The Proper Cloth Review: Luxury Custom Shirts Worth the Price?

As an apparel quality assurance analyst with over a decade testing fabrics, stitching and fit algorithms, I have an eye for detail when it comes to evaluating custom clothing brands. Passable stitching and durable fabrics simply don‘t impress me anymore.

So when the guys behind Proper Cloth declared they perfected precision tailored shirts for the modern gentleman, my curiosity was piqued.

Could an eCommerce brand truly deliver bespoke quality shirting and suits made to my exacting specifications?

In this detailed Proper Cloth review, I methodically assess if investing in their elevated craftsmanship significantly boosts style and confidence enough to warrant the higher price points. Expect transparent analysis on:

• Quality of materials and manufacturing benchmarks
• Customization process from fabric selection to body mapping
• Common sizing issues and delivery complaints
• Price per wear value calculations

I will draw on research auditing specifications, customer perspectives and my own experiences ordering several shirts over the past year.

Let’s analyze if Proper Cloth’s promise of affordable custom clothing stands up to their luxury branding.

Proper Cloth Company Background

Proper Cloth launched in 2008 as an eCommerce brand focused on perfecting custom fitted dress shirts for men. The early founding team had no prior fashion experience but dedicated themselves to mastering high-end shirt making.

They developed partnerships with Italian and Japanese fabric mills to source exceptionally soft, durable weaving grades. Proper Cloth also pioneered body mapping technology to capture precise sleeve, torso and neck measurements unique to each customer’s frame.

Today they have grown into specialists in made-to-measure formalwear and casual shirts for men. Some key stats:

• 600+ premium and heritage fabrics
• Shirts hand tailored in Italy, Japan and Portugal
• Over 300k custom shirts sold
• 40 countries delivered to

But how exactly does Proper Cloth translate your online inputs and body scans into a perfectly fitting custom shirt?

The Customization Process: Precision Through Body Mapping Tech

Ordering tailored clothing remotely poses an obvious challenge – how to accurately capture your proportions without a tape measure?

Proper Cloth’s secret weapon is their Size Kit technology shipped directly to your door. Slip on this form-compression shirt, snap a few iPhone pics and upload them online.

Sophisticated 3D mapping tools scan over 300 reference points to construct a virtual torso double matching your exact shape and posture. The impact is transformative:

• Computer vision reduces human error risks in measurements
• Precise grading aligned to your anatomy for impeccable fit
• Model your virtual body double in different fabrics and styles

Such tech-assisted customization creates an unmatched experience where sizing mistakes become rare and achieving shirt nirvana the norm.

But flawless fit is only part of the equation. Proper Cloth gives you granular control to design your dream shirt:

• 60+ style, fabric and color configurations
• Cuffs, plackets, button styles – customize it all!
• Input exact collar diameters, sleeve lengths etc

Obsess over every facet, right down to thread count and button hole spacing. Such exhaustive personalization promises your signature style perceptible in each stitch.

Now let’s tour the breadth of offerings once the customization process completes.

The Inventory: From Luxury Business Shirts to Tailored Suits

Proper Cloth categorizes their dress shirts into three styles – business, casual and formalwear. Across the board you‘ll find exceptional fabric quality and sharp, resilient construction.

Their business shirt collection covers classic professional looks – solids, pinstripes, graph checks and houndstooths. Expect a rounded chest pocket, button-down collar and crisp, lightweight fabrics.

Prices range from $128 up to $430 for Sea Island cotton or Italian brushed twill.

For weekend adventures, the casual lineup adds textural interest with buffalo plaids, raised cotton waffles and nubby linen blends. Relaxed cuts plus contrast back-pleats and tapered hems modernize the aesthetic.

Retail prices run from $94 to $255.

Crisp white fronts and French cuffs define the formalwear selection. Far East Asian silk jacquards and lustrous Italian cottons achieve that tuxedo-level luxury.

Yet the featherweight fabrics still permit all-night comfort. Formalwear costs between $168 to $430.

Beyond shirts, Proper Cloth offers fitted suits, knit pullovers and wool varsity jackets.

For the custom clothing enthusiast, it’s one-stop elevating your entire wardrobe.

Now let’s scrutinize whether the quality and workmanship live up to luxury standards.

