Look up bespoke in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Bespoke (English pronunciation: /biˈspoʊk/ ( listen)) is a British English word meaning an item made to a buyer's specification (personalized or tailored). While it is applied to many items, including computer software and luxury cars, the term historically was applied only to men's tailored clothing, footwear and other apparel, implying measurement and fitting.

The distinguishing points of bespoke tailoring are the buyer's total control over the fabric used, the features and fit, and the way the garment should be made. More generally, "bespoke" describes a high degree of "customization", and involvement of the end-user, in the production of the goods.

"Bespoke" is rarely used in any context in other varieties of English^{[citation needed]}, which usually prefer terms such as "tailor-made" or "customized".

Bespoke clothing[link]

Meaning of the term[link]

Fitting of a bespoke jacket

The word bespoke itself is derived from the verb to bespeak, to "speak for something", in the specialized meaning "to give order for it to be made".^[1] The term bespoke in fashion is reserved for individually patterned and crafted men's clothing, analogous to women's haute couture,^[2] in contrast with mass manufactured ready-to-wear (also called off-the-peg or off-the-rack).

Bespoke clothing is traditionally cut from a pattern drafted from scratch for the customer, and so differs from ready-to-wear, which is factory made in finished condition and standardized sizes, and from made to measure, produced to order from an adjusted block pattern. This opposition of terms did not initially imply that a bespoke garment was necessarily well built, but since the development of ready-to-wear in the beginning of the twentieth century,^[3] bespoke clothing is now more expensive and is generally accompanied by a high quality of construction.^{[n 1]}

While the distinction conferred by haute couture is protected by law in France,^{[n 2]} the British Advertising Standards Authority has ruled it is a fair practice to use the term bespoke for products which do not fully incorporate traditional construction methods.^[4] This position is opposed by the Savile Row Bespoke Association, a trade group of traditional tailors.^{[n 3][5]}

Bespoke versus made-to-measure[link]

Between the extremes of bespoke and ready-to-wear has existed, since the end of the 19th century,^{[n 4]} a "grey area of garments for which the customer was measured, but that were then made up to the closest standard size, often, but by no means always, in a factory."^[6] The distinction made here is between bespoke, created without use of a pre-existing pattern, and made to measure, which alters a standard-sized pattern to fit the customer.^[7] Technological change makes this distinction more subtle, since "fittings are increasingly required for both bespoke and made-to-measure; a bespoke service may require an individually-cut pattern, which is then kept should further suits be required, and now made-to-measure measurements are often stored too, on a computer. Even hand-work, often cited as a benchmark of bespoke, is now increasingly found in made-to-measure garments, while machine-making plays some part in the creation of most bespoke suits".^[5]

Savile Row Bespoke[link]

The Savile Row Bespoke Association is a group of Savile Row tailors that has attempted to set a standard by providing minimum requirements for a garment to be allowed to use its trademark.

These standards particularly stress:

• hand work used almost entirely on all garments, including the "individual cut of a paper pattern";
• personal service, such as qualified advice, a large selection of fabrics, or the keeping of all records for future orders;
• involvement by participating houses in an approved training scheme.^[8]

The association has also specified twenty-one points addressing specific parts of a suit, each dictating some detail such as the length of inlays, or which seams must be hand stitched.^[9]

Yet the association has not successfully established bespoke as a protected label, comparable to haute couture.

Advertising Standards Authority ruling[link]

In June 2008, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), a British advertising regulator, ruled that an advertisement describing a suit "put into a 'working-frame' where it would be cut and sewn by machine"^[10] as a "bespoke suit uniquely made according to your personal measurements & specification"^[10] was not breaching the Authority's self proclaimed advertising codes,^[11] notably the truthfulness rule,^[12] because the use of the term bespoke was not deemed likely to confuse. The ruling was significant in formalising a less traditional definition of bespoke clothing, even though the older distinction with made-to-measure was recognised.

