The Sartorialists

Commonwealth Proper celebrates the notion that men's clothing should fit properly.

by A.D. Amorosi

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Published: Nov 17, 2010

[ menswear ]

Craig Arthur von Schroeder, a Philly construction attorney specializing in private contractors, got tired of wearing what he calls "foreign-made button-down shirts with billowing fabric at the waist." He saw an opportunity to create dress shirts for men who demanded more for their image — and their buck. "After a few years of tinkering with patterns," he says, "I eliminated the right amount of excess fabric that plagued most shirts."

That's how Commonwealth Proper started in 2009, creating hand-stitched limited-edition shirts based on the notion that men's clothing, above all else, should fit properly. "You can sacrifice a lot of things related to clothing, but fit is not one of them," says the legal eagle. "I wanted to service all clients, no matter what their size."

In a week and a half, von Schroeder, along with Commonwealth cohorts Jay Tidwell and Aaron Pierce (formerly of Barneys Co-Op), is opening the studio on 17th and Spruce, where clients can hang, shop and drink while gazing at the works in progress and the tools of their trade.

If this makes Commonwealth Proper sound like more than just a place to get a nice shirt, that's the point. It's more like an interactive art gallery, with custom made-to-measure (modified house patterns) and bespoke (from scratch, without pre-existing patterns) suits as their expressionist stock-in-trade.

"We're devoted to 'offset' pockets, which is a vertical pocket that is functional, yet slims the hips," says von Schroeder. "While they'd never admit it, most guys don't like wide hips. We're able to make portly men look dashing and slim men sophisticated — all by creating a garment that fits their body perfectly." As for Commonwealth Proper's studio concept: "The whole thing was inspired by the founding fathers and Civil War generals, who, in their own time, gathered to philosophize about independence and strategize while smoking cigars." If this all makes you think of Union League-meets-Savile Row, you're on the right track. "It's a social club of sorts," says von Schroeder, "where one of the perks of membership is dressing well."

(a_amorosi@citypaper.net)

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