If the Shirt Fits, Wear It

If you're 5', 10", with a 32" waist whatever size is considered standard, chances are you've never had a problem finding clothes that fit you. But for the rest of us, with our odd shapes and sizes and thick thighs and broader than hipster shoulders, finding off-the-rack clothes that fit just right can feel eternally futile. 

So in the interest of creating a kind of global fit guide, here is a list of retail-available clothing and sizes that fit me very well. For reference I am

5 feet 5 and 3/4 inches standing in bare feet;

I have a 31 inch waist and I wear my pants just below my hip bone; 

I weigh 161 pounds;

I have a 36 inch chest and a 14 1/2 inch neck; and,

I have relatively large thighs for my waist size.

If you find you can buy clothes off the rack that fit you just right, please consider writing a post like this of your own. Chances are there are people just your shape and size looking for clothes but not sure what sizes to trust or even try.

One further note - every recommendation has been verified at least three times on separate purchases. While this is in no way a guarantee, it's a small certainty in a world where I own size 8, 9, and 9.5 shoes.

I Declare It A Perfect Fit

Shirts

 LL BEAN regular oxford shirt in SMALL - fits me better than any shirt I've ever owned. Now own three.

UNIQLO shirts in SMALL - very good fit. In fact, UNIQLO items in SMALL all fit me very well. Sweaters, shirts, or vests.  

More Often Than Not

CLUB MONACO shirts in SMALL - I bought one small that just didn't work, but otherwise fairly reliable.

Sweaters

The aforementioned UNIQLO in SMALL

 

ALL SON in SMALL - seems to be an Urban Outfitters brand. Small fits perfectly.

CHEAP MONDAY in SMALL - sizing can be all over the map with this brand, but so far so good with the sweaters.

Pants

GAP cords in 31 x 30 - when GAP made a 28 inch inseam it was party all the time. Then they decided to hell with these short people, they can hem their pants. But for some reason the 31 x 30 cords fit me so well it's like they were made for me.

FARAH pants in 34 - like a glove, if such a thing is possible. Now, I did have to get them hemmed, but considering how well they fit after that it's a small price to pay. (Literally - my tailor hems pants for $6. Find yourself a local tailor immediately.)

Brands That Have Schizophrenic Sizing and Yet I Still Buy Them

CHEAP MONDAY jeans - there is no rhyme or reason to this brand's sizing whatsoever when it comes to their jeans, but I still like them better than almost any others (that cost less than $100). 31 fits me, 32 fits me, and sometimes even 33 fits me. 

AMERICAN APPAREL - worst sizing ever. I wear small and medium t-shirts, medium and large cardigans, and even have a large sweatshirt kicking around somewhere. Even accounting for the fact that they use men with no asses as fit models, this level of uncertainty is just unacceptable. Anyway, here's more of my money.

Comments

[Cheryl]

This is a brilliant post. I am convinced that all women's clothing are sized "schizophrrenically."

[susie_bubble]

You have only scratched the surface. My dear friend this is a wider problem than you think. The high street and the beyond have no idea how to size anything. I pretty much am that 5 ft 10, 32 inch waist guy you describe above and shopping is something of a lottery for me (read, pain in the arse). I now try everything on. Am I small or a medium today...a 32 inch waist, a 29 perhaps? Who knows, not I and certainly not the store.

Don't get me started on Cheap Monday jeans, I just can't get in to a damn pair! I spent over an hour in a branch in Stockholm and left empty handed having tried on every pair in the store. To this day I've never felt worse after a shopping trip.

[Style Salvage Steve]

That was not Susie Bubble but me...confused and sad, Steve.

[Jason]

I'm with you, Steve.
5'10", 32 waist. But also 145lbs. Lanky. Small shirt in the width of the body, but medium in its length and sleeve. Eternally rolled due to being a quarter-inch too short. Sweaters too. Annoying.

I think the problem is that clothes are designed for proportionate people. Bastards.

[Mouse]

I have the same problem as Jason, only I'm a girl. A lanky girl with the body of a lanky boy - small in body width, but loooong everywhere else. I haven't ever owned a long sleeved jersey t-shirt or dress shirt that hasn't had to be rolled because the sleeves skim about an inch above my wrists. Also all off the peg t-shirts have to be layered over a vest that comes down and covers my midriff.

Boo.