The ruling cited the Oxford English Dictionary definition of bespoke as "made to order", and considered that despite the fact a bespoke suit was "fully hand-made and the pattern cut from scratch, with an intermediary baste stage which involved a first fitting so that adjustments could be made to a half-made suit",^[10] while a suit made-to-measure "would be cut, usually by machine, from an existing pattern, and adjusted according to the customer's measurements",^[10] "both fully bespoke and made-to-measure suits were "made to order" in that they were made to the customer's precise measurements and specifications, unlike off-the-peg suits".^[10]

Some, such as the etymologist Michael Quinion, considered the ruling showed that "the historic term of art had moved on".^[13] Some others concluded that "bespoke tailoring has traditionally, if unofficially, meant something more than the dictionary definition allows"^[5] and that the ASA "took a rather ignorant decision to declare that there is no difference between bespoke and made-to-measure."^[14]

Other uses[link]

Once a fashion industry-specific term, bespoke is increasingly being applied to custom specification in other industries, including:

• custom software, in which it refers to software designed and written for a single company and/or task
• telecommunications, referring to non-standard solutions tailored for specific customers
• finance, including individually tailored mutual fund portfolios and structured finance products
• furniture
• interior design
• music customised music projects, and production
• luxury automobile interior appointments and coachbuilding.
• Bristol Cars in England is one of the rare remaining truly bespoke car manufacturers, as its cars are only made on order, not made on an assembly line, and in making some cars the body parts are still made on an English Wheel (noting however, that its Chrysler engine & transmission are not bespoke).
• firearms, particularly luxury sporting arms such as shotguns and rifles, which may include custom appointments (stocks made of rare woods, custom engraving, case colouring or other metalwork) and custom fitting
• shoemaking, generally provided by small manufacturers working by hand
• perfume, a custom made scent composed specifically for an individual
• porcelain
• jewellery, including timepieces
• travel planning^[15]
• customisation of a particular product or service (e.g. envelopes)
• Internet Marketing, or "Bespoke Strategy" a custom internet marketing strategy usually related to SEO or SEM
• essays purchased from third parties for the purpose of illicitly submitting them to school courses as one's own work."[1]" The Telegraph. Retrieved 5 March 2001.
• Surgery, bespoke intraoperative ultrasound systems that can optimize the compromise between removing tumor and sparing healthy tissue. ARDMS Updates and Headlines in the News Ultrasound Guided Liver Surgery.
• bicycles, where the customer can fully customize the build of a bike, common in larger U.S. cities with bicycling culture.

See also[link]

• Build to order
• Custom-Fit
• Custom (disambiguation)
• Customization (disambiguation)
• Haute couture
• Mass customization
• Personalization
• New bespoke movement
• Made to measure

Notes[link]

References[link]

Kate Moss
Moss in 2005
Born	(1974-01-16) 16 January 1974 (age 38) Addiscombe, Croydon, London, England
Occupation	Model
Height	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)[1]
Hair colour	Brown[2]
Eye colour	Hazel
Dress size	UK 6 – US 2 – EU 34[2]
Manager	Storm Model Management D'management Group Marilyn Model Agency IMG Models
Spouse	Jamie Hince (m. 2011) «start: (2011-07)»"Marriage: Jamie Hince to Kate Moss" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.pop.wn.com/index.php/Kate_Moss)
Children	1

Kate Moss (born 16 January 1974) is an English model who is known for her waifish figure and popularising the heroin chic look in the 1990s. She is also known for her controversial private life, high profile relationships, party lifestyle, and drug use. Moss changed the look of modelling and started a global debate on eating disorders, and her role in size zero fashion. In 2007, she came 2nd on the Forbes top-earning models list, estimated to have earned $9 million in one year.^[3]

Early life[link]

Moss was born in Addiscombe, Croydon, London to Linda Rosina (Shepherd), a barmaid, and Peter Edward Moss, a travel agent.^[4] Kate has a younger brother named Nick and a half-sister named Lottie (Charlotte) and half-brother.^[5][6][7] Moss' parents divorced when she was 13. She attended Ridgeway Primary School and Riddlesdown Collegiate, but most commonly known as Riddlesdown High School, in Purley. She was not noted for her academic success but she did excel at sport.

