First you may need to go out and buy a tape measure, one that’s flexible. It’s best to measure yourself when you have bare feet, keeping your back straight and standing tall. I recommend measuring yourself 2-3 times because your posture can change giving a different measurement each time. If possible get someone else to do it for you. Collar – Wrap the tape measure around the base of your neck not too tightly. This is especially useful to measure your shirt size when needing to wear a tie. Business shirts always use the measurement of the collar for the size e.g. 39 medium, 41-42 large, 43-44 extra large etc. Casual shirts will be sized small, medium, large–.. Sleeve – Take the measurement from the base of the collar seam, following the outside shoulder down to the wrist for sleeve length. Chest – Measure by wrapping the tape up under the arms and at the fullest part of the chest. Keep the tape as straight as possible across the back ensuring it’s over the shoulder blades to get an accurate measurement. Waist – Generally a trouser is worn below the navel at a comfortable level. When you wrap the tape measure around your waist, allow for any other garments which might be worn underneath, e.g. singlet, to get a true measurement. Trouser Leg – This is taken from the inside crutch (top in between your legs) to the bottom hemline. The trouser length should fall to approximately 1 cm above the floor when in bare feet. This will allow for the shoe heals when wearing them. Big and Tall When are you considered a Big and Tall person? Is it when you have big feet? Perhaps you think of yourself as a big man because your thighs are quite large at the top or maybe you have a thick neck and you find it difficult to buy a business shirt? Well, I’ll explain the differences in the sizing so you can understand which department you may need to go to when shopping for clothes. It’s not really a great look when larger men or women choose to buy clothes that don’t fit correctly. Many big men and women oversize themselves by trying to hide the effects of being overweight, but this just gives a sloppy appearance. Then there’s the other end of the scale where people don’t like to admit their size and buy clothing far too small for themselves, so these people end up looking like their clothes shrunk in the dryer. When buying clothes, if you can, try them on or if like me you prefer not to in the shop then at least shop where an item can be returned or exchanged so you can take it home, see what you think and exchange if necessary. Many stores don’t refund without the garment being faulty so check first before buying. Big Men’s sections generally begin their sizes at 3 XL going anywhere up from there. Some stores only carry up to 6 or 7 XL and some go to 12 XL. Be aware of the sizing as many companies claim to have a big men’s range when in fact the sizing is misleading due to it being incorrectly labelled larger, making you buy up a size or two so my advice is to check their individual size charts for inches or cm measurements. This has been a constant issue for many women due to a lot of clothing now being made in Asian countries and women are not amused to say they bought a size bigger than they actually are. Me included! With the more and more people of the world becoming overweight, department stores have finally acknowledged the need to increase their size variety and there’s now a fantastic range of clothes around for big and tall men. Everyone has the opportunity to dress well on a budget and stand confident in their choice of style. Trousers usually have at least 2 lengths to choose from, one being regular and the second most popular are short. For tall men it can be a big problem to get trousers long enough to the shoe with many having to make do with socks showing. Trousers tend to differ by around 2 inches not only in length but also in the crutch to waist measurement. The shorter length availability saves having to have a tailor take them up which can be more expensive than the price of the trousers. Shirts often vary in length also. Big or tall men can have trouble tucking the shirt in at the waist if the back is too short which usually are longer than the front. You don’t want to tuck your shirt in too tightly but at the same time don’t want it hanging out either as it looks messy. Being a big man, you may choose to wear a woolen vest, which I personally think looks extremely smart and like. Shoes are another issue altogether for big and tall guys. Just because you may be carrying a bit of weight does not mean your feet are large. Most problems to arise are the width of the foot, not the actual size. Walmart have a range of Wrangler jeans up to size 60 inch or 152 cm at a price of $17.77 which I think is fantastic value or a Faded Glory Original fit jean reduced to only $11. Unfortunately their shirt sizes aren’t as generous as their trousers with most shirts only up to 5 -6 XL. If you’re a 60 inch trouser, chances are you won’t fit a 5 XL shirt. Marks & Spencer have now increased their size range in the big and tall men’s trouser department to a size 52 inches or 132 cm. This is still excellent guys, with a great range across the board of trousers starting at 12.50 for a flat front crease resistant plain trouser and jeans starting at 15. The only issue there is the out of stocks. You may not get the color you would like and may need to compromise. Again the shirt sizes don’t actually match the shape of the body if you wear a size 52 trouser. On their website the shirt size chart goes up to a 19 in or 3 XL which is not an overly large shirt and most seem to be out of stock. With the amount of people buying online these days you need to be able to convert sizes as they differ country to country. If buying from European sites and you’re from the US or UK you’ll need to convert. I used this sizing chart which I found helpful. Some countries are the same so always check first.
So Guys, with online shopping becoming easier and stores expanding ranges, check out some of the fantastic clothes you can now buy in bigger sizes.
Suzanne Beck blogforbigandtallmenwitheverydayadvice