Conscious Guide: the men's tailored jacket

Although there are many types of men's jackets, and fashion, with its protagonists, proposes a variety of models that differ in colour and style each year, there is one rule everyone agrees on: the tailored jacket must fit perfectly. Perfect means not a centimetre more, or less... Not too loose nor too tight. Corneliani knows this and understands the difficulties that can arise when choosing a tailored jacket, so it has created a guide that focuses on the main points and elements to be learnt, so that everyone, not just our customers, can feel confident about choosing the highest expression of elegance and comfort.

When choosing a men’s tailored jacket, be it smart or casual, one must first consider its length, and the width of the shoulders. In the first case, the sleeve length of the tailored jacket must always be considered in relation to the sleeve length of the shirtto be worn underneath it. The rule is therefore that the cuff of the shirt should not stick out more or less than about 1 cm from the sleeve of the tailored jacket, when the arm is outstretched. As far as the shoulders of the tailored jacket are concerned, they must be made wide enough to allow the sleeves to drop softly. The armholes must allow the arms maximum freedom of movement.

The collar of the tailored jacket is known as lapel, which literally means “small flap”. Historically, the lapel was referred to as an element of a garment that had been folded outwards, allowing the lining underneath to be seen. In the late 19th century, when coats were no longer buttoned up, they were worn with open lapels. The lapel then provided one of the few opportunities to adorn the garment. Today, the lapel of a tailored jacket is an extremely distinctive element of the garment, as they determine its style and the most suitable occasion on which to wear it. The three main types are:

• Classic or notched lapel: this is the most traditional and common type. Its corners are ideally shaped in a right-angle, pointing sideways, towards away from the chest. Versatile and discreet, the classic lapel is ideal for single-breasted jackets and officewear.
• Peak or 'pointed' lapels’: this is typical of the double-breasted tailored jacket, of formal suit such as the morning suit or tailcoat. Unlike the classic lapel, the peak lapel has almost no cran and its points are turned upwards, emphasising the width of the shoulders and chest.
• Shawl lapels: this type of lapel is certainly the most appropriate for important occasions and ceremonies. It is characterised by a rounded shape and the absence of the cran. In this case, the lapel is a single turned up element which starts at the neck and ends below the chest. The shawl lapel, harmonious and simple, is used almost exclusively for dinner jackets.

When discussing the lapel, i.e. the collar of a tailored jacket, the French term cran cropped up. But what is it and how does it affect the design of a tailored jacket? The “cran” is the notch separating the collar of the tailored jacket from the lapel. In line with that explained above, it is clear that its shape depends on the lapel chosen, however, the most widespread and common type remains the 'fish mouth' cran, i.e. the most standard one, characterised by a width at less than a 90° angle and perfectly suited to made-to-measure jackets as well as standard size jackets.

Finally, to help you choose the ideal size for your men's tailored jacket, Corneliani provides you with this table showing the exact correspondence between size, height and bust.