When describing Mommy, Ever After, the first thing that comes to mind is, obviously “Mommy Blog”, but I would say that some other associations are “postpartum depression”, “little four eyes” and “dance parties”. My site is not, and never has been, a sales site. Yes, I have ads and do occasional Partnerships with companies in which I truly believe, but that is not because I am running a business; I am doing this because I feel lucky to have the chance to afford you with some opportunities to expose you to brands (and deals!) that can better your days.

Today, I was fortunate enough to get one of those chances. I was connected with Jill Rosen, a personal stylist for J.Hilburn, a custom clothier for men, and I spent the hour that she was here scurrying around my house with excitement. Literally.

I am calling Jill’s custom made clothing service the perfect Valentine’s Day gift for “Him” (whether it is a romantic partner, a dear friend, a parent, a sibling, the list is endless, really) because that is the word that my husband used himself; He described his experience today with Jill as “perfect”. It is no secret that I love love, and I particularly love making my husband feel happy and special.

So let me give you a little bit of company info before I talk about our experience.

In reading about J.Hilburn’s founders, Veeral Rathod and Hil Davis, they are quoted as saying,

“If you had told us that one day we would start a men’s clothing company, we would have flat-out called you crazy. Back then, we were a couple of Wall Street guys with a passion for custom-made dress shirts and for the way we felt wearing great-fitting clothes. We studied the men’s luxury market and saw that nobody was delivering quality custom clothing and personal service at a price that didn’t break the bank. So we set our vision, and J.Hilburn was born. We now offer exclusive Italian shirting and trouser fabrics, luxury performance knits, and a top-shelf accessories line that marries the best in handmade designs and European quality.”

That all sounds great, right? But let me tell you how it really works.

Jill came to my house this morning with a little rolling suitcase filled with measuring apparatuses, a book of fabric swatches, a tablet and a sense of kind enthusiasm that was overflowing so that it impossible not to feel and mimic her excitement.

Our goal was to create a custom made shirt for my husband, who loves clothing, style and looking good.

  When Jill told me that she would help us to create a shirt that was custom made for K, I thought that sounded really cool; I had no idea exactly how specifically he was able to customize his shirt, but in a half hour we were able to make something that was his absolute ideal (down to the addition of two buttons at the top of the neck, something she had never seen done before!)

The experience didn’t just “measure up” (ha!), it far exceeded our expectations.

First Jill chatted with K a bit about his lifestyle, preferences and taste.

She asked basic questions, like his work wardrobe v. what he wears on the weekends,

and then questions so specific that they blew my mind, like whether or not he liked his watch to be able to peak out from under his shirt when shaking hands with someone.

(By the way, she took note that K wears his watch on his left hand, which means that in custom making the shirt, the manufacturers will make that cuff ever so slightly larger to accommodate the tiny bit of extra “bulk”.)

In all, the measuring process takes about 20 minutes, where she gets all of the numbers she need to ensure that the shirt is an absolutely perfect fit.

Today, this was done in our living room, as our kids played around us (and my daughter got to help a bit) but besides coming to homes, Jill also goes to places of work, so that a man never has to step out of his office to get custom fitted. And once the measurements are done (assuming his size stays the same) he never has to be measured again; he can simply go onto his J.Hilburn account with Jill and order anything from shirts to suits to sport coats to sweaters and more.

I do not wish to embarrass him by saying this, but today’s experience made my husband feel kind of like a model; and kind of like a baller.

Except,

and this is the big except,

these finely crafted garments are no more expensive than what you would buy at a nice department store.

When the garment is finished being made, Jill then has it professionally steamed and hand delivers it to either the home or office.

This is a luxury service for a “normal person’s” cost.

Today we ultimately decided on the above fabric, in a European slim fit cut with no pocket, double buttons and no pleat down the back. My husband was able to choose every single detail, and we had a hard time narrowing down the final fabric from her book of hundreds.

Because he was so torn, Jill later sent him a personal style-board so that he can remember what other fabrics and pieces he was interested in for his next purchase. And next time, as I said, he can just call her or go to her website and place the order, no measuring required.

So, you may now ask, what is in it for you?

Jill is offering a $25.00 gift certificate for you, Mommy, Ever After readers, off of the price of your first shirt (which I maintain is the absolute perfect Valentine’s Day gift for your “him”).

This is how it works: You contact Jill and she will either send your guy a gift card to present on Valentine’s Day or she can create a beautiful email that says something like, “Your adoring wife Becca wanted you to have a custom made shirt, so you can feel like the gorgeous man you are. Happy Valentine’s Day!” or “I am tired of looking at your old, ratty shirts, I am having one custom made for you. A nice lady will be coming to your office. Don’t be rude. Happy Vday.” Whatever you want! The point is, this is the ideal gift, as you can present your special someone with the promise of a custom made shirt and then he can arrange his fitting/fabric choosing at a time that works for him, at home, at the office, at the gym, or wherever is most convenient. With the fabrics that my husband was looking at today, the retail price of a shirt would be $139, so with your gift card from us, your custom made shirt would be $114. That is pretty darn amazing; Just like him!

And my husband may be bold in his fabric choices, but she has swatches that range from the most conservative to the most wild (I saw a bright orange gingham today!) so he is bound to find his perfect match; Just like you!

This is the kind of gift that really shows that you care.

It is the kind of gift that will make a man feel like a million bucks (for a fraction of the cost of other handmade clothing).

It is the kind of gift that says, “I adore you, and I want you to feel special.”

I say this sincerely, with all of my heart, I do not think my husband will be buying a shirt, suit or sport coat from a department store ever again.

Happy Valentine’s Day, men,

from J.Hilburn, Jill Rosen,

and of course, your lover-of-love,

MEA.

Mommy, Ever After is proudly partnering with Jill Rosen of J.Hilburn; All reviews, ideas and opinions are, as always, 100% my own.