Brother Rice is an all-boys Catholic school of about six hundred, and over four years each of them stands in front of a room more than he expects: an induction, an awards night, a dance, a service, and at the end of it a commencement. The parents’ question in ninth grade is whether one jacket can cover all of it.
It can, if it is cut for growing
A fourteen-year-old is a size a year for a while. A navy jacket bought in the shoulder he has now, with the sleeves left long enough to take down and the seams left with something to give, comes back to us for a sleeve and a waist each time he grows. That is basic work, often the same day, depending on the garment and current workload. That’s cheaper than four jackets. It also looks better than a jacket bought big.
What to pair it with
Gray trousers for most of it, a suit in senior year when the events get serious. Our trousers are sold on their own rails, so his trouser size and his jacket size never have to agree.
Nobody sells the boy up
No one on our floor is on commission. If the jacket from last year still fits, a consultant will say so, and Roman, master tailor at Lincoln Tailor, on site in our store, will let the sleeve down and send you home.
Also for Bloomfield Hills: Cranbrook Schools: The Boarding Student Far From Home. More on style consulting, or plan your visit to our Oak Park showroom.
