How To Dress For Your Body Type: Thin/Slim

For those thin men out there (like Dorian!), you can probably just walk into most stores and find something that generally fits your frame. But, understanding how to properly dress for your body type when you’re thin is more than just wearing the right size.  And, since a great fit is probably the biggest factor in making you look your best, we’re going to dive in on some specific tips for those of you who have thin or slim builds.

For item-specific fit tips, be sure to check out all the different Fit Guides we have available!

General Tips

Thin men can struggle to find things that fit trim enough and often just settle for wearing oversized clothes; don’t do it!  It can be tempting to wear clothes a bit big to feel like you’re adding mass to your frame but actually, it’s the opposite. You want clothes that fit properly and highlight your shape.

Since a “slim fit” can vary widely across brands, it’s really important to try lots of brands and find the one with the right slim fit for you.  Then, it’s important and to find a good tailor to make the tweaks you need to your wardrobe.

Shirts

Say no to v-necks, they’ll only make your neck look overly long and this isn’t flattering. Focus on crew neck t-shirts, polo shirts, oxfords, and dress shirts.  You can wear all patterns, stripes, and prints.  Vertical stripes are fine but horizontal stripes will add some visual width.  Make sure shirts and tops are tapered in the waist to give your body some shape.  You don’t want things to hang off your frame in any area as baggy fits will just enhance your slim frame.

Fit Guides: T-Shirts, Polo Shirts, Dress and Oxford Shirts

Jackets/Suits

Bomber jackets and blazers are best for a thinner man’s frame.  Just make sure you have them tailored if necessary to fit you in the sleeves and body.  Any suit style will work for you but just make sure you have the proper size and a slim fit.  Try a double-breasted suit or blazer to add a bit of size to your torso.

Fit Guides: Suits, Blazers, Jackets

Sweaters & Cardigans

Shawl collar sweaters and cardigans can add some size to your shoulders so we highly recommend them as a good option for your frame, but stay away from standard cardigans, they can hang off you too much.  Crewneck sweaters will also look great and can be layered with a t-shirt or a collared shirt.  But, if you’re going to wear a v-neck sweater, make sure you only wear it with a colled dress shirt or oxford underneath.  Like a v-neck t-shirt, it’s going to accentuate the length of your neck in a bad way without a collared shirt underneath.

Fit Guides: Sweaters, Cardigans

Pants/Jeans/Trousers

For jeans, trousers, and chinos, a slim fit with a tapered leg will look the best.  Stay away from straight or relaxed fits and avoid super skinny or tight pants, they will only enhance your slim legs.  Pants should be fitted at the waist and in the seat. Tailor if there’s too much fabric in the seat.  From there you can focus on tapered fit from the knee down – straight leg or no taper will give your leg the incorrect proportions.  Again, try on a bunch of different brands to find one that works best for you.

Fit Guides: Jeans, Chinos, Trousers

Should You Wear A Polo Shirt Under A Sweater?

It’s officially polo shirt weather but you’re probably still needing a layer here and there. In this week’s edition of 2 Minute Tuesday we’re going over a few rules when it comes to layering a sweater with a polo shirt. Here’s how to do it right.

Layering Tips

  1. Skip the polo under a sweater
    Wear a button up dress shirt or an oxford underneath a sweater, a polo shirt shouldn’t be worn over a sweater as the collar of the shirt doesn’t have enough structure. This goes for all types of sweaters – crewneck, v-neck, and shawl collar sweaters.
  2.  Wear a blazer, bomber, or Harrington instead
    If you do want to add a layer over a polo shirt, try a bomber jacket or Harrington jacket instead, they are better suited to the style of a polo shirt.  A blazer can be worn over a polo but we recommend sticking to a polo that has a neat, structured collar and stays put underneath your jacket.

 

 

How Shirts Should Fit A Muscular Man With Steve Cook

Finding the right shirt fit can be a challenge, especially when you’re very muscular up top and have a narrow waist. We’re excited to be joined by our friend and fitness guru Steve Cook to discuss Ashley’s shirt fit tips for all of you fit, muscular guys!

In terms of fit details, there are four main areas you want to focus on in terms of a good or bad fit.

Chest/Shoulder Fit

Make sure you’re buying your appropriate chest/shoulder size. Focus on this area first and foremost as other areas (sleeve, waist) can be tailored much more easily. Look for trim/fitted but not tight. You don’t want button-up shirts pulling at the chest or riding up into your armpit. When you’re shopping, look for slim fit or athletic fit t-shirts for the ideal starting point. From there, test out a bunch of brands so you can figure out which ones work best for your body type.

