Q. I ordered a couple of great looking shirts from an expensive catalog and was very disappointed to find they didn't fit well. The body was too narrow, and the shoulders didn't fit right. How come? Is this a new style? I've been buying shirts for years in the same size and never had this problem.
A. The mistake you made was buying more than one of those new shirts before you determined if they were exactly right for you.
When you discover a new shirt store, a shirt company that is new to you, or a custom shirt maker you have not used before, don't go overboard with your first purchase. Buy the fewest number possible -- as in one -- until you find out whether you're really happy with it.
Even if you like the look of the folded shirt when in the store, once you wear it, you may discover it's not exactly what you were hoping for. The collar may have too much spread, or the body might be cut too full; perhaps the extra button on the sleeve looks too fussy, or the French cuff is more of a nuisance than you had bargained for. After it's laundered, you may find the collar ripples and refuses to behave.
Some of the customized ("made-to-measure") shirt makers insist that you buy a minimum of three or four of their rather expensive shirts. But they occasionally have special promotions when you can order fewer.
True custom-made shirt makers (those who make a cloth pattern of your measurements, require a few fittings and charge even more than made-to-measure) may also require a minimum order. But the best of them wait before making a second shirt until they have satisfied themselves, and you, that their first model fits you perfectly.
Of course, far less costly than any customized shirt is a high-quality ready-made. There is no pressure to buy more than one, and a first-rate shirt doctor -- I like L. Allmeier in Manhattan, (212) 243-7390 -- can make any of several types of adjustments. They shorten sleeves, taper the sides, replace collars, etc., for individuals and several of the city's high-end men's shops. Most alterations are in the $20-$25 range.
Seeing is not believing. Trying on is.
Most stores, when really pushed, will allow you to try on a shirt to see if it fits the way you want it to. Of course, they hate to do this because nothing can ever refold the shirt perfectly so it looks the way it did when it came from the manufacturer. But if you have the nerve to be insistent, and that rarest of all characteristics among men, the willingness to go into the store's dressing room and actually try something on before buying it, you will end up with fewer mistakes hanging in the back of your closet and tucked away in the bottom of your drawers.
On the other hand, if you have luckily bought a shirt that turns out to be a new favorite, one that you find yourself reaching for often and are always comfortable wearing, there is a different strategy that I strongly recommend. It is a huge time saver. Return quickly to that store and buy one or more of the very same shirt, either in the same color or in another color. Don't presume it will be available next year, next season, or even much later on in this season.
For any number of reasons (from the store buyer's desire to stock brand-new looks to the manufacturer's running out of the fabric), you may discover the next time you shop in that same store, that the item you bought is either no longer on the shelf or has been tweaked just enough to make it different from what you are looking for.
Send men's fashion queries to Male Call:
Lois.Fenton@prodigy.net
High Profile on 10/11/2015