When you are not used to it, wearing a bespoke shirt is surprisingly satisfying. The two things you notice are that the collar fits without having to hang around the chest, and that the cut accentuates your waist without feeling anywhere tight.
Catch a glimpse of yourself and it seems to be both the most flattering and comfortable thing you could wear.
A sweater can easily ruin this. In order to try and cater to all body types, most are heavily elasticated at the hip and balloon around the waist. Even those that are “tailored” or “custom fit” (what useless euphemisms) rarely fit a slim man.
The exceptions are consciously fashionable shops that assume their customers are at least slim, if not downright thin. I would pick out All Saints, American Apparel and perhaps Reiss.
But there is an answer. It is not hard to tailor your own sweaters, taking them in at the side to fit more closely at the waist. I tried it for the first time this weekend, and it is as easy as altering a shirt. There is an extra stage of sewing and for a permanent change you should really use a sewing machine. But the sewing itself is easier and there is less need for precision.
The best explanation of the process is here: http://www.sweetsassafras.org/2008/01/27/how-to-alter-a-wool-sweater.
My observations on trying this process are as follows. The basting stitch is worth doing, as it anchors the sweater in a similar way to ironing the fold on a shirt you are about to alter. Simply sew in and out of the line you have pinned, in long stitches, and leave both ends loose. They can then just be pulled through at the end.
The stage where the seams are basted, but the pins are out, is the best time to try the sweater on and make sure you have not taken out too much (or too little).
Try and sew the stitches as close together as you can in the final seam. As I said, ideally this should be done by machine but I sewed it by hand, overlapping to make the stitches even smaller.
My other tip is to keep the extra material created on the seams, at least for a few days. Before you snip off the excess, wear the sweater for a day or two to make sure you are happy with the adjustment. Daily wear and stretching may make you think you need a little extra room.
Also, I felt there was no need to narrow the arms so I just tapered the line into the side seam.
It is curiously satisfying to have a fitted sweater. Curious but it is so rarely experienced. Have fun.
3 Guest Comments »
1.
Finally, I have been waiting for someone, who had the vision, to post this useful information.. Bravo!
Comment by Nicola Linza — February 10, 2009 #
2.
An alternative is to not buy sweaters that do not fit….
Comment by Glenn — February 10, 2009 #
3.
Yes, Glenn, by all means let’s make sure dressing well remains beyond the reach of people who aren’t able to buy exactly the right thing every time. Bespoke, preferably.
Simon, thanks. I have a sweater (too cheap for Glenn) I plan to try this out on.
Comment by Kurt — February 11, 2009 #
Thank you for this insight. I took you up on an earlier post for self-darting dress shirts, but I’ve been too worried about destroying the sweaters I’ve got to try taking them in at the sides. Do you believe your method will hold fast in the long term? Certainly the manufacturer must find some way to stitch the front and back panels of cloth together, but wool especially can be such a sensitive medium… Alas, as for size, I’ve found a very good but slightly imperfect fit by shopping for size large, but in the boy’s section of Brooks Brothers. At least children’s wear runs cheaper than that of adults, and it’s a funny story to tell to friends. I suppose another alternative is to gorge oneself so as to achieve the body weight suggested by the ridiculous sizing method full of euphemisms like ‘comfort fit’ and whatnot… though I’d prefer to do otherwise.
I have found Uniqlo sweaters (both the merino wool and cotton cashmere ones) to be quite slim-fitting as well… Great prices too!
I found this useful. I recently lost a significant amount of weight and had several cashmere sweaters I needed refitted. I was able to take this article to a tailor who tried this out on one sweater; I liked the results, so I had him do this to all the sweaters I thought I were too big.
I want to stitch inside.. Can i?
Or i need to stitch only outside?
Simon, do you still occasionally do this with your knitwear? Would you still recommend it?
Only occasionally – I’m now more likely to get someone like Love Cashmere to do it for me. I might loosely sew the sweater to show where I wanted it altered to – and give me a chance to try it out and make sure it’s not too tight (always err on the safe side) – before then sending it to them and getting them to finish it properly
The link no longer works. Is there another one that could be supplied? I couldn’t find one.
Sorry, I don’t know a current one.
However, a few years later, I wouldn’t do this myself anymore really, but would give it to someone like Love Cashmere to do
Where can I have the alterations done and prices lowest to highest? Pls
The only one I’d recommend is Love Cashmere – but they are very good value.