Where to buy clothes online that fit?

May 26, 2009 2:02 PM

Too fit to fit? I can't seem to find clothes for my body type.

I'm an avid swimmer. I absolutely love swimming. Do it a lot too. This has some pretty nice side-effects such as broad shoulders, slim waist and an overall well-toned physique, without looking too much like a body builder.

The not so nice side-effect is that I can't seem to find of-the-rack shirts or jackets that fit. Every shirt (be it dress or T) that fits snuggly around my shoulders, turns really baggy around my waist.

Are there specific brands and/or online shops that cater for the broad-shouldered minority? Smart casual is fine, dress as well. Designer would be great. Bespoke not so much, I'm really looking for an of-the-rack solution here.
Europe would be bonus, but I've been told you Americans can be pretty hip as well...

posted by Sourisnoire to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (17 answers total)

With dress shirts, you want to look for "Athletic Fit" or "Athletic Cut." These are more fitted/tapered at the waist. When I worked in a Mens' suit department, Calvin Klein and Claiborne both had lines of shirts cut this way. Perry Ellis also tends to have clothing cut more for an athletic physique.
posted by Polychrome at 2:11 PM on May 26, 2009

Also, I'm not sure where you're from or where you shop but in the US if you go to the "designer" or young mans' section of any high-end department store, you should be able to find items like you've described. Designer stuff is made for the skinny-trendy body, so unless you have a seriously disproportionate super-hero shoulder-to-waist ratio going on, then you should be fine with the lines carried there. DKNY and Guess also make clothing for men that runs small-to-tight, and while you might not think it would accommodate your broad shoulders, their items generally have quite a bit of stretch in them so that they will fit your entire torso more form-fittingly, so if you're inclined that way then just try on some stuff that seems stretchy but that you don't think would otherwise fit you.
posted by Polychrome at 2:15 PM on May 26, 2009

F/M/both?
posted by barnone at 2:21 PM on May 26, 2009

Are you male or female?
posted by bluefly at 2:26 PM on May 26, 2009

You could also consider having your clothes tailored.
posted by royalsong at 2:27 PM on May 26, 2009

I'm assuming you're male. I've had the best results with H&M "slim fit", which are only slightly more expensive than department stores and cut slimmer. I only have a 6" drop, however, so I hardly rank in the bodybuilder category.

If you're planning to tailor your clothes, the main thing to get right from the rack is the shoulder - the waist can be taken in, but the shoulder can't be enlarged.
posted by meowzilla at 2:35 PM on May 26, 2009

Response by poster: @Polychrome: not seriously disproportionate nor super hero, I think, but the skinny-trendy fit is usually too small for my shoulders. Stretchy t-shirts is what I wear now mostly, but I'm really looking for clothes that don't have to be stretched. Googling for athletic fit/cut hasn't yielded a lot yet, but at least it's a lead. Thanks!

@barnon: M. Probably should have mentioned that.
posted by Sourisnoire at 2:42 PM on May 26, 2009

I have better luck with European brands, which fit you instead of blouse over you. Whenever I'm in Italy I pick up shirts from Rinascente.

If you can afford it, have your suits custom made.

Theory, H&M and D&G all offer stuff that fits well.
posted by charlesv at 2:47 PM on May 26, 2009

These guys. I had the advantage of being in Hong Kong to get measured personally, but it comes out to about $35 a shirt if you mail order and they fit crazy good. To the point that I realized I had never had properly fitting shirts until then.
posted by electroboy at 2:48 PM on May 26, 2009

You can pay a tailor to take in the sides of your shirts. It costs $10 a shirt in North Carolina, though it's probably double that in NYC/LA/Miami.
posted by Comrade_robot at 2:57 PM on May 26, 2009

hey sourisnoire, I have an 11" drop....

you're outta luck here. Your best bet is to either get something tailored. When you do this, make sure a shirt fits in the shoulders, and that the shirt is not too short. After this, your tailor can do almost anything...

Or I would use an online tailor (but don't use jantzen b/c they're notoriously unreliable). Try mytailor.com or nialma tailor.
posted by unexpected at 3:09 PM on May 26, 2009

Zara has always been good to me as a member of team broad shoulders/skinny waist.
posted by The Esteemed Doctor Bunsen Honeydew at 3:50 PM on May 26, 2009

electroboy has it. Just go made-to-measure.
posted by YoungAmerican at 4:45 PM on May 26, 2009

Try Reuhl if you don't want to spend a lot. The problem here is they make a lot of stuff with graphics and logos on them. But their button-down shirts are perfectly fine. And again, they're cheap.

If $ is not an issue, Loro Piana makes a nice tailored blazer and the sport shirts have the room you're looking for in the shoulder with a nice taper.
posted by Zambrano at 5:51 PM on May 26, 2009

I'm sorry, it's "Ruehl".

Here is the website
posted by Zambrano at 5:55 PM on May 26, 2009

Yeah, I've seen a fair amount of stuff about Jantzen not being reliable, but I've had no complaints so far. I just got three more shirts from them and the only hitch was that they didn't have my first choice of fabrics. It could be that they had my measurements already on file, but I'm not sure.

A lot of the Hong Kong/Indian tailors do tours of the US/UK where they rent a suite at a hotel and measure you personally. Style Forum reviews a lot of them. Definitely worth checking out though. Tailor Store has a decent website and lets you do custom polo shirts, but I don't know much about their quality.
posted by electroboy at 7:15 PM on May 26, 2009

abercrombie and fitch does "muscle" fits, which id highly recommend if youre into that.
posted by freddymetz at 11:47 PM on May 26, 2009