Heralded with masterminding the signature Cifonelli style, Arturo also invented the house’s celebrated shoulder,
Le Cigarette. Constructed with soft padding the sleevehead resembles a British roped shoulder, together
with a sleek chest, abbreviated skirt and high-gorged, figure-hugging lapel. Another legendary Parisian import, Karl
Lagerfeld once famously stated, “I could recognise a Cifonelli shoulder from a distance of a hundred metres,”
Lorenzo and Massimo maintain they’re the only two who construct Le Cigarette, which is not limited to their
bespoke, but very much a signature of their ready-to-wear lines which you can also now find on British shores in one
of the early Georgian townhouses in Mayfair’s Clifford Street and on TheRake.com.
Their new autumn/winter collection attests to very best of Cifonelli tailoring which is in its 4th
generation, since its inception in 1880. Among their new creations is a charming grey and yellow check wool
double-breasted suit. The butterscotch yellow check lines blend in discreetly with the suit’s light grey shade for
that classical and understated appearance, which I’m sure Cary Grant would’ve been proud to wear; he's one of
Cifonelli's inspirations. In true French style, the pants are cut closer to the leg than their English counterparts
for a sharper profile. If your wardrobe is already check heavy, then their navy double-breasted suit, cut in nearly
the same style with sharp notch lapels is also a very fine choice to add into your double-breasted armoury.
It is not just suiting where Cifonelli excel. Appreciating the Parisian house’s refinement is a younger audience than
it once was, with a younger demographic spanning between the ages of 35 and 55 being the crux of their clientele. As
dress codes become less polarised, garments that you can wear in most settings are becoming more appealing. As the
steam rises from your coffee, outside the cafes of Montmartre on the brisk mornings in Paris, knitwear as the top or
underlayer is going to be a wise choice. Cifonelli only use the best materials and in their selection of cashmere
jumpers which come in various soups from vibrant crewnecks to plain slipovers, they will certainly keep you warm
sitting outside those cafes when the lockdown measures allow it. If the heavens open, their tortilla double-breasted
raincoat is a chic and practical choice, whilst it also has the added ability to be used both inside and out as it’s
reversible.
There is only a small selection of tailors who manage to master the art of the button-down shirt. Cifonelli is one of
them and as casualization accelerates, their button-down check shirts in autumnal hues can act as the comfortable
underlayer when wearing either their cashmere knitted bomber jackets, field jackets or Teba jackets. Each jacket
adds a splash of subtle eccentricity whilst remaining immaculate in true French style.
All said, desolate offices mean that style and comfort are going to be approached in a different way. It’s hard to
see past any brand producing the same calibre of quality as Cifonelli in their ready-to-wear line, as it fits in
perfectly with the more relaxed and informal way of being that many of us find ourselves in, during this historical
period of life.