Career[link]

Moss was discovered in 1988 at the age of 14 by Sarah Doukas, the founder of Storm Model Management, at JFK Airport in New York City,^[8] after a holiday in the Bahamas. Moss's career began when Corinne Day shot black-and-white photographs of her, styled by Melanie Ward, for British magazine The Face when she was 16, in a photo shoot titled "The 3rd Summer of Love". Day discovered Kate Moss when she was a young and unknown model and described the pictures that she took of Moss as ‘dirty realism’ or ‘grunge’.^[9]Moss then went on to become the "anti-supermodel" of the 1990s^{[citation needed]} in contrast to the "supermodels" of the moment^{[citation needed]}, such as Cindy Crawford, Elle Macpherson, Claudia Schiffer, and Naomi Campbell, who were known^{[citation needed]} for their curvaceous and tall figures.

Moss was voted 9th in Maxim's "50 Sexiest Women of 1999" and 22nd in FHM's "100 Sexiest Women of 1995". Men's magazine Arena named her as their Sexiest Woman in their 150th issue. She was presented on the November 1999 Millennium cover of American Vogue as one of the "Modern Muses".^[10] In March 2007, Moss won the Sexiest Woman NME Award.^[11] She made her first appearance in the British women's Sunday Times Rich List in 2007, where she was estimated to be worth £45 million. She ranked as the 99th richest woman in Britain.^[12] In the 2009 Rich List, she was ranked as the 1,348th richest person in the UK, with a net worth of £40 million.^[13]

In July 2007, when she had earned an estimated total of $9 million in the preceding 12 months, Forbes magazine named her second on the list of the World's 15 top-earning models list.^[3]

Style[link]

Moss ushered in the heroin chic look in 1993^{[citation needed]} (which prompted much speculation over her weight) with a highly publicised campaign for Calvin Klein. Her depiction in photographs also drew criticism from then-President of the United States Bill Clinton, who spoke out against the growing heroin chic trend.^[14] When questioned about her weight, Moss commented, "It was just the time. It was a swing from more buxom girls like Cindy Crawford and people were shocked to see what they called a 'waif'. What can you say? How many times can you say 'I'm not anorexic'?"^[15]

In addition to being known for her modelling work, Kate Moss is also an international fashion icon.^[16] She has garnered many awards for her style, including the Council of Fashion Designers of America's fashion influence award and a place on the Vanity Fair international best-dressed list.^[17][18] In the early part of the 21st century, she was, together with actress Sienna Miller, one of the main proponents of boho-chic.^{[citation needed]} She appeared on the cover of Vanity Fair's September 2006 style issue. In recent years, she has popularised denim cutoff shorts,^[19] Ugg boots, ballet flats, Vivienne Westwood Pirate Boots, skinny jeans, waistcoat, Alexander McQueen's skull scarf, Louis Vuitton's Sprouse Leopard Cashmere Scarf, and the Balenciaga handbag.^[20]

In 2008, Moss was added to PETA's 'Worst-Dressed' Celebrities of 2008'^[21] because of her frequent use of fur.

