Get to know your suit: Canvassed V Fused
The spotlight of today’s blog post is on the construction of a suit jacket. Specifically on whether a jacket is canvassed, fused or half canvassed. These are some terms that can be very confusing for most people when searching for a new suit, but we are here to shed some light on the matter.
What is a canvass?
Originally, suits were constructed with a horesehair interlining that lays between the surface fabric and the lining you see on the inside of the suit. This canvass has the purpose of giving the jacket support, shape and structure, and is preventing it from sagging and deforming. It is the skeleton of the suit, if you will.
Due to the fashion industry developing and having an increased demand, full canvasses have become less used in jackets. They have been replaced by a fused/glued interlining that is a lot cheaper to produce.
Full canvas
A full canvassed suit is by far the best you can get in terms of a suit jacket construction. The canvas is firstly cut in the jacket’s shape, afterwords the wool will be stitched to the canvass. That will give your suit a great shape, that actually over time will conform to your body shape, that will create an even better fit.
Pros:
- Fits better to your body time, the longer you wear it
- Gives your jacket support and structure
- No bubbling of the suit (that comes from a stiff suit)
Cons:
- Due to the horsehair fabric and the high skills a tailor needs to make it, a full canvass is always more expensive
Fused/glued
Fused interlinings are fabrics glued directly to the surface fabric of the suit. That gives the suit some structure, but it will never be conforming to the body type of the person wearing it.
Pros:
- The least expensive jacket interlining
Cons:
- No room for movement because the jacket will be too stiff
- The jacket does not let the skin breath
- Ill-fitting
- The glue degrades in some time due to dry cleaning
- Bubbling (due to glue degradation, the surface fabric will detach from the fused interlining and the fabric will ripple around the chest area. Once this happened, the suit can not be fixed anymore)
Half - canvassed
Half-canvassed interlinings have canvass material sewed through the chest and lapels parts of the jacket and fused fabric on the bottom part of the interlining.
Half-canvassed jackets have structure in the shoulder and chest area but are also a bit lighter than a full canvassed suit.
Pros:
- Good draping of the suit
- Shoulder and chest have a shape and structure
- Nice lapel roll
- Less expensive than a full canvassed suit
- Used for high quality linen suits due to it’s lighter weight
Cons:
- Can be a bit stiffer due to the fused interlining at the bottom
How to recognise a full canvassed suit?
The pinch test is the easiest way to determine the interlining of a jacket.
- Pinch the fabric on the sleeve to determine the fabric’s thickness .
- Pinch the the fabric under the bottom front button (from the inside and outside of the suit). Try to pinch the two layers apart
If you feel a third layer inside, the jacket is fully canvassed.
If you don’t, and the fabric is stiffer and thicker than the sleeve, the jacket is fused or half canvassed.
Do the same test above the top button of the jacket to determine whether it is fused or half canvassed.
How are Suits by HT&T constructed?
The standard construction in our wool blend suits are always full canvass and for our summer linen suits half canvass.
Hope we made suits construction more clearer today, and as always, we look forward to any questions or comments you might have about the topic today or our suits.
Always more fun in a suit,
Suits by HT&T team