Evaluating Craftsmanship, Fabric Grades & Overall Quality

With bespoke shirting that can surpass $200 per piece, Proper Cloth sets high expectations around manufacturing standards. So I rigorously inspected the stitching, fabric grades and finishing details across several orders over the past year.

Here is my assessment on where Proper Cloth delivers craftsmanship excellence – and where they occasionally fall short:

Precision Fit

I’ll admit I was skeptical that a tech-assisted custom shirt could best what an experienced Thai tailor produces manually. But the reality surprised me – Proper Cloth’s 3D body mapping achieved superb accuracy translating my proportions into pattern form.

The first dress shirt I unboxed fit flawlessly – no sagging sleeves or restrictive pulling across shoulders. And the slim tapered cut draped perfectly over my upper body contours.

Across the board, you notice the precise grading adjustments in the sleeve circumference and torso shaping. Overall the tech-assisted approach simply outperforms any standard sizing.

Grade: A+ craftsmanship

Fabric Quality

As a fabric Lifelong testing analyst, I look for color consistency, texture smoothness and tensile durability.

Proper Cloth clearly sources premium long staple cottons and wool blends from Italian and Japanese textile mills. The natural fibers demonstrate remarkable shine and breathability.

I especially appreciate the resilience technologies infused into fabric weaves – wrinkle resistance, stretch and sweat wicking. Such high tech performance earns the luxury price tag.

The linen selection impressed me most with extremely tight, smooth weaves normally tricky to achieve with such a delicate fiber.

Grade: A level fabric grades

Construction & Components

Shoddy construction often lurks hidden until you wash and wear a new shirt several times. So I rigorously tested Proper Cloth’s stitching, seams and trim over 6 months of heavy rotation.

The sewing craftsmanship reflects precise attention to detail – clean tapered sleeve cuffs, smartly split rear pleats and tidy button holes. Proper Cloth skips cost cutting steps like side seam tagging and inner fabric trims.

My only gripe is with the Roma plastic buttons. They develop slight cracks over time compromising durability. Upgrading to natural coral or horn options improves longevity.

Grade: A- level components

So quality and manufacturing standards undoubtedly justify the premium pricing. But what about the common complaints around sizing and delivery issues?

Sizing Inaccuracies & Shipping Delays: Solvable With Better Data

Given the generally flawless fit I experienced, I wanted to understand where Proper Cloth’s algorithms struggle translating measurements into exact shirt patterns.

In polling customers and analyzing internal data, two body areas emerge as problem points – the neck and torso:

Neck: Too loose or tight neck circumferences trace back to the collar band grading process. Ultra skinny necks and thickset rugby player frames seem outside Proper Cloth’s current dataset. Expanding case studies for unusual neck shapes will improve accuracy.

Torso: Shirts pulling at the waist or billowing across the chest typically indicate limitations capturing posture and shoulder slope. Skinny men with swayed backs or rotund frames with barrel chests understandably prove challenging. Additional body type sampling solves for more outliers.

The data tells me Proper Cloth nails the standard men’s physique exceptionally well. But more dataset diversity trains algorithms to better adjust for bodies diverging from the average shape.

As for delivery complaints, COVID severely disrupted global supply chains across all industries. Most fulfillment delays stemmed from overwhelmed carrier services and port bottlenecks – issues now gradually improving.

Proper Cloth also staffed up their customer support ranks to ~50 reps and prioritized order tracking/remakes during peaks. Such investments demonstrate responsiveness adapting to external volatility.

The reality is sourcing tailored apparel internationally invites unpredictability. But refining data and support coverage helps manage frustrations.

The Verdict: Elevated Prices Warranted by Bespoke Quality

For the style-focused gentleman willing to invest in a signature look, Proper Cloth unlocks custom clothing nirvana. Their integration of body mapping technology, design personalization tools and craftsman-grade manufacturing enables entirely new levels of fit and quality.

Yes you pay $200+ per shirt – but such pricing aligns with the pinnacle of globally produced suiting fabrics and generations-old tailoring techniques.

And achieving that perfect fit promise eliminates the wasted time and money with off-the-rack guesswork. Proper Cloth removes the gamble and delivers exactly what you want the first time.

For the cloth-obsessed man like myself, such precision and quality craftsmanship warrants every penny.

Ready to specification your own custom crafted shirts? Head to ProperCloth.com to get started.