# Shirt Collar Too Tight



## LoneWolf (Apr 20, 2006)

Hello All,

I have a few old-but-beloved shirts whose collars have gotten too tight. I've tried those elastic-button collar extenders, but they don't help much. If I take the shirts to a tailor, would he be able to put on a larger contrasting (white) collar, and if so, how much more neck room could I gain (I probably need about 3/4 to one size larger). 

These shirts are in good condition and were not inexpensive - I'd hate to just get rid of them. Do I have any other options?

Thanks in advance.


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## Acct2000 (Sep 24, 2005)

I hope this is not unkind, but could you lose a bit of weight? If gaining weight is what caused the problem, it could be reversed. (Unless you gained a lot of muscle by lifting weights, etc.)

Otherwise, I'm not sure what you could do.


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## bigCat (Jun 10, 2005)

You do not specify your location, but I am assuming that the 3/4 is meant to be inches. If so, that is a big difference, so is the shirt fitting elsewhere? Was this due to material shrinkage? Is the neck the only problem?


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## Andy (Aug 25, 2002)

LoneWolf:

From the CD-Rom *Encyclopedia of Men's Clothes*, Dress Shirt Chapter:

_A study, published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology, suggested that a tight tie constricted the jugular vein of the neck, which raised pressure in the veins and increased pressure within the eyeball.This increased the danger of the serious eye condition glaucoma, which can severely affect vision. _

_And a recent study by a large American Medical Center indicated that more than 70% of American men wear their collar too tight. _

_The neck is the location of one the body's most important arteries. A tight collar can restrict blood flow to the brain with all the well-known effects. Now you know what might be wrong with your boss!_

There are devices that expand the collar size using a button with an extended loop. Like extension seat belts for airlines. I think you need to throw the shirt away, or save it for sport shirt use (without the collar buttoned).


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## Alexander Kabbaz (Jan 9, 2003)

You can *increase* the collar size as much as you want. Once done, you can *decrease* the collar size by no more than 1/2" without making the top of the shirt very distorted.


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## lawgman (Mar 28, 2005)

After a while my shirt collars shrink and become too tight. One of my shirtmakers blames the cleaners for pressing the collars too long and with too much heat. He claims the excessive heat causes problems with the fused material and the inside of the collar shrinks. To demonstrate a solution, he took one of my shirts, soaked the collar with water and then used his presser to press and heat the collar, he then pulled at the collar and stretched the collar. This seemed to work. Now, everyonce in a while, I press my collars after getting them back from the cleaners and this seems to undue some of the shrinkage.


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## Martin Stall (Sep 11, 2006)

*Should I mention this...?*



Andy said:


> LoneWolf:
> 
> From the CD-Rom *Encyclopedia of Men's Clothes*, Dress Shirt Chapter:
> 
> ...


Oh well, here goes. I've often heard reports that wearing a collar too tight, can diminish a man's fertility and eh, ahem, virility. 
I've no scientific reports to back it up, although I seem to recall that it was a scientific find at the time.

Whether it is for comfort of for posterity: You can have larger collars made, up to any size you want, basically.


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## Tomasso (Aug 17, 2005)

Martin Stall said:


> wearing a collar too tight, can diminish a man's fertility and eh, ahem, virility.


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## Patrick06790 (Apr 10, 2005)

I gave a college friend a Hober tie. I asked him some months later how he liked it, and he said he never wore it or any tie because they made him feel like he was being strangled.

I then asked what collar size he was wearing and he said "15 and a half, same as high school."

I replied, "K., you're 43 now. Why don't you go get some shirts that fit and then try the tie again?"

He did and the reports were good, although he still doesn't wear a tie much. Now he says they make him look too old.

I'd have thought the new flow of fresh blood would have reinvigorated his brain by now.


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## Henrik RS (Jan 10, 2006)

I wouldn't throw them away, if I were you. You could always use them on Fridays or weekends, without a tie, or you might lose some weight in the future. 

Personally, I have two sets of shirts (approx. 15+15) in two different sizes (15"+15.5"). The reason is that tend to I gain some weight in the winter and lose it in the summer. I wish it didn't have to be that way, but perhaps it has something to do with the climate up here in the North. :-(


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