Slimmer than Brooks Brothers ESF

[jslade]

Gentlemen,

I'm looking for some advice on finding the right shirt for me.

I'm not a particularly slim guy, but do have a thick neck. I usually take a 16/33 in BB, but aren't happy with the fit, even in the ESF cut. It's way too baggy in the body. I think that normally someone with a 16" neck should be a bit "wider" than me.

Are there any brands that you guys would recommend that are readily accessible, have a slimmer fit, are decent quality, and won't break the bank (think college student budget)? I know that this is a laundry list of requirements, but hopefully there's a shirt out there that's a better fit for me.

Thanks for any advice!

 

[dieworkwear]

[VIDEO][/VIDEO]

 

[gandhi]

Have a tailor to take in the waist. $10-15 per shirt.

 

[BoboMax]

or put darts in

 

[jslade]

Thanks very much, BoboMax and gandhi. Hadn't considered these two options for some reason. I'll hit up a tailor and see what they can do.

 

[stevent]

Epaulet shirts should do the job. Also WvG before dinner

 

[jslade]

Hey stevent,

I've actually stopped by Epaulet in the LES twice over the past two weeks. Their shirts are great - great fabric, great fit, would definitely recommend. Unfortunately, I really need shirts with a spread collar, and Epaulet doesn't seem too big on spread collars. Their shirts are also a little long in the sleeves for me. If not for these two issues, I'd be snapping them up left and right. I'd still recommend them highly -- they're just not for me.

Thanks for the suggestion, though!

 

[trum01]

Zara has a few cuts which are are slim.
Calvin Klein Collection too (find it on Gilt).

 

[sportin_life]

I have the same problem as you. I dart my BB ESF shirts on the bottom. I've tried the slimmest forms of Thomas Pink, CT, TM Lewin, etc. and none fit properly OTR.

I didn't realize you need to specify what to dart. I went to a new tailor recently and she darted my entire shirts from shoulder-waist, rather than just the bottom itself, making the shirts too tight around the chest area, so make sure to specify what you wanted darted.

For your question, shirts that I have found slimmer than BB ESF off the rack and easy to find:

BB ESF sport shirts (for some reason, these are much slimmer than their dress shirt counterparts)
Hugo Boss slim fit or Hugo slim fit (not a forum favorite, but their cut is ultra slim)
PRL slim custom fit (PRL seems to have 2 custom fits, with one slimmer than the other; the only way I have found to tell them apart is that the true "slim" fit shirts retail for > $100, while the less slim counterpart is usually ~ $80, but the labels are the same).

Costume National shirts are also ultra slim, but harder to find and the construction isn't that great for the price
As someone else mentioned, Zara also has very slim shirts but the quality is not great

 

[HughJ]



Hey stevent,
I've actually stopped by Epaulet in the LES twice over the past two weeks. Their shirts are great - great fabric, great fit, would definitely recommend. Unfortunately, I really need shirts with a spread collar, and Epaulet doesn't seem too big on spread collars. Their shirts are also a little long in the sleeves for me. If not for these two issues, I'd be snapping them up left and right. I'd still recommend them highly -- they're just not for me.
Thanks for the suggestion, though!

I've had good luck with Proper Cloth (the presidential spread in particular).

 

[BoboMax]

I think the best value is BB ESF + darts on the bottom. $55 + 10 ~ $70 after taxes. Epaulet shirts are great but they are about double the price and they no longer make size xs.

 

[msulinski]

Charles Tyrwhitt Tailored fit is slimmer than Brooks Brothers ESF. How often do you actually have to button the collar? Have you considered sizing down and using a collar extender?

 

[jslade]

Thanks, guys. I'm going to give the darts a shot. I'll try it out with one shirt first, and if the tailor does a good job, bring her the rest of my ESFs. I just purchased a few more ESFs yesterday, so it looks like I'm stuck with these for a while.