Using a Vinyl Measuring Tape
Get a friend and a flexible measuring tape to measure your sleeve length. You will need someone to measure your arm length for you while you stand still. Use a vinyl tailor’s measuring tape that will follow the contours of your arm, not one of the metal tape measures that are typically used for construction or household projects. You can buy a vinyl measuring tape at a sewing store or order one online. If you don’t have a flexible tape measure, you can use a piece of string and then measure the length of it with a regular metal tape measure or ruler.
Stand up as straight and as still as you can. Make sure you have plenty of space where you are standing. Remember your friend needs to have room to stand beside you to measure your sleeve length.
Face your elbow out to the side with your hand on your hip. Bend your arm at a slight angle. Hold still in this position until your friend is done measuring your arm. If you measure your arm without slightly bending it you may end up with a sleeve that is too short and uncomfortable.
Measure from the middle of the back of your neck to your wrist. Have your friend hold the measuring tape at the back of your neck, and lay it along the top of your shoulder and down the outside of your bent arm down to your wrist where you want your shirt cuff to hang. Read the tape measure to determine your sleeve length. Make sure the tape measure lays flat on the outside of your arm and goes straight down to your wrist to get the correct sleeve length measurement. If you're measuring the length for a sleeve that you're sewing, start measuring at the top of the shoulder, then go down around the elbow to the wrist bone.
Record the measurement you got to the nearest 1/4 inch (0.6 cm). Round down or up as you normally would. Take this measurement with you when you shop for new dress shirts. For suit jacket sleeves, subtract an additional 1/2 inch (1.3 cm) so the sleeve will be the correct length and allow your shirt cuff to pop out from underneath. Always try on shirts when you go shopping, even though you have your measurements, as different brands and types of shirts can fit differently.
Measuring the Sleeve of Your Shirt
Lay the shirt out flat with the back side up and one sleeve out straight. Use a hard surface like a table or the floor, button up the shirt and lay it out as flat as possible. Smooth the sleeve out to the side as flat as you can. If you are right-handed, measure the right sleeve. If you are left-handed, measure the left sleeve. Make sure to measure a shirt that fits you well so that you get proper measurements that you can use to buy dress shirts.
Place the end of a tape measure in the middle of the neck below the collar. Press a finger down on the measuring tape with your non-dominant hand to hold it in place. The tape measure will start at the seam underneath the collar where it is sewn on to the shirt. Check inside the collar to see where the tag is and line the tape measure up with it if you aren’t sure where the middle is.
Pull the tape measure flat along the sleeve to the end of the cuff. Measure across the top of the shoulder and down the top edge of the sleeve. Make sure the tape measure is as taut as it can be. Use a flexible vinyl tape measure like the ones that tailors use to get the most accurate measurement. Use a piece of string if you don’t have one and then measure it with a regular tape measure or ruler. You can buy a tailor’s tape measure at a sewing store or online.
Round the measurement to the nearest 1/4 inch (0.6 cm). Read the tape measure and record the number. Now you have the length of the shirt sleeve for future reference!
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