What length is ideal for a shirt?

[Jordan Marc]

Francis:

Since men and women come in different sizes and shapes, there is no universal length for a shirt or blouse. If your shirts are custom made by a competent shirtmaker, every asset and shortcoming you have will be taken into account. The measurements made will be transferred to a pattern specifically drawn for you. Some shirtmakers will make you a test shirt and request that you wear it and launder it several times, then bring it back so any shortcomings can be adjusted in the pattern on file before making up your order. Rest assured, all of the shirts you receive will fit properly in every aspect, including sizing one of your cuffs differently to compensate for the thickness of your wristwatch. They will last longer than readymades if properly laundered and ironed. The last thing you want to do is send your bespoke shirts to commercial dry cleaners, which seem to delight in blowing out the stitching on the seams with their inflatable forms. Search the board index for HOW TO IRON A SHIRT by laliquette to see how it should be done properly.

What you want to avoid are made-to-measure shirts that claim to be as good as their custom counterparts.
It's a marketing ploy. These shirts are put together by using stock bodies and sleeves, collars and cuffs in
a limited range of styles and sizes, the measurements of which are based on average-sized guys and gals
that were made way back in the twentieth century before morbid obesity ran rampid. They seldom fit properly, the collar stay channels are invariably off, and they don't last. Steer clear of them.

JMB

[couch]

I was once told that a shirt should be long enough so that the shirt gusset plus about 3cm above the gusset are inside the trousers and that there should not be more than one button inside the trousers, ideally none. Do you agree? Disagree? Why?

This side measurement seems a bit short to me. Less than 2 inches of tuck leaves very little margin for twisting or side-bending movements without having the shirt pull out. I like more. It also depends on whether all your trousers are worn at the same height, and where that trouser height is. If you wear trousers at the natural waist (high by contemporary standards) you'll need (apart from any preference) less cloth tucked in because more of the body's flexion will occur below the "belt line." But if you size for this and you also wear any trousers (or jeans) that are cut to sit at the hips or (what's now most common for trousers) just above the hips, then a shirt cut for only 3cm of tuck at the gussets will be completely unwearable with those, and thus limited to wear with higher-waisted trousers only.

As for length of tails front and back, and buttons, it seems to me this depends on preference and body type. I have come to prefer a goodish length of shirttail, which I find helps reduce the tendency for the shirt to creep up during the day. At the point it begins to feel as though the shirttail is bunching where the trouser legs divide at front or rear, I'd find it too long. As for buttons, I like one below the belt. Having none obviously simplifies the use of the trouser fly during the day, but having one is not much impediment and helps keep the placket from twisting as one walks or engages in other activity. Since the space between the lowest button and the bottom of the shirt fronts can be varied, one could determine separate preferences for shirt length and lowest button position.