One of the most common questions at our counter — and now, easily the most common on our website — is some version of this: 5 foot 7, 80 kilos; 6 foot 2, 85 kilos; 6 foot 4, 95 kilos — how much metre fabric need? Three people asked it in a single week. It is a fair question, and the answer starts with the standard cut: 3.25 metres for a suit, 2.2 metres for a blazer or jacket. That covers most men. Your height and build decide whether you need a quarter metre more.
Buy short and your tailor is stuck with a compromise — a narrower lapel, a shorter vent, a joined waistband. Buy long and you have paid for cloth that will sit in a cupboard. So here is the working chart we use, after nearly five decades of cutting lengths at 160, Katra Nawab.
First, check the width
Every figure below assumes standard suiting width. Almost all worsted suiting is woven 58 to 60 inches wide, and our chart is built on that. If a cloth is narrower — some novelty and imported pieces are — the length required goes up, and we will tell you so before you buy. Never accept a metre figure without knowing the width it refers to.
The chart
| Garment | Standard cut | Tall (6'1"+) or broad (46" chest+) |
|---|---|---|
| Two-piece suit | 3.25 m | 3.5 m |
| Blazer / jacket | 2.2 m | 2.45 m |
| Three-piece suit | 3.75 m | 4 m |
| Bandhgala | 3.5 m | 3.75 m |
What quietly adds a quarter metre
Three things, and only one of them is your size.
- Pattern matching. A check or a bold stripe must line up across the front, the pockets and the sleeve head. That matching eats cloth. On a glen check or a windowpane, add a quarter metre and do not argue with the tailor about it.
- Cut and style. Wider lapels, a double-breasted front, pleated trousers, a longer bandhgala — each takes a little more.
- Future alterations. A spare quarter metre inside the seams is the cheapest insurance a suit can carry. Waists change.
[OWNER: apna ek real counter ka kissa yahan add karein — one true shop-floor example, 2–3 lines]
Shirts and trousers on their own
Not everyone is buying a full suit. For a shirt, 1.6 metres covers most builds; go to 2 metres if you are broad through the chest, prefer a longer sleeve, or want a matching pocket. For trousers alone, 1.25 to 1.4 metres is the usual ask, a little more for pleats or a taller frame.
And if you are buying for the whole family
Wedding season brings a different question: a full than — the mill's uncut bolt — rather than a cut length. If you are clothing a groom, his father and two brothers in one cloth, a than is usually the better buy and we price it differently. Tell us how many garments and we will work backwards to the length.
Our advice after four decades of handling worsted wool is simple: when in doubt, take the higher figure. Nobody has ever regretted a spare quarter metre. Browse the cloth by grade — Super 120s or Super 140s — or see what works for a three-piece suit. Better still, send us your height and build on WhatsApp at +91 99100 34000, or come to the shop in Chandni Chowk and we will measure the length out in front of you.