Custom Suits for Malibu

Mr James is a bespoke tailoring house at 221 Culver Blvd in Playa del Rey, forty minutes to an hour down Pacific Coast Highway from Malibu depending on where along the coast you start. Since 2010 we have made fully canvassed, fully bespoke suits from $1,795, each cut from a pattern drawn for one person and made by hand in our atelier in Southern Brittany, France.

Malibu is a long way from anywhere by Los Angeles standards, which is why most of our Malibu work is done at the client's house. We bring the cloth, the linings and, later, the finished garments, and the whole thing happens on your terrace.

Weddings on the beach and in the vineyards

A Malibu wedding is either on the sand or up in the canyons among the vines, and both are outdoors, both are windy, and both are photographed from every angle. The tailoring should be light, pale and cut to hold a line: a wool and linen blend, a high-twist wool, a soft blue or stone rather than a dark navy. The best suit fabric for hot weather explains the choices. For the party, the groomsmen guide, and a 20 per cent reduction.

Six months ahead is ideal, three is comfortable, six weeks is possible as a rush. The wedding suit timeline lays it out.

Clothes for a coast

Beyond weddings, Malibu asks for an unstructured jacket that goes over a T-shirt, a pair of odd trousers in a cotton or a linen, and perhaps a dinner suit for the evenings in town; our custom tuxedos in Los Angeles begin at $1,795, the same figure as a two-piece. Odd trousers and styling a suit through the LA year are the pieces to read.

How a home visit works

We come with the cloth books and the lining swatches, take about thirty measurements and three photographs, and talk through the cut. The fittings that follow can be at the house too, or at the storefront on a day you are in town. The visit is $300, travel and the full cloth selection included. Home and office visits has the detail.

Getting here from Malibu

Pacific Coast Highway south to Santa Monica, then Lincoln through Venice and Marina del Rey to Playa del Rey. Forty minutes from the Colony on a good day, longer from Point Dume or Zuma. Free parking front and back.

Who comes to us from Malibu

Grooms and their parties, people who work in film and music and want one properly made suit for the occasions that require one, and a few who simply like the idea of a suit made in a French atelier and fitted on a Malibu terrace.

What a suit costs

From $1,795 for a two-piece, with unlimited fittings and a year of complimentary alterations included. A 50 per cent deposit at cloth selection, the balance on delivery. Wedding parties are 20 per cent less; a rush is 25 per cent more. The full card is on the cost page.

We can come to you

For $300 we bring the cloth books, the linings and, later, the finished garments to your home or office. It is how most of our Malibu clients choose to be measured. Details on the home and office visits page.

Questions we are often asked

Is there a bespoke tailor that comes to Malibu?

Yes. Mr James comes to homes anywhere in Los Angeles, Malibu included, for $300 a visit with the cloth and finished garments brought to you. Full canvas bespoke suits start at $1,795.

What should a groom wear to a Malibu beach wedding?

A light cloth such as a wool and linen blend or a high-twist wool in a soft blue or stone, half-lined or unlined, with trousers cut to sit still in the wind. Wedding parties are 20 per cent less.

Can the whole wedding party be fitted at the house?

Yes, in one visit. Parties are 20 per cent off.

Malibu is one of the neighbourhoods we look after from Playa del Rey. For the whole picture, what every garment includes, the cloth houses, the full price list and how the making is done, our guide to custom suits in Los Angeles has it in one place.

How long does a suit take?

Four to six weeks in domestic cloth, six to eight in imported Italian or English cloth. A rush is 25 per cent more. Fittings are unlimited and included.

What does a bespoke suit cost?

From $1,795 for a two-piece, with unlimited fittings and a year of complimentary alterations. A three-piece is $2,045, a dinner suit $1,795, a shirt $295.

Where is the storefront?

221 Culver Blvd, Playa del Rey, with free parking front and back. Appointments seven days a week with 48 hours' notice.

Come and see us

221 Culver Blvd, Playa del Rey, with free parking front and back. Appointments seven days a week with 48 hours' notice; book here, call 310-503-3592, or write to mrjames@bespokemrjames.com.

Nearby: Santa Monica · Venice · Marina del Rey. More: bespoke suits · about the house.