D’Avino in London
The exquisite shirtmaker D'Avino (that's the brand name, the man being Fiorenzo Auricchio) is here in London for a rare visit in two weeks.
D'Avino makes to the highest level you will see, with handwork absolutely everywhere - not just the practical places like the armhole and collar, but hand-rolled hems and hand-tacked plackets. They're beauteous things to behold.
Although I also use other makers, Fiorenzo is what I go to for that special shirt, or when I'm feeling a bit more flush (often a month when I'm not paying for any tailoring...). I highly recommend going along.
You can read more on my analysis of his shirts here.
And a comparison with the other makers I use, their prices and quality levels, here.
The dates are September 23-24, he is at the Dukes Hotel, and contact is on [email protected]
Is there a 3 shirt minimum?
yes
I am away for his visit as I was going to arrange a meeting but I was a little disappointed there is a 3 shirt minimum. I personally like the fact I can test the water with a few single orders first before ordering a small bulk. its why I have never really used any London shirt makers.
Bespoke will always be a better fit than MTM and RTW. But if you would compare quality between for example d’Avino and Kiton, how do they stand then? (You wrote very foundly about Kiton in your book).
D’Avino are at the same level, if not slightly higher still. And as you say, bespoke
Hi Simon
Could you confirm if there is a minimum first order size with Davino?
Regards
Yes, three shirts
Hey Simon, how do avino shirts compare to The Charvet bespoke that you ordered? The best of Italy vs. the Best of France?
D’Avino is a lot better, frankly. Just as good a fit, and an immense amount of beautiful handwork where Charvet has none
Simon
As a wearer of Charvet I really look forward to your post on the finished shirt. I like bespoke but for something that is sitting next to my skin I often found the finish of hand made shirts with no machining slightly “rough”. I get a far more enjoyable experience with a properly machined and finished shirt. Perhaps I picked the wrong shirt makers. Unlike bespoke suits where you can really see the craft, a shirt is hidden from view under a coat most of the time. When that is the case surely fit and finish (and comfort) take priority over craft?
To an extent John, yes. Some aspects of handwork are slightly functional though – hand-attached collar, hand-inserted sleeve etc.
Hi, Simon. Need your advise. Speaking about English RTW shirtmakers, who is the best quality, T&A or H&H. And may be you know hidden gem among RTW shirtmakers? Thank you.
To be honest, there isn’t much consistent difference. They use the same structure and they use pretty much the same materials (and that changes so frequently you can’t rate it really anyway). I’d pick on which style and fit you like the best.
Dear Simon,
I have been enjoying your blog, not only because of your expertise, but also because you write beautiful and impeccable English. Now a question:
How to remove old sweat stains under the armpits on shirts? I use a mixture of vinegar and sodium bicarbonate, but the result is so so. Any ideas?
Cordially,
JP
(Paris)
I must say that given his reputation and your reviews of him, I would have been tempted to try Mr Auricchio had there not been a 3 shirt minimum order. Nevertheless, I do fully understand that he may have needed to do this to make his trip viable.
Yes, it’s a hard one to balance
Hello Simone,
The language skills are good from him or you faced some challenges during your visits. You mentioned previously that sometimes it is difficult to get a proper result when you do not understand each other. Have a great day.
They were good enough Matt
Hi Simon,
I met with Fiorenzo yesterday, what a lovely guy. The level of his work is miles away from anything else I have seen.
Quick one – for one of the shirts, I have decided to have it in light blue with white collar and cuffs. Would you wear it any differently than a plain blue shirt or would you consider it as versatile (in in terms of ties to go with and colour of suit)?
Also, do you usually order his wrinkled ‘Neapolitan’ shoulder or a straight one?
Cheers
M
White collar and cuffs is very versatile, though a little dandy so try to tone other things down.
The Neapolitan shoulder.
Cheers Simon. I have found an article you wrote years ago on the topic and funnily enough you were saying that it works best with a ‘bold’ tie. I am not too much into bright ties with animal prints but I guess the key take-away is to balance the contrast effect from the white collar and detract a bit the attention from it? I would have imagined a simple navy grenadine, a burgundy tie with a subtle herringbone or a cashmere / wool charcoal tie with (spaced) thin stripes would work rather well?
Cheers
M
Yes, they could be good. Good to hear I’m being consistent!
Dear Simon, this may well be wishful thinking, but aren’t most of these fine craftsmen friends of yours by now? And is Fiorenzo, maybe? And if he is, do you think there’s a way you can make him announce his dates and places in your trunk show calendar? I have three of his shirts, and I love them despite all of them needing some slight adjustments still, but it’s so difficult to communicate with the guy. Almost as difficult as to get to Naples…
To a certain extent, though not when i criticize them! I’ll ask Fiorenzo to do that, yes, but his planning is about as bad as his communication…
Thanks Simon, that’s much appreciated.
Simon, in response to a question, you once responded that you wash all your shirts at home and that sending shirts to a professional cleaners for laundering was an American “thing”.
What’s your process for cleaning your shirts? For instance, do you have a special iron or board? Do you let them hang dry? Do you steam iron them or dry iron? do you use distilled water or tap water? Do you have someone hand clean and iron them for you? Do you wash every weekend or do you wash and press enough of them to last for several weeks? Do you have special hangers? I am just interested in your method and if you have any short cuts as I find it to be highly time consuming and subject to some destruction even by thine own hand.
I’ll just come out with it, now that I have more expensive custom shirts (your fault!), I am hesitant to handing them over to a dry cleaner that probably don’t see many suits as expensive as my shirts. So far I’ve dodged several bullets, but I know an average cleaners, even in NYC where I live, would balk at the prospect of paying $300 – $500 for shirt they ruin.
Please share any tips or tips from your readers would also be welcomed. Or maybe you might devote an article on caring for shirts.
Thanks!
Thanks Jackson, i think an article would be good. I’ll work on it.
But generally, wash in a normal machine, normal detergent, normal ironing board and steam iron. And normal hangers
Ok…OK …..I get it. I suppose I was over-thinking that one. Anyway, I would enjoy a short article on shirt care and also I would like to know why you prefer fused collars and what’s the difference between fused and unfused; both mechanically and visually. Thank you, Simon and thanks for talking me off the ledge.
No problem. Some points on my previous shirt posts about unfused vs fused collars, but I can do something separate on it.