Your wedding day calls for a dress shirt that makes you feel great. So don’t settle for a women’s shirt that will enhance your unwanted curves, or an off-the-rack men’s shirt that’s baggy in some places and tight in others. When looking for a perfectly fitted shirt, most of us needs alternations, even those of the sex for whom the shirt was intended. Ideally you can get a shirt custom made—from places like The Butch Clothing Company or Ratio Clothing—but a good tailor can also do the trick. Here are a three steps to successful tailoring:
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Your neighborhood drycleaners might do, but a good tailor can do so much more. Try Yelp.com for listings in your city. |
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Find a men’s shirt that fits in the shoulders and arm lengths. Then the tailor can bring the bottom up and the sides in. A shirt that’s too big can always be made smaller, but not the other way around. |
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If you have a large chest, a straight up-and-down cut may make the lower part of the shirt too baggy. Rather than placing the pleats and darts along the bust like women’s shirts, you can bring the side seam in to maintain the look of the shirt. Never fear, this is the same procedure a muscular man with broad shoulders would undergo. |
Sonia Oram is the writer of Dyke Duds, a fashion blog with a focus on styles for lesbians, queer women, and transmasculine people.
