Roll up Long Sleeves on a Dress Shirt

Sometimes a dress shirt is too dressy for a particular occasion, or maybe its just too hot for long sleeves. Rolling up the sleeves can be done to look casual or neat, depending on the look you're after. For that neat, uniformly-rolled look, you don't have to put in too much more effort.

Steps

  1. Unbutton the cuffs and any smaller buttons that go up the sleeve.
  2. Hold one of the unbuttoned sleeves in front of you by the cuff. The shirt should be hanging loosely.
  3. Hold the cuff so that it is spread open, with the opening facing you.
  4. Fold the cuff outwards into a third. Do this like you're folding it in half, but only do it at the one third mark. This will leave one third of the cuff folded, and two thirds remaining.
  5. Fold the cuff again, so the remaining two thirds make up the roll on the sleeve.
  6. Repeat 5. until you reach the desired length for the sleeve. At each fold stop and stretch out the roll, making sure that the sleeve is not bunching up and that it's all even.
  7. Follow same process for the other sleeve.

Tips

  • It's best to do this the night before you need to wear the shirt, as rolling up the sleeves when you're in a rush may result in shabby and uneven look.
  • Ironing/pressing the shirt before rolling up the sleeves is easier than ironing after. Make sure you iron the sleeves even if you're going to roll them.
  • Stiffer shirts are easier to roll the sleeves on. Silkier or softer shirts may take a few tries.
  • Vary the size of the initial fold on the cuff for a thicker/thinner roll. Some shirts have bigger cuffs than others so you may have to use trial and error to get the size of the roll you want.
  • Hold the two rolled up parts of the sleeve together to make sure they are the same size and thickness.
  • You can check that both sleeves are the same length by holding them together, and checking if the shoulder seams line up.

Warnings

  • French cuff (or double cuff) shirts may give you more trouble and rolling up the cuffs may permanently crease them. These kinds of shirts are generally considered more formal than the average dress shirt. So think twice before you fold the cuffs.

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