There were a number of questions about the vent finishing on the Ralph Lauren Purple Label garment, so here is a look at it again, with a comparison to an engineered method.
The traditional method of finishing the vents has the lining seam follow the shape of the side body, with a hockey-stick-shaped step at the top of the vent.
In this case, it has been (exquisitely) finished by hand, however it is possible to do this by machine. So this, in itself, is not a sure indication of the level of construction.
The engineered method pushes the side seam over so that it meets the top of the vent in one straight line, like this one.
When we flip the underlay up, we can see the most telling thing. The engineered vent's lining will continue in a straight line down the vent. This method can be done entirely by machine, no hand finishing is required.
The traditional method has an underlay of lining underneath the cloth underlay- notice how the lining extends closer to the edge of the folded vent.
This kind of application must be slashed, basted, and finished by hand so it's a pretty good sign. I like this method because the lining seam can be tacked to the cloth seam to prevent shifting- the engineered method can't be tacked because the lining seam is offset from the shell seam.
Joanne asked if I knew of any online instructions for vent finishing and unfortunately, I don't.
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