2026-08-02 · 7 min read
How to Measure for a Suit in Ko Samui — and Why a Tailor Differs
You can take three measurements yourself — chest, waist and inseam — and they are below, with how to take each one properly. They are enough to order off the peg. They are not enough to have something made, because a tailor takes closer to twenty and the extra ones are where fit actually comes from. This is what we record in the Ko Samui workshop and why.
The measurements you can take yourself
These three are worth knowing before any first visit, and they are genuinely useful for narrowing what to look at:
- Chest: around the fullest part, tape level under the arms, arms down, breathing normally.
- Waist: where you actually wear your trousers, not where a size chart says your waist is.
- Inside leg: from crotch to the top of the shoe, in the shoes you will wear.
Take them over a normal shirt, not bare and not over a jumper. If a friend can hold the tape, the numbers get better immediately.
Treat all three as a starting point rather than a specification. They are enough to say whether something is likely to fit before you travel, and they are useful for a quote by message. They are not enough to cut from — three circumferences describe a cylinder, and a body is not one. That is what the next section is about.
The measurements you cannot take yourself
This is the part the online guides leave out, and it is the part that decides whether a jacket looks right.
Shoulder slope
Shoulders slope, and rarely by the same amount on both sides. A jacket cut for a slope you do not have will either collapse into a divot below the collar or ride up. It is measured by eye and hand against your body, and no tape reading captures it.
Blade and stance
How prominent the shoulder blades are and how you naturally stand, whether upright or slightly forward, changes how much length the back needs relative to the front. Get this wrong and the collar gaps away from your neck when you relax.
Left and right, separately
Most people have one shoulder lower than the other and one arm slightly longer. Off the peg averages them. A tailor records them separately, which is why sleeve lengths on a made garment often differ by a few millimetres on purpose.
Why this matters more when the tailor is abroad
If you are having something made during a trip, the temptation is to compress everything into one visit. The measuring is not the part that suffers when you do that: the correction is. A garment measured accurately but never tried on is a garment that fits your numbers rather than you.
The practical fix is scheduling rather than skill. Come in early in the trip, leave room for a fitting, and treat the final check as part of the order rather than a bonus. Our timelines guide sets out what fits into a given number of days.
Shirts are measured differently, and more strictly
A jacket forgives a few millimetres. A shirt does not, because it sits directly against you and the collar and cuff are visible at close range all day.
| Point | What is being set | What goes wrong off the peg |
|---|---|---|
| Collar | Circumference and height | Too loose and it gaps under a tie; too high and it fouls the jaw |
| Shoulder | Seam position | Seam past the shoulder point, so the sleeve drapes rather than hangs |
| Cuff | Circumference and sleeve length | Cuff rides over the hand or disappears under a jacket sleeve |
| Back | Room across the blades | Shirt pulls out of the waistband when you reach forward |
The fastest way to communicate a shirt fit is to bring a shirt you already like. We measure the garment as well as you, then fix whatever bothered you about it. It beats any description.
What to bring, and what to say
- The shoes you will wear with the suit.
- A garment that fits you well, if you own one.
- A photograph of a style you like, and one of something you dislike.
- Your departure date, said at the start rather than at the end.
That last one changes what we recommend making more than anything else on the list.
After the first garment, the measuring is done
Once a pattern has been drafted and corrected on your body, it stays on file. Repeat orders start from a fit that already worked rather than from a size chart, and can be arranged by message with cloth chosen over a video call. That is the real return on doing the first fitting properly: it is the only one that needs you in the room.
What can be let out later
The waist and seat can usually be let out, the hem can if it was not trimmed, and the shoulders effectively cannot. A tailor leaves allowance where a body realistically changes, and cannot leave it where the cloth has already been cut away.
| Where | Can it be let out? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Trouser waist and seat | Yes, usually a comfortable margin | The centre-back seam is where any allowance sits — ask what you have been left |
| Jacket side seams | A little | There is some allowance, but the balance of the jacket limits how much can be used |
| Sleeve and trouser length | Yes, if the hem was not trimmed | Ask before it is finished whether the hem is being left long |
| Shoulders | Effectively no | The shoulder is the one measurement the whole jacket hangs from, and it is cut once |
This is why the shoulder is the measurement worth being fussy about, and the waist is not.
