Why Construction Matters
The inside of a jacket is invisible. But it determines everything: how the jacket falls from your shoulders, how it moves with your body, whether it improves with age or deteriorates. The three principal construction methods — full canvas, half canvas, and fused — produce fundamentally different objects.
Full Canvas
In full canvas construction, a continuous layer of woven horsehair canvas is hand-stitched to the jacket's chest and front. The canvas floats between the outer fabric and the lining, anchored at the edges but free in the centre — free to respond to heat, movement, and wear over years.
This floating canvas gradually moulds to the wearer's body. A full canvas jacket worn for a decade and properly maintained will fit better at ten years than it did on the first day. The chest rolls, the fabric breathes, and the jacket becomes an extension of the body rather than a structure placed upon it.
Half Canvas
Half canvas uses a canvas chest piece that extends from the shoulder to approximately the second button. Below that, the jacket's lower section is fused. This represents a considered compromise: the chest and upper body — where movement and drape are most visible — benefit from the canvas; the lower body, where shape is less critical, is held by the fusing.
A well-executed half canvas jacket is significantly superior to a fully fused garment, at a more accessible price point than full canvas.
Fused Construction
Fused construction bonds the jacket's outer fabric to an interlining using heat and adhesive. It is faster and cheaper to produce, and initially holds a clean shape. But fusing cannot mould to the body. Over time, with washing, wear, and heat, fused interlinings can delaminate — producing the characteristic bubbling that appears on the front of aged ready-to-wear jackets.
The Right Choice
For any garment you intend to wear more than occasionally and expect to last more than a few seasons, full canvas or half canvas construction is the correct specification. At Caprice Bespoke, all our bespoke and made-to-measure jackets are built with full canvas construction as standard.
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