There was an apprenticeship to a tailor available, so I took it. That's what you did back then. The tailor shop is something of an institution in the Jacobus Park neighborhood, having been established in 1926 when the majority of the houses in the area were built. Even when they retire, they come back occasionally for a new suit. And as other neighborhood customers retire and move away, a new crop of clients, usually young professionals, move in and begin coming to the store.
Customers can choose from a selection of in-stock clothing, or order from any of three catalogs.
It takes about a week for the suit to arrive, and depending on how extensive the alterations, another few days to a week before the customer is decked out. In their long careers, the two tailors have watched fabrics evolve but have kept their distance from fads and trends. Early on, we worked with heavy wool fabrics. Then more synthetics and polyester in the 1960s. While the heavier wools and polyester fabrics are the easiest to work with, today's lighter wool blends are more practical and popular.