fashion commentary for the queer guy

Get to Measuring: “Straight men wear their clothes too big!” This proclamation came out of my partner David’s mouth, one recent night after he came home from work. Let me explain: Besides being my design partner in my clothing line, NIKOLAKI, David is also a working wardrobe stylist and costume designer. He was styling a commercial with hundreds of people, a lot male. He had just arrived home after a 14-hour shooting day when he said the above statement. “You just figured that out?” I quipped. He said every guy on the set when asked, “What is your jacket size?” told him a size that ended up being one size too big. They said 42, he made them try on a 40. Needless to say, the 40 fit perfectly.

Are straight men less apt to know their correct sizes than Gay men, I thought. I wondered if this affliction for “sizing up” somewhat spread into our gays. Well, after a night out in West Hollywood, I realized an equivocal “No.” It is quite the opposite, gay men usually size down. The tighter the better is the unofficial gay mantra. I have a feeling that a lot of us really don’t know our measurements or what those numbers mean, when buying a jacket, a suit, a tailored shirt, or even one of those high-priced “premium” jeans. I figured it was time for a mini “measuring lesson.”

How do we measure ourselves? Get your mind out of the gutter, I’m talking fashion-wise! When buying a tailored dress shirt, you see 16/33. It is your neck and sleeve/arm measurement. To know what yours is, you can take a measuring tape (that is as technical as it will get) and measure your neck snuggly and slip in a finger for ease. For your sleeve measurement, have a buddy measure you from your center back, beginning where your neck bone is, to your shoulders, down your arm and to about 1” below your wrist bone. Now, you know your “shirt size.”

For jackets, have your friend measure your chest and slip in a finger or two for comfort. That’s your chest size. In the past, you were supposed to measure your chest and then size up. But nowadays, designers are making their jackets more fitted, made to be worn closer to your body frame, not away from it. ‘Old school’ tailors will ask you to lift your arms and be comfortable. Forget that. Suffer for style and wear your fitted jacket like armor. A well-made jacket can almost perform plastic surgery, giving you shoulders and a powerful chest where you don’t have any.

Finally, let’s get down to your pants (Stop it!). Your natural waist is not where those True Religion jeans are hitting you. That’s “low slung/high hip.” Natural waist is approximately at your belly button. Measure that. That’s your waist. Your inseam measurement refers to the inside leg of your pants. You measure from your crotch to the bone at the side of your foot. This one is the trickiest measurement to take—especially when it’s a 70-year-old Turkish tailor doing it! Also (here’s a trade secret!), menswear manufacturers (especially jeans) lie when it comes to waist sizes. A 34” waist actually measures 36”. Try it. Get the tape and measure your jeans. So if you think that women are the only ones that are lied to by designers in terms of sizing, you are wrong! Hope this mini-lesson in measuring will help you the next time you are in the market for a $3,000 Ralph Lauren suit or the latest pair of skinny Ksubi jeans. Get to measuring and then go shopping, boys!

For more on fashion designer Nick Verreos, visit www.nickverreos.com.