Knowledge & Heritage
Understanding Our Fabrics
The complete fabric glossary for bespoke tailoring. Every cloth and weave we use, grouped by season, with weight ranges, best uses, and mill sources.
The cloth defines the garment. Weight, weave, and fibre determine how a suit drapes, breathes, and ages. At Amieur & Zgaljardic we hold over 3,000 cloth samples in our Cleveland Street showroom, organised by season and weight, sourced from Britain and Italy's finest mills. This glossary covers every fabric and weave pattern we work with, grouped by when you would wear them. Understanding cloth is the first step toward a wardrobe that serves you year-round.
Summer Fabrics
| Tropical Wool | An open-weave worsted spun from fine merino, designed for warm weather. Air passes through the cloth rather than being trapped. 7-8oz. The first recommendation for any summer suit commission. Holds a crease and keeps its shape far better than linen. Sourced from our Italian and English mill partners. Best for: summer suits, warm-climate travel, daytime events from May to September. |
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| Fresco | An open-weave worsted invented by Harrisons of Huddersfield. Engineered so air circulates through the fabric, making it feel lighter than its 9-10oz weight suggests. Wrinkle-resistant and exceptionally breathable. Our top recommendation for Royal Ascot and summer weddings. Not as cool as linen in extreme heat, but far more structured. Best for: summer suits, formal daywear, sporting events. |
| Linen | Woven from flax fibres, one of the oldest textiles in the world. Lightweight, moisture-wicking, and naturally cool against the skin. Creases characterfully rather than untidily. 7-10oz. Irish linen is the finest grade. Best half-lined or unlined to maximise airflow. Linen-wool blends offer linen's coolness with wool's structure. Best for: summer suits, outdoor weddings, Mediterranean travel. |
| High-Twist Wool | Wool spun with extra twist in the yarn, creating a springy cloth that resists creasing naturally. 8-10oz. More structured than linen, more breathable than standard worsted. Recovers from folding within hours, making it the ideal travel cloth. Best for: travel suits, summer business wear, any garment that must look sharp after a long day. |
| Hopsack | An open basket weave that creates one of the most breathable fabric structures available. The texture adds visual interest without pattern. 9-11oz. A navy hopsack blazer is arguably the most versatile single garment in menswear. Best for: unstructured summer blazers, separates, casual suits, warm-weather sport coats. |
| Cotton | Not only for shirts. Cotton drill, cotton twill, and brushed cotton make excellent summer suits and casual jackets. Lighter than wool, more structured than linen, and holds its shape in humid conditions. Available in a wider colour range than wool. Best for: casual summer suits, chinos, unconstructed jackets, warm-weather separates. |
| Seersucker | A puckered cotton cloth with alternating smooth and crinkled stripes. The crinkle lifts fabric off the skin, creating natural airflow. Originally from India, adopted by the American South. Very niche in the UK but distinctively functional. Best for: summer blazers, casual suits, warm-weather occasions where convention allows it. |
| Mohair (Summer) | From the Angora goat. A lustrous, crease-resistant fibre that is lighter and cooler than worsted wool at equivalent weight. 8-10oz. Natural sheen makes it excellent for summer occasions where you want polish without warmth. Often blended with wool for the best of both properties. Best for: summer suits, daytime events, travel, warm-climate formal occasions. |
Autumn & Winter Fabrics
| Flannel | Soft wool with a lightly brushed, napped surface that creates a warm matte texture. The defining autumn and winter cloth. 11-16oz. Grey flannel is the foundation of British tailoring. Charcoal flannel suit is the most versatile winter garment you can own. Chalk stripes in flannel are a classic that never dates. Best for: autumn and winter suits, business wear from October to March. |
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| Tweed | A heavyweight cloth woven in a variety of patterns including herringbone, houndstooth, and windowpane. 12-16oz. Harris Tweed (hand-woven in the Outer Hebrides), Donegal (with distinctive coloured flecks), and estate tweeds each have unique character. Not just for the country. Best for: country jackets, winter suits, casual blazers, Cheltenham. |
| Cashmere | The undercoat of the Himalayan cashmere goat. Lighter than wool for equivalent warmth, with a soft hand and natural lustre. 12-14oz for suits, 18-22oz for overcoats. Requires more care than wool but the handle is unmatched. Best blended with wool for suits or pure for overcoats. Best for: luxury overcoats, winter suits, special-occasion tailoring. |
