Toronto, Canada – To outsiders, the long black coats worn by Haredi men might all look the same.
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Upon closer inspection, though, there’s nothing uniform about them. Enterprising tailor Mendy Sacho, 25, has built a successful couture business in Toronto over the past three years, catering to a mostly Orthodox clientele who like a bit of flair with their frum. Now, he’s expanding to serve American clients with a store in Brooklyn that he hopes to open by Hanukkah.
“I didn’t feel that there was enough choice for the Orthodox man,” Sacho said, explaining the inspiration for his work. “I love what I do. I enjoy each suit, kapota or shirt that I design.”
In addition to the long black coat, or kapota, worn by Haredi men, Sacho designs dress shirts, ties, sunglasses and cuff links. For his non-Jewish customers, who make up about 30% of his clientele, he makes tuxedos and suits. His creative take on the kapota, however, has garnered him the most notice. The New York Times Style Magazine recently featured Sacho under the headline “My Yiddishe Tailor.”
For a man who designs black coats for a living, Sacho takes color very seriously. “Colors have deep subliminal meanings that affect our thinking,” he said. “Color research and planning is a vital part of the design process.” His kapota might be lined with a festive paisley pattern or with bright colors; if the client wants, he can stitch the button holes with colorful thread. In addition to regular tailoring to size, he can adjust the hem length to the clients’ preference: The shorter kapota that he makes for his not-so-religious customers is nicknamed “the mini.” He encourages clients to let their imaginations run wild, and they often do.
“For example, I had a guy who loved Superman, so we made him a Superman-theme [kapota],” Sacho said. “Red inside, blue stitching around the edges. And of course, we made him a Superman label inside.”
i know the man with the superman kapota its reely cool
wow, really nice stuff. makes me wanna wear a kapota. kippahs are really nice also
Nu, so the Arab women do the same thing with their black outfits.
Most important line: “But, he cautioned, style shouldn’t overcome substance: “We must not forget why we wear the kapota.”
Style in a kapota I think kind of defeats the purpose. The point is we’re not focusing on the gashmius itself; that even the gashmius itself is ruchnius because this is the clothing of chasidim and the rebbeim.
many rabbonim hold is is assur to dress in the manner of the goyim or follow theier customs…..this would appear to be the ultimate form of “copycat fashion”
#3 how do you observe the ‘lo shunu es malbishom’ (thats whats behind your sarcasam)
They have lost all sense of why the minhag of wearing a kapote and shtreimel is still a chiyuv for certain chassidus. This elevates the fashion statement over the daas torah and the yichus of being makayem the minhag.
why the minhag of wearing a kapote and shtreimel
I would love to know the reason it is only the dress that polish aristocratic wore 400 years ago. It was cool and in style and that time. So the cloth you wear really have nothing to it just a time period and you decided that is what we will wear from know on
I am ordering my ‘batman Kapota” right now
to all you people who are saying things about ‘lo shunu es malbishom’ and stuff like that I say HELLO!!! the kapote wasnt worn a few hundred years ago, nor the bekitshe, shtreimel, bent down hat, etc. so where does ‘lo shunu es malbishom’ come in here. I can wear a white shmatte and it will be more of the levush that they wore during yetzias mitzrayim!!!
and nobody should tell me that a kapote, long suit, short suit, etc. is the levush. Because as long as I dont go around all day with a rapper cap and baggy jeans or long hair and leather pants, then I most probably am not being oveir ‘lo shunu es malbishom’!!!
#23 should be to #17
the same goes to yiddish speaking..as this was adopted by askenazik tzaddikim of last generations it become the ‘mama loshen’ of a big chelek klall yisroel and those who mock ‘its german etc’ dont do it out of respect to ‘lo shinu leshonom ‘ but with the same underlying factor, the ‘tachas’ of mocking ‘derech yisroel saba’
Eh, boring!
I was hoping to see “blueh”, “greeneh” and “vaiseh” kapotes. Not to mention kapote’s with “samet,” and “strohkes” kapotes! How about kapotes with checked designs or flowers?
Beketche’s are much more fun!
one should read the idea of the holy by rudulf otto and explains stuff like these.
To an outsider a strameil and kupputha is just cloths nothing much about it. However, to the people who wear it, to them it is holy.
Therefore, the item lets say stremeil is not holy in itself, it only holy to some because they believe its holy.