Neck Fit

For dress shirts, make sure the neck isn’t squeezing or tight, you should be able to insert a finger or two between the collar. For t-shirts, I recommend going with a v-neck as it will highlight those neck and shoulder muscles you’ve worked so hard on in a really great way. Just make sure the v doesn’t extend too low, it should hit just above your armpit line. This rule goes for scoop neck t-shirts as well. In terms of polos and casual button-ups, you can mimic a v-neck by unbuttoning one or two buttons (but not too many, don’t be that guy!) and highlight those muscles we spoke about before.

Sleeve Fit

Again, trim and fitted (depending on preference) but not skin tight is what you want. You want the sleeves to lightly hug your bicep but not pull. For short sleeves, I also recommend keeping an eye on sleeve length. Your sleeve should hit midway down your bicep, you don’t want too short of a sleeve. If your sleeves need a bit of taper, a tailor can help.

Waist Fit

As with other areas, you want your clothing fit to accentuate the v-shape you work so hard for, and the waist area is a hugely important spot to keep an eye on. If the shirt fits your chest and arms properly but is loose and baggy around the waist it’s time to visit a tailor. Ideally, you want to be able to pull 1-2” max from the sides of your shirt, any more and it’s probably too baggy. The great news is, this is a simple alteration that a tailor can make, and trust me, it’s money well spent, even for t-shirts.

Don’t forget to check out our companion video on pants fit for muscular men over on Steve’s channel!

Extra special thanks to Steve for joining us, for more, check out his channel and site:

Youtube

Instagram

Website

How Should A Polo Shirt Fit?

If I had a dollar for every poor-fitting polo I’ve seen, I’d have my own moneybin! So let’s make sure you look amazing while wearing your polo shirt. As I always say, these rules apply to any man, no matter your age or body type. 

Collar & Neck Opening

The size of the collar isn’t something you need to be concerned with as they’re pretty standard across all brands. Just make sure they’re not too small.

However, do pay close attention to the buttons – specifically, you want to make sure the buttons end no further than the top of your armpits. Anything past that, like the image below, is too long and will look like a super deep v-neck when un-buttoned – not good.

Ashley Weston Long Polo Shirt Buttons

Wearing a polo shirt with the top 1-2 buttons left unbuttoned will help frame your face better and make it look great. So when trying on a polo shirt for the first time, make sure to unfasten the top 2 buttons, regardless of whether it’s a 2, 3 or 4 button polo, to see how the neck opening sits on your body. You don’t want the collar/opening to lay completely flat on your chest like this:

Polo Shirt unbuttoned bad Ashley Weston

You want it to stand up a little bit and have some structure like the image below. But the inverse of that, is you don’t want it so stiff that even when unbuttoned, it doesn’t spread out a little bit.

Polo-Shirt-Collar-Ashley-Weston-Mens-clothing Fit guide

All of images of the different ways to wear a polo shirt in my Essential Polo Shirt Video & article have the perfect neck opening and button placement.

Sleeves

The sleeves should hit around mid-bicep and lightly hug your arms. Some polos have a ribbed band at the end of the sleeve where it’ll hug a little tighter, which is fine, as well. Regardless of this, the sleeves shouldn’t be too tight where it looks like your biceps are being strangled. You also don’t want there to be bunch of slack or room around the bicep, either. That just looks cheap and tacky and makes your arms look really small in the worst way possible. If the polo fits well everywhere else, have your tailor slim them down to fit your arms better.

Sleeves Polo Shirt Ashley Weston

Body/Torso

Like I say in all my shirting articles, the perfect fitting polo will be when you can pinch (not pull) between 1 to 2 inches of fabric on either side of your stomach. This goes for EVERY SINGLE BODY TYPE. A lot of my larger clients fight me on this… until they see how awesome it looks. The “Like This” image above has the right amount of fabric to pinch.

Length

The shirt should end somewhere between upper to mid crotch. I would rather it be closer to mid-crotch than upper-crotch because this avoids showing stomach when reaching up for things and allows it to be lightly tucked into the front of your belt/pants to break up your proportions – if you want.

Crotch Measurements

Tails

Luckily, most designers are getting rid of tails, because I don’t really like them anyways. But if you have a polo shirt that has a tail, make sure the back part is no more than 2 inches longer than the front. Even then, I’d advise you to get a polo without a tail, because 99.9% it doesn’t look so great.

Best Polo Shirts For Men

See my Polo Shirt Essential Article for my favorite polos that every man should own.