Suit Up with Tom Ford

Ask fashion leaders such as Tom Ford, and they’ll say the age old saying “clothes maketh the man” still rings true today. “Dressing well is a form of good manners,” as he once told GQ magazine.

Immortalised in Justin Timberlake’s Suit and Tie song, the CFDA Menswear Designer of the Year takes his suits seriously — to the extent of creating a new system for modern menswear influenced by both English and Italian sartorial traditions. He insists on nothing less than fine materials and centuries-old craftsmanship to build a jacket that moulds to the body like a second skin, a fit now synonymous with his name.

Little wonder then that Huang Xiaoming, one of China’s leading actors chose Tom Ford for his lavish wedding to model-actress-singer Angelababy. Dubbed “the wedding of the century”, it reportedly cost $43.6 million, and the actor spared no expense for his wardrobe of three formal suits.

Two tuxedos (one in black and the other in white) and a smoking jacket (in black) were all impeccably made to measure with wool-silk and wool-cashmere blends from northern Italy for the hunky groom. Even accessories such as cufflinks and studs came from the Tom Ford Collection.

And the designer will soon be back in the international limelight when Spectre, the latest James Bond movie is unveiled from October 26, 2015 onwards (November 5 in Singapore). Playing the titular character, Daniel Craig makes his third outing clad in spiffy Tom Ford suits in O’Connor and Windsor cuts, all tailor-made in exclusive fabrics with hand-finished details. “I could not be happier dressing Daniel Craig as James Bond again in the upcoming film, Spectre,” says Ford. “James Bond epitomises the Tom Ford man in his elegance, style and love of luxury. It is an honour to move forward with this iconic character.”

Both O’Connor and Windsor cuts are available off-the-rack but if you want a one-of-a-kind suit, there’s no better time than now. Tom Ford’s made-to-measure specialist will be flying in from Milan to conduct fitting sessions on October 23-25. During each 90-minute session, he will take up to 25 measurements required to draft a pattern for each person’s unique proportions and posture, the first step towards the seven-week process of building a suit you can call your own.