a raised buttonhole worked by hand in silk. It is standard in our semi-bespoke and bench-made tailoring, for men and women, with no surcharge.

Three fastened navy sleeve buttons above an exposed hand-finished keyhole, with the lowest button removed

STUDY / 04

What are working cuff buttonholes?

Working cuff buttonholes allow the sleeve buttons to open and fasten. Ours are worked by hand in silk as standard in both semi-bespoke and bench-made tailoring, for men and women, with no surcharge. Their function and their finishing are distinct qualities; working buttons alone do not establish how a suit was made.

Two paths. Your own pattern.

Choose your approach
to bespoke.

The same care for the details. A different depth of handwork. Discover how each approach brings your suit to life.

An individual expression

Semi-bespoke

Your individual pattern, refined through fittings. Precision construction meets hand-finished details, for a suit shaped around you.

50+ hours of handworkSuits from $1,800

Explore semi-bespoke

Ian drafting a bespoke pattern by hand at the cutting table

Made at our Toronto bench

Bench-made bespoke

Cut and built in our atelier by Ian MacMillan. A commission shaped by extensive handwork, from the first chalk line to the final fitting.

80+ hours of handworkSuits from $5,795

Explore bench-made

Your next chapter

It begins with a conversation.

Visit our atelier at 146 Yonge Street, Toronto, to compare cloth and construction. We will guide the choices and explain pricing before you decide to commission.