The Definitive Guide to Slim Fit Shirts

calisanfran · Oct 23, 2009

I lost good deal of weight a couple of years ago because of which I had to re-build my wardrode. While I got rid of most of my shirts back then, I did retain a few of the nicer ones. I am now thinking of getting a couple of them altered to fit me. I basically need to have them slimmed. I now wear shirts with a chest of 23 inches (46 inches around) while the shirts that I am looking to get altered are 25 inches (50 inches around) around the chest. Could this level of alteration be done by a tailor easily or would it require a major rework?

teecube · Oct 24, 2009

Originally Posted by calisanfran

I lost good deal of weight a couple of years ago because of which I had to re-build my wardrode. While I got rid of most of my shirts back then, I did retain a few of the nicer ones. I am now thinking of getting a couple of them altered to fit me. I basically need to have them slimmed. I now wear shirts with a chest of 23 inches (46 inches around) while the shirts that I am looking to get altered are 25 inches (50 inches around) around the chest. Could this level of alteration be done by a tailor easily or would it require a major rework?

4" off ? it could be done easily

imageWIS · Oct 24, 2009

Originally Posted by calisanfran

I lost good deal of weight a couple of years ago because of which I had to re-build my wardrode. While I got rid of most of my shirts back then, I did retain a few of the nicer ones. I am now thinking of getting a couple of them altered to fit me. I basically need to have them slimmed. I now wear shirts with a chest of 23 inches (46 inches around) while the shirts that I am looking to get altered are 25 inches (50 inches around) around the chest. Could this level of alteration be done by a tailor easily or would it require a major rework?

You could have them taken in at the sides or by adding darts, or to shape the shirts properly by doing both.

NoStyle14 · Oct 25, 2009

Hi All,

Some good info here. I've gone through the pages of this forum and while brands are discussed it would be helpful to know what everyone's dimmensions are when describing how well a shirt fits.

I'm 5'7", 140-145lbs, small build. I've been dealing with tent like shirts my whole life. I'm finally ready to move past this.

I will start with H&M but has anyone with similar dimmensions to mine have a go to brand for slim fit shirts?

calisanfran · Oct 25, 2009

Originally Posted by imageWIS

You could have them taken in at the sides or by adding darts, or to shape the shirts properly by doing both.

Thanks guys. I am encouraged by your replies and will have my tailor check out the shirts. I have gotten shirts darted and / or taken in from the sides to make them more slim fitting. However, I have done those on shirts that have been fine on the chest measurements, but just more tent like in shape. Hence, I was wondering whether just darting and / or taking the sides in will actually solve the largest chest circumference problem.

millionaire75 · Oct 28, 2009

Originally Posted by Swededude

I've looked a bit back in the thread but not found the answer to my questions. How does Charles Thyrwitt and TM Lewin's slimfit shirts compare; both in the measurements (which one is slimmer) and qualitywise? Does anyone of them use MOP buttons for example?

Thx in advance!

I have a bunch of Tyrwhitt slim fit shirts. They aren't that slim (by this forum's standards). Also, I found the sleeves to be way too full.

Swededude · Oct 28, 2009

Originally Posted by millionaire75

I have a bunch of Tyrwhitt slim fit shirts. They aren't that slim (by this forum's standards). Also, I found the sleeves to be way too full.

Thanks, I read around a bit more and decided to test my luck with TM Lewin first, seems like they're a bit slimmer. Ordered 3 shirts & they should arrive any day now so I'll soon see if I did the right thing

bossman08 · Oct 28, 2009

Are all the lewin shirts cut short? I ordered a few awhile back, but had to return them because they were a little too short in the body (particularly the sides), which is unfortunate.

ramuman · Oct 28, 2009

I don't get the TM Lewin hype. The fabric is alright for the price, but the fit and proportions are a mess on all of these. I mean a mess in the objective sense, not for my body. I've tried three different styles in two orders and they all went back. Either the collar is huge (Reverto) or they put enormous sleeves on a slim shirt (Buckingham). Seriously, a triple pleated/shirring sleeve on a slim fit shirt?

Brooks Brothers on the other hand has an extra slim line. The chest on these is 8"(!) slimmer and the waist 6.75"(!) slimmer than their traditional fit of the same size. The extra slim actually fits me well, but I shudder to think how anyone could have my neck size but need a chest 8" bigger.

I don't get where we lost the sense of a shirt that fits well.

imageWIS · Oct 29, 2009

Originally Posted by ramuman

I don't get the TM Lewin hype. The fabric is alright for the price, but the fit and proportions are a mess on all of these. I mean a mess in the objective sense, not for my body. I've tried three different styles in two orders and they all went back. Either the collar is huge (Reverto) or they put enormous sleeves on a slim shirt (Buckingham). Seriously, a triple pleated/shirring sleeve on a slim fit shirt?

Brooks Brothers on the other hand has an extra slim line. The chest on these is 8"(!) slimmer and the waist 6.75"(!) slimmer than their traditional fit of the same size. The extra slim actually fits me well, but I shudder to think how anyone could have my neck size but need a chest 8" bigger.

I don't get where we lost the sense of a shirt that fits well.

I am so pissed off that when I was buying BB shirts they didn't make slim fit shirts, but now, that I have my wardrobe basically finished, they do...

nringo · Nov 1, 2009

Picked up a few of the extra slim fit shirts at the downtown DC Brooks Brothers this weekend - great fit. Also very nice that they are classic cotton and not the non-iron variety. I think the best part of them was how much more slim they were in the waist and seat so they tuck in nicely. Hopefully they sell well and introduce more styles.

Cognacad · Nov 1, 2009

Hello guys,

This topic is getting pretty huge. Has there been a compilation of the information in this thread in one post/page?

I would appreciate it! Don't currently have the time to read through the whole thread unfortunately.

Lendial · Nov 2, 2009

Finding a nice shirt that does not look like a tent has been a problem for as long as i can remember.

I find hugo boss (slim fit or even regular) works well, or h&m if you're on a budget, but don't expect it to last as long as the hugo shirt would.

the "slim fit" in many american brands like calvin klein are still too big, they poof in the back and the hands are too baggy but look decent if tucked in.

Jonah · Nov 2, 2009

I was looking around the past week all over London for decent dress shirts. I checked every single highstreet store from Banana Republic to Zara (including TM Lewin and Charles Tyrwhitt). I found that H&M premium slimfit dress shirts had the best combination of material, cut and price.

John_Edward · Nov 2, 2009

Originally Posted by Lendial

Finding a nice shirt that does not look like a tent has been a problem for as long as i can remember.

I find hugo boss (slim fit or even regular) works well, or h&m if you're on a budget, but don't expect it to last as long as the hugo shirt would.

the "slim fit" in many american brands like calvin klein are still too big, they poof in the back and the hands are too baggy but look decent if tucked in.

I believe it was mentioned earlier in the topic (I can't be arsed to look as it's become infinitely long): Express has got decently trim slim-fitting shirts (MX1 I believe?). The quality's not exactly brilliant, but for $40 a shirt, it's fine. Give it a go next time you're at the mall.

Originally Posted by Jonah

I was looking around the past week all over London for decent dress shirts. I checked every single highstreet store from Banana Republic to Zara (including TM Lewin and Charles Tyrwhitt). I found that H&M premium slimfit dress shirts had the best combination of material, cut and price.

I've had a few shirts from Zara which I thought were fantastic value for money and had a much better fit than nearly any high-street shirt in America. However, the fit seems to vary between sizes and perhaps even between the countries in which they're sold. Still may need to whack some darts on the back though.

The Definitive Guide to Slim Fit Shirts

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