I love a good button up shirt. I can’t tell you how many I have in my closet, and yet I am always finding a new one that I have to have. They can be casual, dressy, light, structured, flannel, oxford, chambray…in other words, versatile.
What’s funny though, is that I rarely wear them with the sleeves down, unless it happens to be a layering piece. A few stores, JCrew and Gap in particular, are expert sleeve cuffers (?). A few weeks ago I happened to come across a particular shirt at Gap that had the sleeves already cuffed. Had the sleeves not been cuffed when I tried in on, I can’t say for sure that I would have purchased it. However, when I put it on I felt like my outfit was much more polished with the help of such a simple trick. I have always rolled my sleeves, but I would typically gravitate to the double roll (folding back the cuff twice) and leaving it at that. This look had a different twist, looking effortless yet chic.
Here are the basic steps and a video in case you’re a visual learner like myself.
First of all, for some shirts, this may be easier to do prior to dressing. Start with your sleeve fully unbuttoned and pull the first roll to somewhere between your elbow and bicep, depending on how high you want the cuff. Then roll the sleeve a second time not quite to the top but leaving the top of the sleeve sticking out. JCrew often pulls out the ends and scrunches the sleeve at this point which gives it a more loose and comfortable look. In my video, I kept it more structured.
I’m sure some of you have been doing this for years, but I’m thrilled to finally have this particular cuffed sleeve figured out!