Campaigns[link]

Moss has had campaigns with major Italian, French, American, and British designers including Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana, Calvin Klein, Chanel, Rimmel,^[22] and Bulgari. She has been featured in fashion spreads in most major fashion magazines including UK, US, and French Vogue magazines (as well as other international versions of Vogue), Another Man, Vanity Fair, the Face, and W. Moss has appeared on the cover of British Vogue 30 times,^[23] in addition to dozens of other international Vogue covers, and has been featured on the cover of 17 issues of W, including one issue with nine different covers that featured the model. W even names Moss its muse (September 2003 issue). She has worked with the most well-known photographers in the fashion industry, such as Mario Testino, Mario Sorrenti, Steven Klein, Juergen Teller, and Peter Lindbergh, and won the prestigious Vogue/CFDA award from the Fashion Designers of America in July 2005 as Fashion Inspiration.^{[citation needed]}

April 2005 saw the launch of the Rimmel London mascara TV ad featuring a leather-clad Kate Moss riding a motorbike through London to the sound of the rock song "Another Cold Beer" by Steven Crayn, an advertising campaign that is still running.^{[citation needed]}

Twelve months after her cocaine scandal, Moss made a comeback by bagging 18 top modelling contracts for the Autumn/Winter 2006 season including Rimmel, Agent Provocateur, Virgin Mobile, Calvin Klein Jeans and Burberry.^{[citation needed]} Moss designed a collection, in collaboration with Katy England, for Topshop.^[24] Moss launched a fragrance and body lotion range bearing her name in association with Coty in 2007.^[25]

According to Forbes, Moss has earned more money since her cocaine scandal than ever before: her 2004–2005 earnings were $5 million^[26] and her 2005–2006 earnings were $8 million.^[27] In 2007, with estimated earnings of $9 million, she was the second highest paid model in the world, behind Gisele Bündchen.^[3]

In November 2006, Moss won the Model of the Year prize at the British Fashion Awards, the top accolade in British fashion, but the award divided opinion and stirred fresh controversy.^[28]

On 27 September 2007, The Sun published a story entitled, "Kate Moss dumped by seven brands", describing her "cocaine honeymoon" as fading away. The story continues by stating that in autumn 2006 she had eighteen contracts in comparison to 2007's eleven, and that in 2006 fashion bible Vogue had six campaigns using Moss including Dior, Louis Vuitton and Burberry, but November 2007's issue has none. The story concludes by saying that an industry source has said "She is still very big but the honeymoon period has ended."^[29]

In 2012 Moss appeared as a Model for the Spring/Summer Collection for Supreme

Fashion designer[link]

On 1 May 2007, a collection of clothes designed by Moss exclusively for the Topshop chain were launched across the UK in the chain's 225 stores. A Kate Moss "countdown to launch" board filled a window of the company's flagship Oxford Street store and on 30 April, Moss launched the clothing line at Topshop in Oxford Street, where she briefly appeared in the shop window modelling a red dress from the clothing collection just before the shop was opened, causing a media frenzy.^[30] Topshop reportedly paid Moss £3 million for her work.^[30] The collection of fifty designs included clothes, bags, shoes and belts, where prices range from £12 for a vest top to £150 for a cropped leather jacket. Clothes in the collection included skinny jeans, one-shoulder minidresses and T-shirts with the letter K woven into the design.^[31] The Topshop range was later released in the United States at the New York chain store Barneys.^[32]

In a collaboration with Coty, Moss has released four fragrances.^{[citation needed]} In early 2010, it was revealed that she had designed a range of handbags for luxury goods house Longchamp.^[33]

Alan McGee, Kate Moss, and BP Fallon DJing at Death Disco NY in 2004

Other endeavours[link]

Moss appeared on Oasis singles "Don't Go Away" (1998) and "Fade Away" (1994), and on the Be Here Now album (1997), playing tambourine, Johnny Depp playing a guitar.

She has appeared in music videos such as "Kowalski" by Primal Scream, "I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself" by the White Stripes, "Something About the Way You Look Tonight" by Elton John, "Sex with Strangers" by Marianne Faithfull, "Love Don't Bother Me" by Stage Dolls, and "Delia's Gone" and "God's Gonna Cut You Down" by Johnny Cash.

