"THE KINDEST CUT" by David Dowsey - J. H. Cutler

The Kindest CutJ. H. Cutler’s ‘rock star’ moment will soon be immortalised in a new book.by david dowsey photography richard weinsteinWe’re stuck in traffic. Impatiently, I peer over theedge of our open-air double-decker bus, only to spyPolizia motorcycles, lights ablaze. Great, an accident.Resigned, I ease back into my seat and enjoy some flavourfulChianti. At this point, the impeccably dressed gentleman sittingnext to me leans across and points at the red-hued full moonover my left shoulder. I survey the magnificent Florentineskyline from our vantage point on the Ponte Amerigo Vespucci,which crosses the Arno River in Florence. And then, suddenly,it dawns on me. This is no traffic jam. It’s the elegant gestureof Florentine designer Stefano Ricci to his visitors during PittiImmagine Uomo, 2007: a police escort stopping traffic so wecan savour this picture-postcard scene.This was my introduction, not only to the generosity of spiritof one Stefano Ricci, but also to one of the world’s pre-eminentbespoke tailors, John Cutler. We spent several memorable hourson that bus, enjoying a private viewing of the Statua di Davideand other Florentine masterpieces and, as John and I slowly, butsurely, became increasingly inebriated, we shared stories, andone thing came into focus: this man lives and breathes his craft.J. H. Cutler is an Australian institution. Founded in1884, the venerable tailoring firm outdates many of thegreat and famous tailoring and fashion houses: Anderson &Sheppard (1906), Prada (1913) and Gucci (1921), to namebut a few. The story begins in the English Midlands in the1850s, when Joseph Handel Cutler, an engineer, was —along with thousands of other fortune seekers — beguiledby the township of Ballarat, near Melbourne, on the other side ofthe world. Here, more gold has been found than in any other placeon earth. He packed up the family and shipped them to the other sideof the world, finding employment servicing the needs ofVictorian Gold Rush prospectors.Later, Joseph’s oldest son, also Joseph Handel, a man withno background in the craft, surprised everyone when he boardeda Cobb & Co. coach and headed north to Sydney, seeking hisfortune in tailoring. In 1884, he founded the company thatsurvives today, setting up his first rooms on fashionable KingStreet. As the city grew, so too did the business, which, in theearly 1900s, moved to new premises on nearby Bligh Street, theheart of the city’s financial and gentlemen’s establishments. Bythis time, J. H.’s son, Leslie Frederick, a highly sought-aftercutter, was working alongside his father. After the Second WorldWar Leslie’s son, Bruce, having been studying in London thendefending Australia in the New Guinea Campaign, returned tomanage the family business.John Handel Lawson Cutler, the current managing director, isthe fourth generation of tailoring Cutlers. A Sydney grammarian,he joined the family business at 16. But even before then, hehad shown great interest in the trade, spending many hours inthe workshop keenly observing the skilful cutting and sewing ofgarments for Sydney’s elite businessmen, politicians, entertainersand wealthy arbiters of bespoke clothing.At 18, like his father and grandfather before him, Johntravelled to London to immerse himself in the trade. He workedat Dormeuil Frères, learning about fine fabrics, and studied atthe Tailor and Cutter Academy, graduating in 1969. He laterreturned to Sydney and worked alongside his father, Bruce,becoming managing director of the family business in 1976,upon his father’s retirement.In 1988, J. H. Cutler was featured in the inaugural editionof Courvoisier’s Book of the Best. The trusted compendium for thestylish jet set cited the business as being amongst the world’sleading tailoring houses. J. H. Cutler has also been included inseveral international lists naming the house as one of the world’s10 best tailors. But it was in late 2005 that John’s profile waslaunched into the stratosphere, upon the completion of what wasto become a high-profile commission from a loyal internationalcustomer: a vicuña overcoat of the most exquisite quality, with aprice to match. The US$50,000 overcoat (vicuña costs US$5,000to US$6,000 a metre) made worldwide headlines and, shortly,will be the subject of an entire book (American author MegLukens Noonan’s The Coat Route: A Tale of Craft, Obsession, Luxury,and the World’s Most Expensive Coat will be published by Spiegel& Grau, an imprint of Random House, in New