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When journalist Meg Lukens Noonan learned of an unthinkably expensive, entirely handcrafted overcoat that a fourth-generation tailor had made for one of his longtime clients, she set off on an adventure to understand its provenance, and from that impulse unspooled rich and colorful stories about its components, the centuries-old bespoke industry and its traditions, and the master craftsmen whose trade is an art form.
In The Coat Route, Noonan pieces together the creation of the coat in question, tracing its elements to their far-flung sources, from the remote mountains of Peru, where villagers shear vicunas—whose soft fleece is more coveted and rare than the finest cashmere—to the fabulous Florentine headquarters of Stefano Ricci, the world's greatest silk designer; from the family-owned French fabric house Dormeuil, founded in 1842, which drapes kings, presidents, and movie stars to the 150-year-old English button-making firm that creates the ne plus ultra of fasteners out of Indian water-buffalo horn and the workshop of the master hand engraver who makes the eighteen-karat gold plaque that hangs inside the coat's collar. We meet the dapper son-in-law of an Australian wine baron who commissions the coat's creation, and we come to know John Cutler, one of the top bespoke tailors in the world, who works his magic with scissors and thread out of his Sydney shop, redolent of cedar and English wool.
Featuring a cast of offbeat, obsessed, and wildly entertaining characters, The Coat Route presents a rich tapestry of local masters, individual artisans, and family-owned companies that have stood against the tide of mass consumerism. As Noonan comes to realize, these craftsmen, some of whom find themselves on the brink of retirement with no obvious successors, have increasing reason to believe that their way is the best way—best for their customers, best for the environment, and best for the quality of life of all involved. The Coat Route is a love song to things of lasting value.
Praise for The Coat Route
"A spirited tour of fashion history . . . The Coat Route compels us to remember that behind every garment is a deep history and a pair of human hands—whether those hands stitched the dress's hem or pulled a lever that stringed together that $30 must-have jacket."—The Wall Street Journal
"Delightful . . . The Coat Route celebrates those who work with their hands, creating something beautiful and lasting."—The Seattle Times
"[Meg Lukens Noonan's] exploration of the business of fashion is fascinating and thorough, and her examination of bespoke goods redefines the words luxury and obsession."—The Daily Beast
"Traditions of bespoke tailoring (and other related crafts) are skirting the edge of extinction. Noonan's delightful story makes us hope they endure."—Publishers Weekly
"A fabulous story, brilliantly told . . . I couldn't have enjoyed it more."—Bill Bryson
"As captivating as any mystery or thriller, The Coat Route demystifies the rarefied universe of bespoke tailoring and provides a lens into the culture that covets it. It educates and inspires. I couldn't put it down!"—Tim Gunn
From the Hardcover edition.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
July 16, 2013 -
Formats
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9780679605171
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9780679605171
- File size: 2926 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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April 15, 2013
What does it take to produce a $50,000 overcoat? For the coat’s creator, John H. Cutler, a fourth-generation tailor in Sydney, it was “‘the ultimate expression of the bespoke tailor’s art.’” The photograph on Cutler’s Web site looked to journalist Noonan’s untutored eye like something off the Macy’s menswear clearance rack, but it piqued her curiosity and inspired her to research the coat’s origins. Noonan’s lively journey begins in the Peruvian mountains with the elusive Bambi-esque vicuña (the animal that provides the fleece for the coat), and is followed by stops in Florence, to meet the creator of the coat’s silk lining—enigmatic menswear designer Stefano Ricci; Yorkshire, where a textile mill spins vicuña fleece into yarn that Gary Eastwood’s Pennine Weavers turns into cloth; and Birmingham, for hand-carved buffalo horn buttons. “We could be moved, as I was, by the work of many hands to make a single perfect thing,” Noonan writes—and we are. Traditions of bespoke tailoring (and other related crafts) are skirting the edge of extinction. Noonan’s delightful story makes us hope they endure. Agent: Deborah Grosvenor, Grosvenor Literary Agency. -
June 15, 2013
Lush writing and eagle-eyed reportage uncloak the insular world of bespoke fashion. More than distance separates the awe-inspiring highlands of South America, where curious, four-legged creatures known as vicuna placidly graze in between carefully choreographed roundups, and the sober English shopping district of Seville Row, where equally fascinating bipeds known as tailors turn the vicuna wool into unparalleled items of luxury, including a $50,000 overcoat. This is the rarified realm of "bespoke," or made-to-order, garments. Globe-trekking travel writer Noonan is well-equipped to bridge the chasm and bring back a narrative every bit as finely rendered as the title's subject. Outfitted with an infectious curiosity and enviable eye for detail, the seasoned correspondent executes a sartorial odyssey that spans a remarkable portion of the planet. The fantastic journey is both fast-paced and rich--from Florentine factories where marvelous mechanisms sprung from the mind of Michelangelo still whirr alongside modern-day computers, to obscure English villages infamous for their oppressive work histories and exquisitely made buttons. The author's descriptive prose is consistently illuminating and occasionally poetic. "It is impossible to look at the factory grounds and not be struck by how succinctly it telegraphs a twenty-first-century tale: the soulless modernity, the beautiful ruin," she writes. While delving deep into the unseen universe of complex dyes, magical silkworms and gold-laced textiles, the author also understands that it is the far-flung personalities dedicated to transforming these varied elements into a one-of-a-kind jacket that make this tale of topcoats and tailors so tantalizing. An elegantly engaging book aimed at everyone from the off-the-rack crowd on up.COPYRIGHT(2013) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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