How a suit should fit
What we check in the fitting room, in order: the shoulder, the sides, the sleeve and the trouser break.
A suit that fits looks expensive. One that doesn't fit looks borrowed, whatever it cost. Here's what we check in the fitting room, in the order we check it.
1. The shoulder
Put the jacket on and look at the shoulder first. It should sit flat and end where your shoulder ends: not pulling, not loose, not hanging off the edge, not tight.
The shoulder can be altered, but it's a big job, almost like building a new jacket, and it costs. So if the shoulder is wrong, we try another size before anything else.
One exception we explain to the customer: a man with a bigger stomach and smaller shoulders. The jacket that closes well over the stomach will be a little big in the shoulder, and that's the right choice.
2. The sides
The jacket closes without pulling at the button. If it's tight, the sides can usually be let out by around an inch and a half to 2 inches. It depends on how much cloth the maker left inside. Much tighter than that, and we move up a size.
3. The sleeve
A little shirt cuff shows below the sleeve. This is where half an inch matters. We often fine-tune it at the final fitting.
4. The trousers and the break
The break is where the trouser meets the shoe:
- Full break: the trouser folds over the shoe. Traditional.
- Mid break: it rests on the shoe with one soft fold.
- Slight break: it just touches the shoe. Cleaner and more modern.
Going from one to the other is a quarter or half an inch, and it changes the whole look. We mark the length with chalk at the fitting.
Between two sizes
We try both on you and talk it through. For a rental, it's one night, so we pick the better look. For a suit you'll own for years, we weigh the look and the comfort.
Rent or buy, by the fit
A rental fits well with simple alterations: sleeves, trousers, the jacket taken in at the sides. If the suit needs real tailoring to look right, or you'll wear it again soon, buying it makes more sense. Alterations on a suit you buy take about 2 weeks.
Half an inch here and there can be missed in the measurements. That's why we check the sleeves and the trouser bottoms again at the fitting.
Outfit ideas.
The shoulder, checked first
Sleeve length
A fitting in the shop
The jacket, adjusted
Style tips.
- Check the shoulder first. Everything else is easier to fix.
- A quarter of an inch on the trousers changes the break.
- Between two sizes, try both and talk it through.
- Buying? Alterations take about 2 weeks.
Half an inch on the sleeve or the trousers makes a difference you can see across the room.
Questions.
- How should a suit jacket fit in the shoulders?
- The shoulder sits flat: not pulling, not loose, not hanging off the edge. It's the one place that's hard to alter, so we try another size before we touch it.
- Can a suit jacket be let out?
- Usually by around an inch and a half to 2 inches at the sides, depending on how much cloth the maker left inside.
- What is the trouser break?
- Where the trouser meets the shoe. A full break folds over the shoe, a mid break rests on it, a slight break just touches it. A quarter of an inch changes the look.
- What if I'm between two sizes?
- We try both on you. For a rental we pick the better look for the night; for a suit you'll own, we weigh the look and the comfort.
- How long do alterations take?
- About 2 weeks on a suit you buy. On a rental, the alterations are done here as we prepare it, and any last touch-up is done at the fitting.
Advice from the San Marko fitting room, 718 Central Park Ave, Yonkers, NY. Family-run since the early 1970s.
← All style guides