In Person: Blank Label Custom Shirt Review

Blank Label “Steve Albany” check custom fit shirt – $80.00

For more on how the Blank Label ordering process works, see this post over here.

Blank Label is a pioneer in the web based custom shirt industry.  And it’s an industry that’s growing for good reason.  Play your cards right, get some deals, and the price gap starts to close between off the rack and custom.  Unless you’re shaped like SpongeBob, those department store shirts are going to need extra tailoring.  And that costs money.

These custom shirt websites are more than about fit.  Most give you the power to customize numerous details on your future shirt like the pocket, placket, etc…  And Blank Label gives you more options than most.  You want epaulets?  (No thanks.)  You can have those.  Want a monogram on the inside of the collar on slightly contrasting fabric? (Yes please.)  Done.  All at no extra charge.  Here’s how the shirt they sent this way worked out:

The Pros

• The extra close fit: Maybe it’s the fact they ask you for you preferred brand of off-the-rack shirt (I put in the quite slim Calibrate) but this is very, very close at the sides.  A half inch more and it’d be too tight.
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• Three ways to measure for fit: Estimate your own measurements, measure your favorite shirt, or (and this is the big one) they’ll send you a pre-paid envelope so you can ship them your favorite shirt.  They’ll measure it, send it back, and replicate that fit on your new one.  Whoa.
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• The plethora of detail options: Button colors, shoulder accents, contrast cuffs, collars, and plackets.  Almost no holds are barred.  You could make one freak of a shirt if you wanted to.  The contrast collar lining is a real nice touch, and allows a pretty cool optional monogram.  Why not, right?
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• The email updates on progress: Blank Label generates an email every time your shirt goes from stitching, to quality control, to shipping.  Not all of us need those updates, but it’s nice to see how far along you are.
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• The neck: Spot on.  No big gap, no strangulation.  I’m not a 15.5 or 16.  I’m a 15.75.
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• The follow up email: A day or so after it arrived there was an email in my inbox from Blank Label’s “community manager.”  It was a follow up to make sure that I loved the shirt, and a reminder that if I didn’t, they want to make me another one for free (since sizing on the first go-round can be tricky.)

The Fit at the sides & through the arms is extremely close.  Details are nice, pattern is excellent.

The Cons

• No back pleats: There doesn’t appear to be an option to add back pleats of any kind.  And for some of us, there’s good reason to have them.  When my arms are at my sides the sleeves are fine.  Raise my arms up and it gets tight.
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• Their website can be a little clunky: Yeah, well, so can Dappered.com.  It’s not the smoothest to navigate through, and the virtual shirt didn’t seem to pickup all the changes I was making, but the shirt came just fine.
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• The buttons: It’s the only complaint I have about the bits that make up the shirt.  They seem a little thin.  But who knows, maybe they’re super high quality and will never get damaged in the wash.

The Bottom Line

The level of customization and customer service offered by Blank Label just might be unmatched.  It’s not necessary for some (I’d gladly trade those update emails for some back pleats), but if you want to create a shirt where you have control over almost every single last detail, and have the shirt making company with you every step of the way?  Blank Label is certainly worth a shot.