She has also provided vocals for songs by Primal Scream (the 2003 version of "Some Velvet Morning"), Babyshambles ("La Belle et la Bête") and The Lemonheads ("You're a Dirty Robot"). Prior to breaking up with Pete Doherty, Moss co-wrote four songs on Babyshambles' second album Shotter's Nation—"You Talk", "French Dog Blues", "Baddie's Boogie", and "Deft Left Hand".

In 1999, Moss played a non-musical role in the British screen comedy Blackadder: Back & Forth, appearing both as Maid Marian and as a fictional Queen of England "who looks good naked".^[34] Director and writer Richard Curtis said in the making of video, that they wanted "the best looking woman in England" to play the role.^[35]

Moss has also been the subject of portraits by contemporary artists such as Lucian Freud and Chuck Close. In 2005, a painting of Moss by Freud sold for £3.93 million at a Christie's auction.^[36] Close has taken a series of daguerreotypes of Moss, which he has also translated into Jacquard tapestry.^[37]

In October 2010, she appeared on the cover of Bryan Ferry's album Olympia.

In January 2012, having seen a performance by Dutch illusionist Hans Klok on the BBC's The One Show, Moss called fashion designer Stella McCartney and recommended that she book him as one of the attractions at her London Fashion Week show the following month.^[38][39] It was originally planned that Moss, a self-confessed magic fan, would act as Klok's assistant, and she spent several days working with him to rehearse three illusions, a levitation, a sawing in half and a guillotine illusion. However, she was forced to drop out of the show after suffering temporary paralysis of her right arm due to a trapped nerve, and her place was taken by TV presenter and model Alexa Chung.^[39][40]

Charity work[link]

Moss has been a supporter of the Breakthrough Breast Cancer charity, and in the 1990s featured in one of their target T-shirt campaigns.^{[citation needed]} She also supported War Child.^{[citation needed]} Moss also designed a charm in a necklace for Wallis in 2007 in aid of Cancer Research UK and said "I am happy to give my support to help fund crucial research, as so many lives are affected by this terrible disease".^[41]

She has also helped to launch the SamandRuby charity in March 2006. The charity was started to provide funding for the education and shelter of Thai children. The SamandRuby organisation is named after a friend of Moss's, Samantha Archer Fayet, and her 6-month-old daughter Ruby Rose who were killed by the Tsunami while visiting Thailand.^{[citation needed]} Moss also supports the Elton John AIDS Foundation, the Hoping Foundation, the Lucie Blackman Trust, Make Poverty History, Comic Relief and Homes of Hope.^[42]

On 22 November 2006, Moss recorded an appearance in a Little Britain sketch for Comic Relief at the Hammersmith Apollo as a character called Katie Pollard, sister of Vicky Pollard played by Matt Lucas.^[43]

Moss made a short film with Misery Bear for the March 2011 Comic Relief event entitled "Misery Bear's Comic Relief Starring Kate Moss".^[44]

Personal life[link]

Kate Moss has a daughter, Lila Grace Moss Hack,^[45] born on 29 September 2002, with Dazed & Confused editor Jefferson Hack.

Moss had a relationship with former Libertines member Pete Doherty, first meeting him at her 31st birthday party in January 2005.^[46] On 11 April 2007, Doherty announced Moss as his fiancée during one of his concerts in London, at which Moss also performed.^[47][48] In July 2007, Moss and Doherty split.^{[citation needed]} She was due to model on the catwalk for John Galliano, but was too distraught with her break-up to participate.^[49]

Moss began dating Jamie Hince, guitarist for The Kills in late 2007 with The Sun reporting on 26 March 2008, that they had became engaged during a trip to Amsterdam,^[50] Hince proposing to Moss in bed with a vintage 1920s ring worth more than £10,000.^[51] Moss married Hince on 1 July 2011 at St Peter's Church, Southrop in Gloucestershire; she wore a dress by John Galliano.^[52]

Cocaine scandal[link]

