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All because of one important thing.

What was that thing? It was the king. The one thing that matters more than anything; the fabric, the construction, anything else.

Fit.

None of them (bar one velvet blazer, and one overcoat) fitted properly. They were all much too tight, and somehow I did not properly understand until recently when I had one of those lightbulb moments. So, today I will share what the signs of a too-tight jacket are. That way, you might avoid making the same mistakes I did.

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Key Indicators That your Jacket is Too Tight

I will keep this in the context of single breasted jackets, as all of my ill-fitting jackets were single breasted. In a nutshell, the number one key indicator that your fit is too tight is pulling/wrinkling. It can happen all over – and my list is not exhaustive but limited to the factors noticed on my own jackets – and pulling in different areas represents fit issues in different areas.

Here is an example:

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The most immediately apparent issue is bowing of the lapels. On a well fitted jacket, the lapels should form a relatively straight line from the button up to the collar rather than a pronounced arc like these ones.

Another prominent issue is the X pull at the buttoning point. You will notice that the pulling around the buttoned top button resembles an X shape; pulling here should be ideally nonexistent or at the least, minimal.

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On the Lower Half

Not all, but several of my jackets also had troubles on the lower half. Such as this one pictured:

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Notice at the front, there is some pulling away – sometimes termed scissoring – of the quarters. It is not pleasant. Note also the way the rear vents are pulled apart; these should not be so far apart.

Both of these are signifiers of an excessive tightness in the waist area.

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Everything Wrong in One Package

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With this one, you can see the big bowing in the lapels, scissoring of the quarters, X pulling and further ruffles in the chest area.

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You likely get the idea by now, so I will spare you any more.

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How Did This Happen?

It comes down to one major thing for me; I did not know my measurements. With the abnormally large pectorals I have, I had simply resigned myself to never being able to achieve a perfect fit on a limited budget. With that, I simply erred on the side of too tight rather than too loose; and prioritised colour and pattern before fit. Want to learn more about fit? Read this article.

Moral of the story? Learn your measurements, and your tailor is your friend.

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That’s all for today!

Thanks for reading, and I wish you all a better fit than I have had in the past.