What does Dandylion Style offer?
We offer a great range of quality, made-to-measure suits and shirts plus our signature funky waistcoats. You can choose from a range of fine British fabrics, tailored to the style that flatters you the best.
In matter of 6-8 weeks, you could be wearing a top quality, made to measure, unique “one off” garment designed to your physique, your occasion and your pocket. All fitted perfectly and in the fabric of your choice. If you can’t come and visit us at our studio in Ardingly, we can come to your home or office and bring the fabric and the tailor to you.
How did the idea come about?
A few years back I was bored with the men’s waistcoats that I could find – they seemed staid and unadventurous, and I was after something a bit more stylish. So I decided to make my own bespoke funky waistcoats. One thing led to another, and I now have a collection of waistcoats, each with a sumptuous, unique style – due to the combination of a self-coloured front-piece combined with a more elaborately patterned back – usually embroidered silk – and a flash of bright colour in the lining. I got so many people asking about the waistcoats, that I decided to start to make them commercially, and from there expanded into suits and shirts as well.
What do you look for in a suit?
First of all the suit needs to fit its purpose. You need to consider what the occasion is, and what you want out of the suit. It is very important to establish those things.You can not wear the suit you wear to commute to work at your best friend’s wedding in Tuscany. Each suit would be different in terms of fabric, the weight of the cloth and of course the style. Quality is very important to us. Our suits are made to last, and I want clients to want to keep wearing them, and for this to work the suits need to be unique to the individual and different from the suits they have in their wardrobe.
How is made-to-measure better than buying of the peg?
In so many ways. The most important is that a made to measure suit, is cut to your body shape, and it fits you as a glove. Most people’s bodies are not entirely in proportion – they may have a bigger torso, or shorter legs, or one shoulder higher than the other. With a made to measure suit, we can take all that into account, with a result that the suit is cut to create a more balanced, proportioned look. Some of us can’t find suits that fit us. Usually they fit around the shoulders but sleeves are to small or too big. If you are the person who likes gym or to plays sports, off the peg suits won’t fit you, because your body may be so developed. But with us we will make sure that it fits perfectly. No one will have the same suit as you. You will choose your own fabric, style and design. So it will be unique to you. And with us you are not paying for the name like Hugo Boss. You are just paying for our great service and good quality suits. By travelling to you, limiting staff costs and by using our studio in Hove – rather than shop space in central Brighton – we can keep our prices down, while maintaining the quality of the product we provide, and our service to the customer.
What is popular style-wise at the moment?
A suit is something you may want for a special occasion,but also you want it to last, so it is more important that it flatters your physique, than it follows the latest trend. Of course fashion influences suit styles, but its often advisable to steer towards classic proportions.
Have you had any challenging commissions?
The challenge with every client is to make sure I fully understand what they want, and to help them to know what they want. I like to deliver the best with great customer service and a client who comes in with a clear idea of what they want, makes it all easier for me. But if they are not sure, I can help to guide them to the right decision.
Can you tell us more about revamping suits?
We all have our favourite suits. Usually we will wear it more often then other and then they may not last as long as they could. Some of us lose or gain weight, so that although it was made to measure – our measurments change. .At Dandylion Style, not only can we adjust the suit to fit you again, we can also jazz it up and freshen up your old suit So for the fraction of the price we can make your old suit look almost new.
How are your suits and services unique from others?
As a small business we pride ourselves on providing great customer service and attention to detail. So we know our clients and it is very personal. With us you deal with the same person from the beginning to the end and can talk to us at any time. We spend more time with client when choosing the cloth, measuring and designing the suit for them. We don’t have fixed half hour or hour appointments – we spend as much time as needed to make sure that the client is happy with decision we make and give them as much time as needed. Our suits are made in UK and fabric is from UK too. As I mentioned, we don’t have the expensive overheads of staff salaries and central Brighton rents, so we can keep our prices affordable. A visiting tailor can see clients in their own home or office, which I think is a great and unique service that we offer. We are all busy people, so if you can’t come to see us, we can come to see you!
