Very nice.  A bit cheaper than Mercer too, albeit with a vastly limited selection of fabrics.  Hopefully someone will purchase one and be able to offer up a review for us.  Don't look at me.

I think that it might be a typo and he meant to say "regular" fit. instead of "classic" fit. Just a guess.

Lined means that it has an interliner between the two pieces of cloth that make the collar.

I've just received my order of two shirts from Michael Spencer. Where to begin?

I went for unlined button-downs with third collar button, split yoke, locker loop, normal pocket and slim fit. Fit wise they're in the same league as BB's blue label slim fit, i.e. they afford some nice billow for people who are built less like Jack and more like the beanstalk. Shoulder width is in keeping with the rest. From what I can judge both shirts show some good craftsmanship, remains to be seen how they stand up to a few washes. The cloth isn't too far from your modern Makers shirts and I'm fine with that, never having known a vintage Makers. The stated delivery time must be on the cautious side, I received my shirts after three weeks rather than six.

Any questions?

I have two Michael Spencer shirts now. I've been meaning to take/post pics here as my first meaningful contribution on this forum.

The biggest draw for me: BUTTON FLAP POCKET.

Like Absintheist, I got unlined collars/cuffs and the slim fit, though didn't get some of the other features he did, like third collar button and locker loop. I was tempted, but worried about a "too many pieces of flare" effect . 

But yeah, the unlined collar is much more thin and less "beefy" feeling than, say, BB's current made-in-USA OCBD's, which are lined.

A little feature that I like is the inverse pleats at the sleeve. It's something a little different, but looks good. (For some reason I really dislike BB's signature shirring at the cuff).

This page is hard to find by navigating through the Michael Spencer home page, but I previously inquired about the measurements of their 3 fits, and in response, the owner posted the actual measurements:

http://www.michaelspencer.us/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Fit-Specifications-Chart1.pdf

Based on the measurements I've used on custom shirts from Ratio, the Michael Spencer's measurements for my neck size didn't appear 100% perfect and I had a little anxiety about fit before ordering, however it turned out that my shirts do fit fantastic.

I ordered my first shirt when they were just getting started and I had two rounds of defects. First shirt I got the sleeves were way too short and the pocket flap had no button hole. Exchanged that and received a shirt with BB style shirring at the cuff (they use BB's same factory obviously), which I sent back and they replaced that with their signature reverse pleats. The owner was great through the process, responding to my emails within a matter of hours, and gave me a solid discount on my next shirt for the trouble. My second shirt came back perfect on the first try. I believe they have worked out all the kinks with the factory and I wouldn't expect any defects if you order from them...and the customer service is top notch.

If I can get some good pics of my shirts I'll try to post them.

Last edited by alkydrinker (2015-11-11 10:08:52)

That's one mighty roll sir.

I presume there has been no end of focus groups on the high rise trouser asking 'is it time to bring it back?' but always genuinely surprised and how hard it is to find a decent modern version.

Companies like M&S over here should have these as basic staples but their menswear is an absolute joke.
I'm convinced I could sort out their menswear department in a month and stop the MD having to appear on the Today programme every quarter defending the latest bad financial result.

If I could get the investment I would look to get trousers made, base on the various vintage pairs I own, from the boom era Levis Casuals and Sta Prest to the Graduate slacks with their 13" rise.

All of these could be made in a variety of fabrics - but is it too niche, whereas shirts are easier to sell and even the everyman who's not interested in the look would happily buy them?

^From personal experience trying to do trousers often requires a huge order to bring the final product in at a sensible price.
Hertling is potentially a supplier ( orders in tens rather the hundreds is possible) but relatively costly per pair.

A tapered/rebadged version of Earl Rays would come in (after added VAT and other import costs) at a reasonable £42 but a minimum order of 200 pairs ( approx 40 pairs in each waist sizes - 30,32,34,36,38 -).
A note on this, from my enquiries with Earl Ray/Gung Ho, a pattern and samples exist as someone in the USA has recently ordered exactly this from them, I couldn't get any more info on who ordered them tho' but my suspicion is it may be 'Unionmade' who had massive success with the regular Earl Ray chinos .

^It's the amounts that put the breaks on for me T. 200 pair seem's a lot of trousers.
Lean Garments have a chino about to launch (with a 150 unit first run )for £55, so it may be doable.
Maybe a kickstarter type approach would work ?

I'm trying to contact the guy behind Yellow Rat Clothes, as he seems to be able to run a very niche and high quality product range and also keep prices out of 'nosebleed' territory.

I have said several times that I would be interested in a custom trouser order, in various threads. The problem for me is leg lengths, I need a 28 to get no break and even then, its sometimes a little too long on trousers that can't be washed. Plus I'm a 33 waist, and have muscular legs. I'm like a bald Tom Hardy if he didn't get to the gym quite enough? But the problem is as Tomiskinky say's is could we shift 200 units?

High waisted trousers have been on the edge's of fashion for a while,but haven't really broken through.