Assemble Singapore - by Manda & Dan

Written by Manda & Daniel:
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Something exciting is brewing - no, Daniel and I are not getting married. We are, however, collaborating with a bunch of super rad people to do a bohemian pre-wedding shoot.

One of the partners, Assemble sg, is a tailoring company that specialize in customized suits.

- Cue theme song from Suits -

Run by the lovely Lyn and Ken, we visited their pop up store at Naiise (Orchard Central) to get Dan's suit customized. I thought it'll be great to share with you guys what went down because it's such an interesting process and I've learnt so much about flattering cuts for males. Also, given that this is sort of the age that everyone's GETTING MARRIED. (haha just in case your fiance asks for your opinion on their suit).

Suit making involves so many decisions - from fabric to colour, to texture, to cut. Given that I used to work in fashion, I thought I was equipped to give my input and opinions. But boy was I severely wrong. Thankfully, we had Ken to take us through every step of the way.

#1 Picking fabrics:

First up, Ken brought tons of catalogues and magazines for us to draw inspiration from. I never knew one could feel awestruck by pieces of cloth - but hey, they were Italian ;) Because we were shooting for a bohemian pre-wed shoot, we decided that a khaki coloured linen fabric would do great with the dress. (In addition, the linen was a breathable material that was appropriate for Singapore's weather.) Tip for all you love birds getting married: According to Ken, bohemian pre-wed shoots are hot this season!!

When picking the colour of your suit, consider your partner's skin tone. For Daniel, there's little contrast between his skin tone and hair colour because he's tan. In this case, as Ken suggests, recommend your partner to go for a contrasting jacket + shirt. He'll look less washed out for sure!

#2 Picking the cut:

This was where I started to fumble a bit because who knew that there are so many different ways to do a suit! Single vs Double breasted, 1 or 2 jacket buttons, Suit silhouettes... I guess it's logical, given the numerous no. of styles there are for a single lady's dress. Being in the suit industry for the past 3 years, Ken gave us an eloquent rundown on what kinds of cuts do best for different body shapes:

If your partner's body shape is like Daniel's (top heavy/erected chest), always take note of the suit's fit when he stretches out his arms. A good fit shouldn't show visible "stretched fabric lines" (for lack of a better word).

Other than that, when picking pants, Ken also gave the example that if you have a flat bottom, try going for pants with pockets flaps to create the illusion of a fuller bum. This theory also applies to ladies' pants too! ;) 

#3 DETAILS:

Going down to the details now, Assemble SG is so meticulous that you can even customize buttonholes. We were given an array of colours and materials to pick from again! At this point, I was so blown away by them because it's really when one looks out for the nitty gritty that a customized suit is perfected. We selected wood buttons to match with the cloth to give a special but less conventional rustic look.

You also get to pick your inner lining too. I even saw some digital print linings with puppies, pineapples and flamingos. The suit was made for a Canadian customer. Could be in trend? ;) Could be a conversation starter? ;)

For the suit's inner lining, we were recommended a viscose material which had a very smooth and comfortable texture. We learnt that most suit linings were made of polyester, which had a very 'plastic' texture to it and also made the suit unbreathable.

We were told that details of a suit are opportunities to express one's personality and character. For instance, a wide lapel, which is increasingly trending, expresses power and dominance (cue Harvey Spector). In addition, it had to match the wearer's physique and be proportionate to the chest. Another detail which we did not think of was the sleeve's buttonhole colour. We were genuinely surprised that we were asked to specially select a colour for it in the first place! Again, it was another opportunity to express one's individuality. We were told that some select red for superstitious reasons. Since Daniel was a Liverpool fan, it was natural that he selected red.

#4 Measurements

Because it's a customized suit, there's more than just the usual bust-chest-waist measurements. If you haven't watched your bf take measurements at the tailor's before - it's a long and painful process. But we watched Ken zip through the measurements easy and breezy, without any hassle. Dan and I had to rush off for Justice League after the fitting so Ken managed to get his measurements down within 15 minutes?! Like, what?! #RecordTime.

Daniel was down for 2 fittings, just to make sure the suit fits him to the T. And damn right it did.

I've failed as a girlfriend in this aspect but special thanks to Ken who came down for the shoot to help Daniel style!! Had an awesome experience collaborating with Assemble Singapore.

Check them out:
https://assemblesg.com/

Shout outs
Makeup by Ayden from Cynderella
Gown by Stitch by Stitch
Flowers by Lizflorals
Daniel's Suit from Assemble