Take the Wind Out of the Sails

The single biggest problem with the clothes that most men wear is that they simply don't fit. Let's be quite clear about this. Your clothes, directly off the rack, almost certainly fit like shopping bags. The most common example is the shirt. When you put on that shirt from Brooks Brothers, Banana Republic, or Thomas Pink, why does it have the same big bulge of fabric in the back that looks as though you could lie face down in a body of water and catch a lift from the prevailing westerlies? Why does it fit like you bought it at Wal-Mart? Because shirt makers, even designer shirt makers, presume that you are a bit on the chubby side. If you are a bit on the chubby side, then you probably notice that to get a shirt that fits around the waist you have to get one that's a bit loose in the shoulders. For the latter problem, you may simply need to have your shirts made for you (Bespoke shirts usually run between $150 and $600.), but for the former there is reasonable help.

Inquire about the store's tailor. Virtually all stores that sell quality menswear have tailors on staff or outsource to a good local shop. Simply have the shirt fitted to you and snip away all that extra fabric. If you're a beanpole like me, then you'll want the shirt fitted at both seams along the back and along the sleeves. Shops will not usually advertise this service overtly for one simple reason. It's a pain in the ass for the tailor. Having bought shirts at numerous high-quality, off-the-rack stores I cannot remember a single time when the services of a tailor were offered for shirts. Shirt seams are not only sewn together, but are also sealed with glue requiring a lot of time consuming and tedious work for people performing alterations. This is, however, a necessity for your shirts to fit properly.

Many shops offer a "slim fit" shirt to suit skinny guys. These are rarely all that fitted, and worse, they usually limit the number of styles this shirt comes in. You might be limited to barrel cuffs or point collars, and if you have this tailored you'll be creating the same amount of work for the tailor. Unless the slim-fit comes in a style that you specifically want, just pick the features that you want (cut-a-way collar, French cuffs, long tails, etc.), and have it tailored to fit.

Tailors, loathe to perform this service, might know a secret bespoke tailor which they will tell you about in lieu of tailoring all of your shirts. This happened to me once recently. I was quietly informed of a Chinese immigrant tailor who made shirts at his boss's shop for $40 a pop plus the cost of fabric. Sometimes these guys are good, and sometimes they're not. When I check into this guy, you'll get a report here.

One last tip: Always shop at a store that offers shirts sized by collar and sleeve length. The sizes will read something like 15.5/33. If you wear barrel cuffs you'll want to show about 1/4 - 1/2 inch beneath the cuff of the jacket. If you wear French cuffs (unless you're shy) go ahead and add an inch to the sleeve length.