[Galen]

We are very similar in size, and I completely agree on many of your recommendations, esp the Uniqlo dress shirts. They fit great, and unlike other 14 1/2 necks, they don't choke me when wearing a tie!

[Siong Chin Chan]

5'6" and 108 lbs - except my head, all around pretty teeny. I once used to fit in men's pants, but in the wake of the industry normalising obesity (the sizes seem to have gotten bigger over the years), I now have to turn to (gasp) women's pants! There were, and are, quite literally, no men's pants that fit me! While I can usually tell apart the ones that fit like men's pants from the ones that make me all curvy and feminine just by looking at the cut, it is infinitely embarassing to have to take them to the fitting room. As a result, I have not purchased a pair of pants for the last few years. Shirts rarely fit me too as my neck is only 13.5. And don't get me started on suits or shoes...

And if you are curious, I am a size 0 in women's pants... :(

[Siong Chin Chan]

I apologise for my use of the word 'obesity' in this context - it was neither appropriate nor tasteful.

[Thom Wong]

Son, you are 5',6" and 108 pounds. My desk feels obese around you.

[Kalani]

Thanks for this post. I'm 5'5" 137lbs w/ a 14 in neck, a 37 chest and 29 waist. I thought I was the only one out there who had a helluva time trying to find clothes that fit.

[EJ]

Oh sizing, how you mock us all. I'm 5ft 10 (just under), small waist, big boobed and long legged- magazines tell me clothes shopping should be a doddle but nothing NOTHING fits. Saves me money I guess.

I do feel for blokes though. The boyfriend is skinny as a rake and long bodied, so most shirts are a bit too short really (don't tell him that), though I'm quite pleased that slim fitted tops are in these days, it's made my life so much easier. I once went shopping with a male friend who was shorter that you, but broader (he lifted weights). He tried on a shirt that fit his shoulders but fell- and I am not exaggerating here- to his knees. Ridiculous.

Personal tailors all round!

[Marshall]

I think if you're anywhere outside the norm you're boned, especially shopping online, I pretty much have to exchange everything I buy on the web.

My details below:

I'm, 6'5" barefoot.

I have a 34" waist

I weigh 228 pounds

I have a 47" chest and a 18" neck

And I've got very long legs

Try buying an off the peg suit with that lot....Skinny jeans, forget it.....T-shirts, no chance.....And as far as schizo brands, I've a Hugo Boss baseball jacket in XL, went to buy an almost identical one in black the next year and couldn't even zip up an XXXL, so I ended up buying another jacket from the same collection in Large!!!?

Whassatallabout?

[Cammila]

The thing that drives me craziest about inconsistent sizing is when even when sizing is given in inches, it can still be chaos. How does that even happen?!

[Cammila]

Wow, that didn't come out totally coherently. That's how infuriating it is!

[enc]

It's smart to keep records of what fits. I wish I was that organized. I seem to start from scratch every time, and that's difficult with orangutan arms and big quads.

[Bob Mack]

I’ve been meaning to ask if you have an opinion on Indochino? I realize the lapels and pockets cannot be altered, so all of the suits end up looking pretty plain… But the notion of affordable Bespoke is sort of tempts me.

[Bob Mack]

Also Im 5’10 with a long torso, large chest, short legs. The only thing that fits me off the rack are t-shirts by Feathers. Everything else is too short, and too loose at the waist for me. What makes things worse is that most pants rise below the natural waist, so I always end up flashing something.

I have totally given up on button down shirts until I can afford to have them custom made.

[room5]

Wow, great post. Hate government getting into peoples' lives but wouldn't it be wonderful to have some standard? A Brooks Bros 38S fits perfectly. Bought a Orvis 38S and the arm opening was almost halfway down the jacket. Obviously badly made for $300 + or for someone fifty pounds heavier - around his upper body.

[dapper kid]

Sizing is my worst nightmare. I am 6 foot and half an inch barefoot, 28 inch waist, 33 inch chest and EU44 shoes. I fit into Uniqlo sweaters in an XS perfectly, but the XS shirts have too short sleeves :(

[Bob Mack]

...Has anyone tried ordering a bespoke suit over the internet? I am really curious about peoples experiences with it.

[maeko]

Nate tried GAP, and well, you're right. It's hit or miss.

We went for the green option and did GAP because it's literally a walk next door from our condo, but I tried to encourage him to try CM. Maybe next time.