York). The booksees Noonan travelling the globe, tracing the making of Cutler’svicuña overcoat, “bringing alive an offbeat and obsessed cast ofmaster craftsmen locked in a David-and-Goliath struggle withthe forces of globalisation, illuminating larger issues of luxuryconsumption and sustainability”.Noonan told The Rake of her unique odyssey: “I travelled tothe Andes in Peru to see a wild vicuña round-up; Florence tovisit Stefano Ricci, who supplied the silk lining; Huddersfield,England, to see the Dormeuil fabric mill; Halesowen, England,to see the horn-button-maker; and Sydney, to see John Cutler,the tailor, and John Thompson, the creator of the 18K gold plaqueinside the coat.” The customer was so impressed with his navyblue single-breasted masterpiece that he promptly commissionedanother vicuña overcoat, this time in a camel hue, which Johnlined with Hermès scarves. My Lord, it’s beautiful.Meanwhile, back in J. H. Cutler’s quietly congenial roomsin Sydney’s bustling CBD, John quietly sets about chalkingup and cutting his next suit: a double-breasted chalk-stripefor a regular customer. In these very rooms, Cutler has seenthe private side of some very public figures. “When you have9899

With a pedigree thatpredates the likesof Gucci, Prada andAnderson & Sheppard,J. H. Cutler’s cutsmeld English andItalian influences andgenerations of Cutlerfamily know-howto create sartorialmasterpieces reveredDown Under andthe world over.Current managing director John HandelLawson Cutler, the fourth generationof tailoring Cutlers, assesses clothsamples in the tailor’s atelier.a gentleman here in the fitting room without his trouserson, it’s a leveller,” he laughs. “It’s like a confessional. I’veheard all sorts of things from all sorts of people —rightup to the prime minister.”While being measured up, clients can survey Cutler’s rangeof Stefano Ricci and Dormeuil silk ties, handmade Irish linenhandkerchiefs, Edward Green and Stefano Bemer shoes, AlbertThurston braces from the UK and leather belts and superb socksfrom Italy, all personally sourced by John during his regularoverseas trips. Cutler is a fulfiller of dreams, he says. “As long asI can understand the commission fully, my team has the ability toturn dreams into realities. As my grandfather used to say, ‘Youhave to fit two things: the body and the mind.’ If you don’t fulfilthe mind’s expectations, you haven’t done your job.”John says his house style “reflects the era that I feel mostcomfortable with, in the way I dress. My house style combines theEnglish form with the Italian softness. I can move between thetwo, appreciating the English style and Italian ‘flow’. We have asoft, long shoulder, not over-padded; a close-fitting, high collar;medium lapel, a little wider than what is currently fashionable.My suits are made to last well over 10 years, not two; I make alot of one-buttons; side vents I much prefer to single vents; andI like a little bit of drape.”“My grandfather usedto say, ‘You have to fit twothings: the body and themind.’ If you don’t fulfil themind’s expectations, youhaven’t done your job.”J. H. Cutler has been in business for over 127 years — fourgenerations. The history is not lost on John, but still he pushesforward, recognising that he is only as good as his last commission.“I was the head cutter at 23,” he says. “I have been cutting for 47years. But if I think I have stopped learning and that I know it all,then I don’t know anything. I am learning every day.”It is this mindset that keeps Cutler youthful and innovative.And his newest adventure takes bespoke to a whole new level.“We have established a relationship with one of the Bradford[UK] weavers, who do specialised cloth,” he explains. “Theyhave some old wooden looms, and they came up with the idea ofdoing bespoke cloth [with me].”So, if customers want their dreams realised, they can alwayscall into John’s private rooms in the heritage-listed Art Decopremises in Sydney, and be measured up for a suit the equalof anything in the world. The only thing he can’t guarantee is ared-hued full moon…J. H. CutlerLevel 6, 12 O’Connell Street, Sydney NSW 2000Tel: +61 2 9232 7122Website: www.jhcutler.com.auRight: The famous navy bluesingle-breasted coat, fashioned byJohn Handel Lawson Cutler’s (left)bespoke atelier, is made of vicuñawool: the most luxurious naturalfibre in the world. The vicuña mayonly be shorn every three years,and one metre of its fabric, whichwas originally reserved for Incanroyalty, fetches in the range ofUS$5,000–US$6,000 wholesale.100101