Tools of the trade... Raimund Berthold

Berthold is confident, sophisticated and refined. The Austrian born design talent graduated from the MA at Central Saint Martins in 2005 with an all-white menswear collection. This accomplished debut  in the spotlight has since gone on to define his precise aesthetic. His are bold clothes, crafted for men led by inventive design and fit – not by the whims and fancies of fashion. Few designers are so considered yet exciting.

When we last caught up with Berthold at his central London based studio he, in between offering us all manner of plentiful pastries, revealed, "I think it’s important that people can see where the clothes have come from, from where they have evolved." With this in mind, we couldn't resist continuing our latest feature series with a return visit and a good nose around his work space. Driven by form, function and cut, he relies on his favoured tools. Here he talks through his work bench from trusted shears to a handy bin bag...

----------

Pattern cutting tools

"I have been using these tools or tools like them ever since college. I use them every single day."

(Clockwise from left) Two clicker awls, tracing wheel and notcher.

"I use the wooden handled clickers awl in pattern patter, to mark points either to help me draw a line or when transferring a card pattern to a paper one."

"I tend to use this clickers awl to clearly mark drill holes for the factory so they know where to stop sewing."

"This great little notcher is used to mark where the seam allowances or to help with lining up seams before sewing."

"These are great paper cutting scissors because they can be used by lefties or righties. I personally love them because very sharp, easy to use, don't lift the paper too much and everyone in the studio is happy using them." 


"I always have to work in a clean and tidy environment. Everything is precise and to help keep things as they should be, I work with a plastic rubbish bag taped to the desk. People might think that I'm strange but I have to keep things organised."
----------

 Button hole scissors

"I bought these many years ago when I attended a weekly evening class in bespoke tailoring. They are used to make handmade buttonholes but I like them so much that I also use them to cut thread now."
----------

Trusted Fabric Shears

"I've had these trusted fabric shears since college and took them to my internships to save my hands. They are left handed shears and so many work places only offer right handed ones. On one occasion I forgot to bring my own and had to use the one that they provided. I felt like I couldn't speak up so used them for an entire week, cutting with the wrong hand and in the end they cut me and my nerve got infected. I learned my lesson after that! They have a very nice weight to them, I find them extremely comfortable to hold and they still cut as new."
----------

Re appropriated old doctors bag

"I use this old doctors bag to keep all of my sewing and hand needlework aids, from needles to buttons to thimbles. It is a real, well used doctors bag and it must be at least thirty years old. I love it because it has a beautiful leather exterior and a very organised interior. I actually have one at the studio and one at home."
----------

Sewing machine

"This is my Bernina sewing machine. I bought it second hand about five years ago and still love it today. It is very powerful, fast and best of all, it makes buttons holes that we use all of the time."
----------