| Melton | A dense, heavily fulled wool with a smooth felt-like surface. The fibres are tightly compressed during production, creating exceptional warmth and wind resistance. 18-24oz. The traditional cloth for peacoats and naval outerwear. Best for: peacoats, heavy overcoats, military-inspired garments. |
| Cavalry Twill | A firm, diagonal-ribbed cloth with a prominent twill line. Heavier and smoother than standard twill weaves. Originally developed for military riding breeches. Now used for country trousers, overcoats, and robust winter garments. Best for: winter trousers, country wear, structured outerwear. |
| Corduroy | A ridged pile fabric woven in vertical ribs called wales. Wide-wale (8 per inch) for country jackets, needle-cord (16+ per inch) for city suits and trousers. Warm, durable, and softens beautifully with age. An autumn and winter alternative to tweed with more urban versatility. Best for: winter jackets, casual suits, autumn trousers. |
| Covert Twill | A firm, smooth-faced twill with a characteristic flecked surface created by twisted yarns of different colours. Originally woven for hunting, now the defining cloth of the covert coat. Medium-to-heavy weight, hardwearing, and subtly elegant. Best for: covert coats, country overcoats, transitional outerwear. |
| Velvet | A pile fabric with a dense, soft surface that catches and reflects light. Cotton velvet for structure and durability, silk-blend for luminous sheen. Reserved for evening and special occasions. Best for: dinner jackets, smoking jackets, evening waistcoats, winter accessories. |
Year-Round & Transitional
| Worsted Wool | Combed from long-staple yarns to create a smooth, dense, durable cloth with a subtle sheen. The foundation of fine suiting. Available in weights from 8oz (summer) to 14oz (winter). Holds a crease, drapes cleanly, and wears exceptionally well over years. Best for: year-round business suits, all-season tailoring. |
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| Birdseye | A fine weave pattern of small diamond shapes creating a subtle dotted texture across the cloth surface. The pattern is visible close up but reads as a solid from a distance. Refined and understated. Best for: business suits, formal daywear, professional settings. |
| Sharkskin | A smooth, lustrous two-tone weave created by alternating light and dark yarns. The result is a sophisticated shimmer that changes with movement and light. More polished than plain worsted, less bold than a pattern. Best for: evening suits, formal business wear, occasions where quiet distinction matters. |
| Pick and Pick | A subtle two-tone weave alternating single yarns of contrasting colour on every other pick. Creates a refined, textured surface that reads as a solid from distance but reveals depth up close. One of the most versatile and underrated suitings. Best for: business suits, professional tailoring, versatile all-season wear. |
| Herringbone | A V-shaped broken twill weave resembling the bones of a herring fish. One of the oldest weave patterns, dating to 800-500 BC. Available in every weight from summer worsted to heavy tweed. Adds visual interest without the formality of a stripe or the boldness of a check. Best for: suits, jackets, morning coats, overcoats. |
| Gabardine | A tight, smooth-faced twill weave originally developed by Thomas Burberry and waterproofed with lanolin. Now used without waterproofing as a crisp, durable suiting and outerwear cloth. The defining fabric of the trench coat. Best for: trench coats, lightweight overcoats, rainwear, structured outerwear. |
Evening, Formal & Weight Reference
| Barathea | A fine cloth with a granular, pebbled surface created by a broken twill weave. Smooth to the touch with a subtle texture visible in natural light. The traditional cloth for morning coats and dinner jackets. Available in black and midnight blue for evening, grey for morning dress. Best for: morning coats, dinner suits, formal occasion tailoring. |
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| Mohair (Evening) | The same Angora goat fibre used in summer, but in its evening context. The natural lustre of mohair catches artificial light beautifully, giving a dinner suit a subtle sheen that worsted cannot match. Often blended with wool at 50/50 for the ideal balance of lustre and body. Best for: dinner suits, evening trousers, formal accessories. |
| Silk Blends | Adding silk to wool creates a cloth with natural lustre, softer drape, and a cooler handle. The silk content typically ranges from 15-30 percent. More silk means more sheen and less structure. 20 percent is the balance point. Best for: summer evening wear, outdoor galas, black-tie events in warm weather. |
| Weight Reference | 7-8oz: Summer suits and blazers. 9-10oz: Transitional, travel, and lighter year-round. 11-12oz: The universal weight, suitable for most of the year. 13-14oz: Autumn flannel and heavier worsted. 15-16oz: Winter suits and heavy flannel. 18-22oz: Overcoats and heavy outerwear. 24oz+: Specialist outerwear only. |
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