A fitted sweater should follow your shoulders and chest and stop at your hips, with room to move. Close through the upper body. Easy over the stomach. If it clings to your midsection or hangs off your shoulders, it is the wrong fit.
That is the line Weston Jon Bouchér, our founder, draws on every knit we make. Weston is a pro model who fit tests each piece on his own build. Here is how he checks a fitted sweater, in his own words.
Watch Weston explain it
In four minutes Weston covers every fit check for a fitted sweater on an athletic build:
- 0:00 The one thing to remember about a fitted sweater
- 0:15 Where the shoulder seam should sit on a sweater
- 0:47 How tight should a fitted sweater be
- 1:22 Sweater sleeve length and where the hem lands
- 1:56 Should a sweater be a little short or a little long
- 2:29 Should you size up in a sweater if you lift
- 3:01 What to wear under a fitted sweater
- 3:34 Why WJB cuts for a man who trains
How should a fitted sweater fit?
Start with the upper body. "If there's one thing that a guy needs to remember about how a fitted sweater should fit, it's that it should accent your upper body," Weston says. "It should broaden you, make your chest and your shoulders and your arms look good, and just let the rest of it just drape down to the waist."
So the sweater should be close at the chest, shoulders and arms and relaxed from there down.
Should you size up in a sweater if you're muscular?
No. Most guys who train miss in one of two directions. "They go either way too big or way too tight," Weston says. "They feel like they need to get a double XL because they're big dudes or they want to really show off their physique so they do a medium when they're 200 something pounds. You want the sweet spot."
The other problem is the cut itself. Many sweaters are made to fit as many bodies as possible. "They go to brands that cater to standard fitting," he says. "What I mean by that is they want to fit a plethora of body types."
WJB starts from the other end. "The goal is to pinpoint the guy who's training all year long, so that all that hard work in the gym is then complemented by the perfect fit for a muscular guy."
Where should the shoulder seam sit on a sweater?
The shoulder seam decides how wide you look. Weston explains it on the Valen Waffle Knit Cashmere & Wool Fitted Sweater, which has a raglan cut.
"If it's too far offset or wide, fabric is gonna pool in the armpit, and it's gonna look sloppy on you for the entire garment. If it's too inward, then it's gonna make you look narrow."
The right spot is the line where your chest turns into your shoulder. "It's in the perfect channel between where your chest meets your shoulder, so it's shaping the chest, and it's shaping the shoulder at the same time."
How tight should a fitted sweater be?
Check it from the side. "When you look at it from a profile sense, it just hits the chest, it's fitted in the shoulders, all this upper body area, and then it drapes over your stomach," Weston says.
The line between fitted and clingy is your stomach. "You don't want it stuck to your stomach. That would be too clingy. That's gonna look try-hard. That's gonna look like superhero type outfit."
How long should sweater sleeves be?
The sleeve should taper and stop before it bunches. "What you want is for a taper to come down to the forearm here, and you don't want the sleeve length to extend to the knuckles, because what's gonna happen is it's gonna stack, and you're gonna see all these wrinkles."
Where should a fitted sweater hit at the waist?
It depends on the style and on how much of your trousers you want to show. On the Valen, Weston points to the hem. "This has a ribbed hem at the bottom. So this is meant to show off your pants, so it's hitting right at the hips perfectly."
A longer cut such as the Ripley Crew Neck Cotton & Cashmere Sweater runs past the hips, Weston says, and has a subtle curved hem. Pick the Valen when you want the pants to show and the Ripley when you want more coverage.
Should a sweater be a little short or a little long?
Go by your torso. "For me personally, I have a long torso, so I like it a little longer," Weston says. A ribbed hem like the Valen's helps here because it sits at the hips whatever your torso length.
He sets the limits at both ends. "You never want to go too long to where you're looking like you're wearing a dress, and you also don't want to go too short to where it's like a crop top."
What should you wear under a fitted sweater?
Weston wears his on its own. "It fits my body perfectly and I like the way the fabric feels against my skin."
If you want a layer, a white undershirt is the classic choice, and a little of it can show at the collar. "It's a great classic look," he says. "Just be sure that your undershirt is really tight to the body." A loose one bunches under the knit and wrinkles the whole fit.
Slim fit or fitted: is there a difference?
At WJB, both words describe the same shape. The Valen is "fitted in the chest and shoulders with moderate room in the mid section." The Ripley is "slim in the chest and shoulders with moderate room in the mid section." Both are cut close up top with room through the middle, for a man who trains.
Shop the full range in Men's Fitted Sweaters.
FAQ
Should I size up in a sweater if I lift?
No. Weston says the most common mistake is going too big or too tight. Size for the sweet spot: close at the chest, shoulders and arms, with room over the stomach. Check the size guide on each product page before you order.
What size should I get in the Valen?
The model on the Valen product page is 6 feet (183 cm), 195 lbs, with a 32 inch waist and a 42 inch chest, and wears a Large. Use that and the size guide on the page to find yours.
Where should the shoulder seam sit on a fitted sweater?
In the channel where your chest meets your shoulder. Too wide and fabric pools at the armpit. Too far in and your shoulders look narrow.
Is a slim fit sweater the same as a fitted sweater?
At WJB, yes. Both are cut close in the chest and shoulders with moderate room through the midsection. See every style in Men's Fitted Sweaters.
How do I wash a fitted sweater so it keeps its shape?
Follow the care label inside the sweater. For the Valen, lay it flat to air dry and fold it to store. Do not hang it to dry or in the closet, and never tumble dry on high heat. The product page lists its shrink factor as high.
Weston Jon Bouchér is the founder of WJB and a pro model. He fit tests every WJB piece on his own athletic build.
