As short men, we always found it difficult to find clothes that fit off the rack.

I would use the word “impossible” but every now and then you could find a t-shirt or polo shirt that for some reason ran extremely short. Or, another cringeworthy instance would be discovering that one of my old shirts had shrunk in the wash to fit me better than it did before. Yikes, not the best way to go about finding oneself clothes that fit. Of course, going to the tailor sort of, kind of, solved that problem, except it can be incredibly uncomfortable to stand in front of a mirror and watch the tailor pin half of the pant to be hemmed. But what else could we do? There weren’t any stores out there that carried inseam sizes for men below 30” off the rack.  Visual representation of how most shorter guys feel trying on clothes! (istock)

Here is a picture of a traditional high-end dress shirt side by side with one of our first collection dress shirts. You can see the dramatic difference in sleeve length and overall length.

That is in a nutshell why we started Under 510 - to make stylish, affordable, high-quality clothes that fit off the rack with no alterations necessary. Simple right?

But one challenge we face at Under 510 is that shoppers, who are given size combinations they’ve never seen before, do not know which size to order! This can be extremely frustrating for you upon first trying our clothes on. We know how important first impressions are and we also know that men have almost become conditioned to expect disappointment with clothes that should fit perfectly on a shorter man. And we know that if you get an inseam that is too long, or a waist that is too tight on your pants from us, or if your shirt is too short, that you probably ordered the incorrect size. We actually have a dedicated untucked shirts for men and pants inseam sizing page where you can find in depth instructions on how to find your proper waist size and inseam size.Most short men have jeans that look like this. Way too long and bunching at the bottoms, making you look shorter than you really are. Luckily Under 510 has inseam sizes starting at 25 inches! 

So I wanted to write this article about how we could help you to find the correct inseam size, waist size, and shirt size specifically for Under 510. But these tips and tricks can help any guy, not just shorter guys, understand how to find their inseam size and how to get the right fit, wherever they may be shopping. Here is a visual of what the inseam of your pants is. Most people confuse the inseam for the outseam - so know the difference! 

First let’s talk about finding the right inseam size.

The inseam size is the measurement in inches from the center of the crotch down to the hem. More often than not, guys are wearing inseam sizes that are too long, especially if you are a shorter guy. I think it may be similar to guys who wear shoes that are too big on them - they think that inseam size correlates with the size of their manhood. This is of course, not true, neither for shoes size, hand size, or inseam lengths. The only thing being raised is the alarm calling for the fashion police to make an arrest. We all know guys who look like this in their shoes because it makes them feel more manly - tsk, tsk. (ranker.com)   

At Under 510, we have a rule for shorter guys - never overcompensate.

If you are wearing something that is too big or too long, there is a good chance that it doesn’t make you look taller or more macho. On that contrary; people will think, subconsciously or not, that you are actually smaller than you are. Both because the clothes are swallowing you up which makes you look smaller, but also because they will notice that you are overcompensating for height, which you guessed it, draws attention to the fact that you are below average height. So even if you think you can “get away with it,” there is a good chance that you will look a lot better in an inseam that actually fits, even if you have to check your ego at the door. Like I said, this error occurs in men of all heights, the same way guys will try to wear bigger shoe sizes no matter how big their foot may actually be. A famous line from Shrek I only got to appreciate many years after seeing the film as a child. The short king, Lord Farquad, built himself an ironically tall castle. (livingly.com)

When something fits you properly, whether it be shoes, pants, shirts, or anything else, you will feel and look better when you stand in front of the mirror.

It is my belief that when you look your best, you feel your best, and portray the best version of yourself to others. When people say “more important than your height is your confidence,” they neglect to tell you how to actually boost your confidence. In reality, that starts by improving your image so that when you look in the mirror you believe you look good! Improving your image - by getting clothes that fit - is a great way to boost your confidence! (memegenerator.com)

So let’s get you into something that fits and we can start by getting the right inseam length for you! Here is how to find your inseam length:

Start by putting on a pair of pants you currently own. There is a good chance that the length of that pant is 30” since that is typically the shortest inseam length you can find from retailers. Then flip the cuff of the pant up to the point where you like where it falls on your shoe. Preferably, the pant should gently rest on top of your shoe with little to no break. Also keep in mind if you like wearing boots, you should go a bit shorter. Then take the pants off and subtract the length of the cuff from the overall length of the pants. For example, if you are wearing a size 30” and have measured a 2” cuff, you should order a size 28” from Under 510. Demonstration of how to find your inseam length. Flip up the hem of the pant you are wearing and subtract that length in inches from your current size. Click here to watch the full video. 

