Since their launch in 2008, Proper Cloth has been selling custom dress shirts through their online store to customers around the world. Using a number of sizing methods, each shirt is custom made and hand-assembled and then delivered to your doorstep in about 2 weeks. Proper Cloth guarantees a perfect fit; they’ll alter or remake your first shirt for free!
Proper Cloth has a really slick user interface that offers hundreds, if not thousands, of fabric and pattern choices to start with. Once you choose your fabric, you can then customize your shirt with Proper Cloth’s amazing, and almost overwhelming, customization interface. I say overwhelming only because the number of options is simply staggering…it was difficult to decide on exactly what I wanted. You can choose from around 27 collar design options, 11 cuff options, 4 pocket options, 8 front options, and much more! Plus, as you’d expect with any custom shirt, you have the option to pay an additional $10 for a monogram.
The reason Proper Cloth is so confident in their fit is the number of custom sizing options, with extremely helpful advice and videos to help with your sizing. You can even go to their showroom in SoHo, NYC to get measured in-person. The sizing method I chose was the Smart Size quiz, which is a quiz that asks 11 questions to leverage statistical algorithms and Proper Cloth’s data vault to predict the perfect fit for you based on your answers. It was a very interesting process that really seems to get a feel of how you like to wear your shirts, whether it’s untucked, tucked, fitted, or loose, etc.
Check out a few screenshots from Proper Cloth’s Smart Size quiz to get a taste of the questions they ask:
Proper Cloth was kind enough to offer Gear Diary a $150 credit to their online store in order to experience the dress shirt sizing, designing, and guaranteed perfect fit for myself. After hours of searching through all of the fabric options, I ended up choosing the Thomas Mason Aqua Multi Check fabric, a light fabric with 100s 2-ply thread count. It’s a beautiful gingham check pattern that employs different shades of light blue and aqua that can be dressed up with a tie or worn untucked in a casual setting.
It took me way longer than I’d like to admit to get through all of the options and finally decide on the custom shirt design. This was my first custom shirt, and I had to research a lot of the choices Proper Cloth was giving me. Thankfully, they have an excellent support page that explained all of the shirt design options so that I could make an educated decision.
Here’s an overview of my custom order:
- Fabric: Thomas Mason Aqua Multi Check
- Collar: President Spread II Collar
- Cuff: One button barrel cuff
- Front: No placket (French front)
- Yoke: Split yoke
- Buttons: Standard
- Monogram: “PMB” in light blue block lettering on the left center cuff
- Size: Custom size based on my Smart Size quiz
Check out a few screenshots from my ordering and customization experience:
The total for my custom dress shirt order came out to $160, plus $15 shipping. While I don’t necessarily have a problem with the cost of the shirt, in the age of free shipping offered at many online retailers, I was surprised to find that Proper Cloth charges $15 for shipping of custom dress shirts. In order to get free shipping on custom dress shirts, you’ll need to order over $200 worth of merchandise. Accessories, jackets, and samples ship for free at all times.
At the time of my order, Proper Cloth estimated that my shirt would be delivered between June 23rd and 24th, which was about 2 weeks from the time I placed the order. When I received my shipping notification, the FedEx tracking page told me that the estimated delivery date was June 27th. Thankfully, the FedEx tracking page was wrong, and the shirt arrived promptly on June 24th.
The shirt came in a hard cardboard box, wrapped very well, as you’d expect a custom dress shirt to be. As soon as I saw the fabric, I was very happy with my choice. It’s a bright and energetic pattern on a light fabric that can easily be worn during the summer or the winter. The shirt construction is solid and it feels like a high-quality shirt.
While the shirt doesn’t feel like a “tailored” shirt that was sized to match my body exactly, it fits very well…definitely better than a shirt you’d buy off of the rack at Gap or Banana Republic. I am very happy with the fit of the shirt. The sleeve length is perfect and so is the length of the shirt itself. The shirt is long enough to tuck into a pair of pants but short enough to wear untucked and not look silly.
My only reservation with Proper Cloth is the cost of the shirt. Is this a shirt that I would spend $160, plus $15 shipping, on? That’s a very personal choice, but I would imagine that if you’re shopping for a custom dress shirt, $175 is not out of the realm of possibility. I do think this shirt is worth $175, based on the quality construction, beautiful fabric, and custom size. Plus, if you’re looking for a more value-conscious option, Proper Cloth does offer fabrics that start at $85, so including shipping; you can get a custom shirt for $100.
Overall, I’m extremely happy with my custom dress shirt from Proper Cloth. The shopping and ordering process was smooth and simple and the customization options were plentiful. Proper Cloth’s perfect fit guarantee adds to the value of the shirt, since you don’t have to be afraid of the shirt not fitting. Combining the quality craftsmanship of the shirt, the easy and fun customization and ordering process, the 2-week delivery, Proper Cloth is a home run in my book.
If you’re interested in trying Proper Cloth, feel free to use my referral link to save $20 off your own custom dress shirt!
Source: The $150 Proper Cloth credit was provided by the manufacturer for a review sample.
What I Like: Excellent shopping and customization experience; Tons of fabric and customization options; Great reference information on the website; High-quality shirt construction; Great fit; Perfect fit guarantee.
What Needs Improvement: $15 for shipping seems excessive for a $160 dress shirt.