Nicholas De’Ath, Dege & Skinner cream barathea dinner jacket
Nicholas De'Ath, Creative Director at the storied tailoring house, has cut a cream barathea dinner jacket that captures the essence of formal evening dressing: sharp, restrained, perfectly proportioned. It is bespoke tailoring at its most refined.
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Nicholas De’Ath, Creative Director at Dege & Skinner, has cut a cream barathea dinner jacket for formal evening wear. The double breasted front sits balanced with sharp peak lapels; six silk covered buttons travel down in measured sequence. Satin facings line the lapels and button areas. The cloth itself, a tight twill weave in cream rather than ivory, holds its shape through an entire evening. What matters is the construction: the shoulder line, the way the jacket closes, the sleeve break.
De’Ath joined Dege & Skinner as Creative Director in 2015, bringing a modern sensibility to a house that has occupied Number 10 Savile Row since 1863. His work honours the foundational cuts of that era without mimicry. In this cream barathea jacket, his contribution is visible in the proportions he has chosen: the lapel width, the button placement, the way the shoulder sits. Each detail refuses novelty in favour of precision. Satin facings are silk, hand stitched to the wool lapels in the method Dege & Skinner has employed since its founding, each stitch visible only to the wearer and tailor.
The jacket is available as a bespoke commission through Dege & Skinner at Number 10 Savile Row, London. A custom dinner jacket requires multiple fittings and is made to order; the process typically unfolds over several weeks. The first fitting usually occurs within two to three weeks, followed by refinements at a second fitting before completion. Orders are taken through the Dege & Skinner website or by appointment at the showroom.
What strikes us most is the restraint. No peak or notch that overreaches. No button placement that demands attention. No lapel width that changes with the season. This is the kind of dinner jacket a man can wear at thirty and still reach for at sixty, because the cut transcends fashion. It belongs to a particular idea of dressing well: the belief that the wearer, not the garment, should command the room.
The jacket is available as a bespoke commission through Dege & Skinner at Number 10 Savile Row, London. A custom dinner jacket of this calibre requires multiple fittings and is made to order; the process typically unfolds over several weeks. The house stocks silk dress shirts and satin bow ties both online and in the Savile Row showroom for those completing their evening wardrobe.
Nicholas De’Ath joined Dege & Skinner in 2015 as Creative Director, bringing a modern sensibility to a house founded in 1863 by Henry Poole and others who shaped the golden age of Savile Row tailoring. De’Ath trained at Savile Row itself before taking the helm, and his approach honours the foundational cuts while refusing pastiche. The cream barathea dinner jacket demonstrates his philosophy: innovation through proportion rather than novelty, each seam and button placement considered against the accumulated knowledge of 160 years of evening wear.
Barathea, the cloth chosen for this jacket, is a tight twill weave traditionally made from wool or wool blended with silk, prized for its lustrous finish and ability to hold a press through extended wear. The cream shade sits between white and ivory, chosen deliberately to avoid the formality of pure white while maintaining the brightness evening dress demands. The satin facings are silk, hand stitched to the wool lapels and button areas in the method Dege & Skinner has employed since the house’s founding, each stitch visible only to the wearer and tailor.
A bespoke dinner jacket from Dege & Skinner begins with a consultation at Number 10 Savile Row, where the tailor measures and discusses proportions, lapel style, button stance and the client’s frame. The first fitting usually occurs within two to three weeks, followed by refinements at a second fitting before completion. Clients typically invest between £3,500 and £6,000 for a dinner jacket of this specification, though pricing varies with cloth choice and additional customisation. Orders are taken online through the Dege & Skinner website or by appointment at the showroom.
Imagery courtesy of Dege & Skinner (@degeandskinner).