Next, let’s talk about the waist size. 

On the surface, the waist seems like an easy measurement to find. If you aren’t sure, you can take a tape measure and wrap it around your waistline where you normally wear your pants. Subtract 4 inches from that measurement to get your pant waist size.  In this picture, the jeans waist size of this individual would be approximately 33". (theblacktux.com) 

But what most don’t realize is that it has a few other important implications. One of which is that the waist size you order will determine the proportions of the rest of the pant measurements. Mostly, that means that the bigger the waist size, the larger the thigh, knee, and leg opening will be. This translates to the taper, or gradual slimming of the leg down to the ankle, of the pants. The taper of the jeans refers to the sliming of the leg from the knee down to the opening. It gives a more stylish and modern appearance and will make you look younger and taller! (denimsurgeon.com)

The taper of the pant is a relatively modern term in menswear.

In the 90’s and early 00’s, every pant was basically cut straight down from the knee to the ankle. Not only is this totally out of fashion, but it makes a person look shorter than they actually are because it gives your legs a much wider appearance. The modernization of the pant leg’s taper is actually a huge benefit for shorter men. The sharp taper, so the pants fit closer to the body, makes us look leaner, taller, and quite frankly, younger! See how the tapered leg on our Jon Stretch Dress Pants works to give a sleeker and slimmer appearance to your shape. 

One challenge we face at Under 510 is that because our pants feature a slim fit tapered leg, guys end up finding that their legs are too big for the taper.

But what they don’t realize is that simply by sizing up on the waist, the taper of the leg will loosen up in accordance with the larger waist size. Simply put, if you size up on the waist, the leg will be less “skinny.”

To make matters even more challenging, every pair of pants we make is made according to the same sizing blueprint, so theoretically they should all fit the same way. However, because each fabric has its own unique composition, they each fit differently. For example, some are heavyweight, lightweight, moisture wicking, brushed, ultra stretchy, etc. Every brand faces the challenge of trying to get customers into the right sizes, but often it takes a few tries since each pant fits differently. Each fabric fits differently because each has unique contents and properties. Some are lightweight (shown Felix), some are heavy (shown Bruce) and some are extremely stretchy (Shown Kingston). This is why it is important to read our recommendations in the descriptions and to try multiple sizes! 

We’ve all had the experience of buying a pair of pants somewhere, then later on buying the same size in a different pant from the same brand, yet they don’t fit the same way. The same is true for our pants- some run slimmer or looser than the exact size the label indicates. In fact, the factories we use to make our clothes allow for a 1 inch room for error (a.k.a. "tolerance") in pants. We indicated in our product descriptions how each pant runs and what we recommend for sizing adjustments, yet customers may need to try a few sizes before getting the right one. Read the descriptions! There we give recommendations for sizing and give information on the fabric type. 

The answer to this problem is simple - offer free shipping and free returns.

This way customers are free to try multiple sizes without having to pay to send the ones that don’t fit perfectly back to us at no cost to them. There are some brands that offer “try before you buy” which is essentially the same thing except you don’t have to pay for the items beforehand.  Unfortunately, those types of external services take a lot of the profits away from the seller and as a small business, we can’t afford to offer a try before you buy program at this time. So hopefully, customers can be patient and try different sizes of each pant they try so they ensure they get something that fits in the first order. And of course, if some sizes don't fit, you can send them back at no cost to you for a full refund. Too often we see reviews from customers who say they only tried one size, it didn't fit, and they return without trying another size. It’s upsetting because we know if they tried a different size, they would likely get something that fit them. Visualization of customers patiently awaiting their Under 510 packages to be delivered. (citybeat.com) 

Thankfully, we belong to an incredibly supportive community of short guys who are eager to help us make the best clothes and provide the best service to our customers. It is you guys who give us the necessary feedback to improve whenever possible.