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A Guide To How Men's Clothes Should Fit

If you're like most men, you've probably been wearing clothes your entire life that are too large for you.

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"Most guys are used to wearing baggy clothes," Veeral Rathod, CEO of the men's clothing e-retailer J. Hilburn, told us in a recent interview. "They want to dress properly and they want to present themselves well, but they just don't know how."

For the best-fitting menswear, you should either go to a tailor or buy your clothes from a custom clothier like J. Hilburn, which has 3,000 stylists around the country to take your measurements, he said.

But for those of you who don't want to go through the trouble of getting measured, there's an easy fit guide to live by that covers all the basics.

It's called "How Clothes Should Fit" and it's based on a popular guide book from Reddit.

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Let's start with shirts:

How Clothes Should Fit
Ilias Ismanalijev

The collar: "If turning your head causes the collar to turn with it, the collar is too tight," according to the guide. "You should be able to comfortably fit two fingers inside of your buttoned collar without it tightening against your skin."

The cuffs: Cuffs should fit a bit looser than a watch and fall two centimeters from your wrist bone.

The shoulders: The shirt's seam should sit at your shoulder bone. 

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The sleeves: If you can see the details of your arms, your shirt's too tight. "But they should also not be so loose as to billow," the guide says. "When you bend your arm, your cuff should not move more than an inch up your wrist."

Now onto chinos:

How Clothes Should Fit
Ilias Ismanalijev

 

Dress pants should fit similarly to chinos — comfortably close to the leg without billowing. Pleats, again, should be avoided at all costs.

Here's more information on the fit for dress pants:

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How Clothes Should Fit
Ilias Ismanalijev

 

If you button your suit jacket and it pulls across your abdomen, making an "X" shape in the fabric, then your suit is too small, the guide says. The same is true if there's pulling between your shoulders.

The jacket must be long enough to cover your bottom and the second button from the bottom should sit just above your belly button.

How Clothes Should Fit
Ilias Ismanalijev

When it comes to jeans, avoid boot-cut. Straight-leg or slimmer is the way to go. Here are some more tips on the right fit for jeans:

How Clothes Should Fit
Ilias Ismanalijev

 

For additional style tips, go to How Clothes Should Fit.

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