On 15 September 2005, the Daily Mirror ran front page and inside photos that seemed to show Moss snorting several lines of a white powder that was presumed to be cocaine at a Babyshambles recording session. It was also reported that Moss snorted five lines in 40 minutes.^[53] It has been alleged by Babyshambles' singer Pete Doherty that James Mullord, his former manager, sold the photos to the newspaper for more than £150,000 and spent the money on heroin.^[54]

On 20 September 2005, the Swedish fashion retailer H&M, which had intended to feature her in a campaign of their autumn clothes range designed by Stella McCartney, announced it was dropping Moss after the drug allegations.^[55] The contract was reportedly worth £4 million a year.^[56] A day later, Chanel announced that it would not be renewing its contract with Moss, which was set to expire that October, although the company said that its decision had nothing to do with the drug scandal. Burberry also decided to drop Moss's campaign with them.^[57] Moss quickly issued an apology, though she stopped short of admitting drug use.^[58]

Moss continued to appear in major ad campaigns during this period for Dior.^{[citation needed]} She was on the cover of the November 2005 W and also appeared inside in a multi-page fashion shoot. She was also defended by designer Alexander McQueen, who, during his walk-out after a fashion show, wore a t-shirt saying "We love you Kate".^[59] Artist Stella Vine also publicly supported Moss, and paintings by Vine of the model, painted during the scandal, were exhibited and reproduced in the press.^[60]

In November 2005, Moss ended her relationship with Doherty soon after he checked himself out of Meadows Clinic in Arizona, failing to complete a programme for drug rehabilitation.^{[citation needed]} Moss herself underwent successful treatment there in October and had urged Doherty to seek the same treatment himself. Doherty claims that their separation involved other issues, telling The Sun that Moss left him because, "I can’t buy her diamonds."^[61] On 5 January 2006, the Metropolitan Police asked Moss to return from the US to Britain to answer questions about the September 2005 cocaine scandal.^[62] The following day, the Daily Mirror reported that Moss would return to Britain and face arrest for allegations of cocaine usage. She was interviewed by police in London on 31 January 2006, with her solicitor present, but reportedly made no admissions, and she was not arrested (photographs of alleged drug-taking are not admissible evidence in English courts). On 16 June 2006, British police finally dropped the charges for lack of evidence.^[63] Ultimately, Moss was cleared of all charges and resumed her modelling career.^{[citation needed]} Criticism of Moss has continued, and her career revival has been viewed as a sign of moral and cultural decline by critics such as Peter Hitchens.^[64]

Gold statue[link]

A £1.5m ($2.8m) 100% gold statue was made of Moss in 2008 as part of a British Museum exhibition. Entitled Siren, the 50 kg (110 lb) hollow statue was made by Marc Quinn, who described Moss as "the ideal beauty of the moment". The statue is said to be the largest gold statue to be created since the era of Ancient Egypt.^[65]

Quinn had previously unveiled a painted-bronze, life-size sculpture of Moss in a contorted yoga pose, titled Sphinx.^[66]

References[link]

Notes[link]

Bibliography[link]

• Buttolph, Angela. Kate Moss: Style. London: Century, 2008. ISBN 1-84605-429-X.
• Collins, Laura. Kate Moss: The Complete Picture. London: Sidgwick & Jackson Ltd, 2008. ISBN 0-283-07063-3.
• Kendall, Katherine. Kate Moss: Model of Imperfection. New York: Penguin Group, 2005. ISBN 1-59609-033-2.
• Moss, Kate. Kate: The Kate Moss Book. New York: Universe, 1997. ISBN 0-7893-0101-6.
• Vermorel, Fred. Addicted To Love: Kate Moss London: Omnibus Press, 2006. ISBN 1-84609-158-6, second (updated) edition, 2007. ISBN 978-1-84609-755-3.

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Kate Moss

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Kate Moss

• Kate Moss at the Internet Movie Database
• Kate Moss at the Fashion Model Directory
• Kate Moss at People.com
• Full Vogue 8 Aug Article
• Extract from Kate Moss: The Complete Picture by Laura Collins