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470 entries across tailoring, shoemaking, cloth and craft Reference publication: we sell nothing and rank nobody for payment Every figure carries its source and the date it was checked

Garment · Shirts

The dress shirt

A dress shirt is judged by how it fits at the collar, shoulder and cuff, and by construction details that decide how long it lasts.

A shirt is judged at the collar, the shoulder and the cuff, because those are the parts visible under a jacket. Its construction (how the collar is interlined, whether the sleeve is set by hand, the single-needle seams, the button quality) determines how it behaves and how long it lasts.

A white dress shirt with a double cuff
A white dress shirt with a double cuff

Fit, in three places

  • The collar. A finger should slide comfortably between collar and neck. Too tight and it strangles; too loose and it gaps and the tie shows a gap at the knot.
  • The shoulder seam. Should sit at the end of your shoulder, as with a jacket. Everything else on a shirt can be altered; this cannot.
  • The cuff. Tight enough that it does not slide over the hand when the arm is lowered; that is what keeps the shirt cuff showing at the jacket sleeve.

Construction

FeatureBetterCheaper
Collar interliningSewn-in or unlined: rolls, softens with ageFused: flat, crisp, can bubble
SeamsSingle-needle, narrow, cleanDouble-needle, wider, puckers
Sleeve attachmentSet by hand, eased at the headMachine set at constant tension
ButtonsMother of pearl, thick, cross-stitched onPlastic, thin
Pattern matchingMatched at the yoke, front and pocketNot matched
Split yokeTwo pieces, allowing shoulder asymmetryOne piece
 Almost none of this appears on a label. A shirt's price often reflects the cloth alone.

Collar shapes

The collar frames the face, and the useful principle is contrast: a wider spread balances a narrower face, a point collar suits a rounder one. Collar height matters more than most people realise: a taller collar sits better under a jacket and does not disappear.

The button-down is a specific case: an unlined collar, long enough to roll properly, buttoned to force the curve. Shorten it or fuse it and the roll disappears, which is what has happened to most button-downs currently sold.

Images

Licensing →
A man's shirt
Man's off-white cotton long-sleeved dress shirt with a pointed collar, breast pocket, and six pearl buttons. This shirt belonged to Charles Lindbergh and was packed by him into a trunk at his room at Lambert Field near Saint Louis prior to leaving on his…

At a glance

Judged at
Collar, shoulder, cuff
Cannot be altered
The shoulder
Key construction variable
Collar interlining: fused, sewn or unlined
Buttons
Mother of pearl is the standard for good shirts

Makers associated with it

An illustration of a shirt of the kind the house makes. Not a photograph of the house's own work. 01 Shirtmaker

Anna Matuozzo

Anna Matuozzo is a Naples shirtmaker, now run by the founder's daughters, whose custom shirts have unusually much hand sewing, including collars, sleeves and buttonholes.

 Ascot Chang's Kimberley Road shop, Hong Kong, in 1961 02 Shirtmaker

Ascot Chang

Ascot Chang is a Hong Kong shirtmaker founded in 1953, with shops there and in New York, that cuts each customer their own pattern.

 Budd Shirtmakers' windows in the Piccadilly Arcade, at Christmas 03 Shirtmaker

Budd Shirtmakers

A small London shirtmaker that has stayed a shirtmaker, in an arcade off Piccadilly.

 Charvet's shop at 28 Place Vendôme, Paris 04 Shirtmaker

Charvet

The first shop in the world to make shirts to measure for whoever walked in, and still the reference.

 An illustration of a shirt of the kind the house makes. Not a photograph of the house's own work. 05 Shirtmaker

D'Avino

D'Avino is a shirtmaker near Naples making small numbers of custom shirts, known above all for how many steps are sewn by hand.

 An illustration of a shirt of the kind the house makes. Not a photograph of the house's own work. 06 Shirtmaker

Emma Willis

A Jermyn Street shirtmaker with its own factory in Gloucester: an unusual degree of control.
  1. An illustration of a shirt of the kind the house makes. Not a photograph of the house's own work. G. Inglese Shirtmaker · 1955

    G. Inglese is a family shirtmaker in the small Puglia town of Ginosa, famous worldwide through specialist shops and online for heavily hand-sewn shirts.
  2. An illustration of a shirt of the kind the house makes. Not a photograph of the house's own work. Luca Avitabile Shirtmaker · Naples

    Luca Avitabile is a Naples shirtmaker who cuts each customer their own pattern and sews nearly everything by hand, mostly meeting clients in London and New York.
  3. An illustration of a shirt of the kind the house makes. Not a photograph of the house's own work. Simone Abbarchi Shirtmaker · Florence

    A Florentine shirtmaker whose prices have made him the entry point to Italian bespoke for a lot of people.
  4. An illustration of a shirt of the kind the house makes. Not a photograph of the house's own work. Siniscalchi Shirtmaker · Milan

    Siniscalchi is a Milan shirtmaker making custom shirts that are cleaner and crisper than Naples shirts, with carefully built collars and a close fit.
  5. Turnbull & Asser's shop in St James's, London Turnbull & Asser Shirtmaker · London · 1885

    Jermyn Street's best-known name, with a bespoke workroom behind the shop and a distinctive collar.
  6. An illustration of the house's recorded cut: roped shoulder, full canvas chest, structured english, military bearing. Not a photograph of the house's own work. Dege & Skinner Bespoke tailor · London · 1865

    Dege & Skinner is a family-owned Savile Row tailor known for military and ceremonial uniforms, and rare in making custom shirts in the same building.

How it is made

All techniques →
  1. A shirt collar opened to show its layers Shirt collar construction

    How a shirt collar is lined and attached decides whether it sits stiff and flat or rolls softly, and cheaper shirts often cut corners here.
Last reviewed: September 2026 Report an error on this page

Related

TechniqueShirt collar construction Glossary termButton-down collar AccessoryCufflinks Glossary termMother of pearl Glossary termSingle-needle stitching Glossary termPlacket FabricSea Island cotton Glossary termShirt tail Glossary termSplit yoke ShirtmakerCharvet Glossary termCollar band FabricCotton
Picture credits 15
  1. A white dress shirt with a double cuff: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  2. Man's Off-White Cotton Dress Shirt Belonging to Charles Lindbergh: Photograph · Perfecto · Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
  3. An illustration of a shirt of the kind the house makes. Not a photograph of the house's own work.: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  4. KIMBERLY RD STORE EXPANSION 1961: Photograph · Shortmiracle · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
  5. Piccadilly Arcade, December 2015 03: Photograph · Edwardx · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
  6. Charvet store: Photograph · Racconish · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0
  7. An illustration of a shirt of the kind the house makes. Not a photograph of the house's own work.: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  8. An illustration of a shirt of the kind the house makes. Not a photograph of the house's own work.: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  9. An illustration of a shirt of the kind the house makes. Not a photograph of the house's own work.: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  10. An illustration of a shirt of the kind the house makes. Not a photograph of the house's own work.: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  11. An illustration of a shirt of the kind the house makes. Not a photograph of the house's own work.: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  12. An illustration of a shirt of the kind the house makes. Not a photograph of the house's own work.: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  13. Turnbull & Asser, St James's, October 2021: Photograph · No Swan So Fine · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
  14. An illustration of the house's recorded cut: roped shoulder, full canvas chest, structured english, military bearing. Not a photograph of the house's own work.: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art
  15. A shirt collar opened to show its layers: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art

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