Being measured in Ko Samui
Being measured in Ko Samui happens in the workshop in Fisherman’s Village, Bophut, and takes rather less time than people expect. If you are staying elsewhere on the island we can come to you by arrangement, subject to a tailor being free — Chaweng, Lamai, Maenam or Choeng Mon — and measure at your hotel or villa instead. Bring a garment that fits you well if you have one; it answers questions a tape measure cannot. From there it is alterations and resizing in Ko Samui if you already own the garment, or bespoke suits made in Ko Samui if you are starting from cloth.
Where this leads
If you have read this far you are past the research stage. Seemade-to-measure shirts, or message us with your dates and we will tell you what is realistic in the time you have.
Book a fitting on WhatsAppCommon questions
How do I measure myself for a suit?
You can take a usable chest, waist and inside-leg measurement alone with a soft tape, standing relaxed against a mirror, and those three are enough to order online. They are not enough for a tailored garment, because the numbers that decide how a jacket sits are postural rather than dimensional: shoulder slope, blade prominence, stance and how you carry your weight. Those cannot be self-measured accurately, which is why a fitting exists.
What measurements does a tailor actually take?
Far more than the three most people expect. Chest, waist, seat, jacket length, sleeve length on each arm separately, shoulder width and slope, back width, neck, and for trousers the outside leg, inside leg, thigh and knee. The two sides of a body differ, sometimes noticeably, so measurements are taken per side rather than assumed symmetrical. What is recorded alongside them matters as much: posture, stance and the way you actually stand.
Why do my measurements differ from my off-the-peg size?
Because a size is a compromise built for an average that nobody is. A 40 regular is a set of assumptions about how a 40-inch chest relates to shoulder width, arm length and waist, and every one of those relationships varies between people. If you have ever bought a jacket that fitted the chest but hung wrong at the shoulder, you have met that gap. A tailored garment removes the assumption and measures the relationship directly.
What should I wear when I get measured?
Wear what you would normally wear under the finished garment: a normal shirt and the shoes you expect to wear with the suit. Shoes matter more than people expect, because trouser length is set from them and a difference in heel height shows immediately. Leave heavy jumpers and bulky jackets off. If you are having a waistcoat made, mention it before measuring, because it changes how the jacket is cut.
How long does being measured take?
Around twenty minutes for the measuring itself. What takes the rest of the hour is choosing cloth, agreeing the details and talking through how you want to wear the garment, and that conversation is not filler: it is where most fit problems get prevented. Allow an hour for a first visit and do not book it against a departure. Fittings afterwards are quicker, usually fifteen to twenty minutes each.
Can I send my measurements from home instead of visiting?
For a repeat order from a pattern we already hold, yes, and it works well. For a first garment we would rather see you in person once, because the first fitting is where posture is read and the pattern is corrected, and no set of numbers sent by message contains that. Once that is done, later orders can be arranged remotely with cloth chosen over a video call.
Do my measurements change over time?
Yes, and more than most people expect, which is why a tailor re-checks rather than assuming a stored pattern is still right. Weight, training and age all move the numbers, and posture shifts too. A pattern from a few years ago is still a far better starting point than a size chart, but it is a starting point rather than an answer. Say if something has changed and we will measure again.
How should a finished jacket fit at the fitting?
The shoulder seam should end where your shoulder does, with no divot or overhang. The collar should sit flat against your shirt without gapping when you stand relaxed. You should be able to fasten the button and slide a flat hand inside comfortably. Sleeves should show about a centimetre of shirt cuff. Check it standing normally rather than posing, because a suit you hold yourself upright for is a suit that does not fit.