Altering RTW Shirts

[SouthPender]

Aside from the obvious sleeve shortening, what alterations are feasible with a RTW shirt? I've found several high-quality RTW shirts to fit me well except for the shoulders. I need to have the shoulder measurement (length across the back from one yoke/sleeve seam to the other) reduced by about one inch, so as not to have the shoulder running a ittle over and down the arm. Is this reduction feasible--without having to have the whole shirt basically remade? What other alterations are relatively straightforward on RTW shirts that fit well except for one feature?

[JamesT1]

It is possible to do this, but you would essentially be remaking the shirt as you would have to adjust the yoke, front of the shirt, and than redo the armhole and such. As far as other alterations that are relatively easy, switching the collar and bringing the sides in, and adjusting the amount of fabric behind the collar (if it bunches) are all relatively simple and dont require remaking the shirt.

James

[SouthPender]

Thanks, JamesT1. I was thinking that a tailor could perhaps simply open up the seam attaching the sleeve to the yoke and front/back, and then make an angle cut starting at the armpit (where the angle would start, and no fabric would be cut) and running up to the shoulder (where the angle would have spread by maybe 1/2", so that 1/2" would be cut away from the yoke at the top), and then re-attach the sleeve to this new armhole. This way, the chest measurement should stay pretty much the same, although the sleeves would, of course, be slightly shortened. If this alteration were done before getting the sleeves cut to the right length, I assumed that this might solve the problem. However, from your post, it would seem that this is a bigger task than I had envisaged.

[JamesT1]

The thing to remember is the easing that goes into creating the shoulder seam. I'm not one-hundred percent sure if folding it over would not cause the fabric to pucker. This, and the added bulk in the shoulders would need to be taken into consideration.

There might be an easier way to alter your shirts, if there is I'm sure someone (Kabbaz...) will let you know.

I was looking into altering some of my shirts in the same fashion, but I don't have the time and I think I would at that point attempt to make them from scratch.

James

[AlexanderKabbaz]

Without a long tome which would bore, suffice it to say that the alteration of a yoke is he single most complicated change which can be made to a shirt. It requires virtually complete disassembly.

In my shop, if a yoke needs altering, we simply make a new shirt. It is literally faster.

[rjman]

In such a case, it'd be easiest just to hot water wash and hot-dry the shirts to shrink them as much as possible. Of course, if everything else fits already, that wouldn't be a great move.

[JamesT1]

You could always go with the simple route and leave your jacket on all the time.

[SouthPender]

At the risk of sound really simple-minded (and at the considerable risk of sending Alex into a catatonic state), could I pick up on the Rjman's suggestion and hot-water wash (or soak in hot water) only the yoke, then hot-dry the shirt?

[JamesT1]

At the risk of sound really simple-minded (and at the considerable risk of sending Alex into a catatonic state), could I pick up on the Rjman's suggestion and hot-water wash (or soak in hot water) only the yoke, then hot-dry the shirt?

You could try it, but I think that it would cause too much gathering and puckering of the fabric at the points connecting to the yoke. Try it on a cheap shirt first.

[Costi]

SouthPender, if your shirt’s yoke, submitted to whatever hot treatment, could possibly shrink by as much as one inch, then probably your shirt is not worth any effort.
I have had the yoke of one RTW shirt (that I liked very much) shortened in the very manner you described (detaching the sleeves, recutting the armholes so as to shorten the yoke, in my case the shirt’s body also needed to be taken in a bit, then the sleeveheads were adjusted to the slithgly modified armhole shape and sewn back). My shirtmaker made it look perfect and the cost was moderate in proportion to the price of the shirt.

[BirdofSydney]

I've often wondered about the same, to no avail.

I do find that darting the back of a shirt makes it fit much better and look much more elegant. I'm interested in narrowing the sleeves of some of mine a little toward the top so they're less blousy, also...

[JamesT1]

The narrowing of the sleeve could be done. The only effect would be that it would be a rather harsh taper from the armhole to the point where the sleeve is narrowed. This is due to the fact that the armhole cant really be made smaller unless the sides are brought in.

James

[BirdofSydney]

Thanks James,

This was my suspicion, but tailors I find often do tricky things of which I never conceived...

Best,

Eden

[Costi]

Why dart a bespoke shirt's back (especially on a patterned fabric) when the right drop (unless very dramatic indeed) can be achieved by properly cutting the back from the outset, taking as much as needed from the sides?

[JamesT1]

Why dart a bespoke shirt's back (especially on a patterned fabric) when the right drop (unless very dramatic indeed) can be achieved by properly cutting the back from the outset, taking as much as needed from the sides?

For the sake of movement within the shirt without it becoming bunched up at the waist, I believe.

James