How to fold a shirt correctly: instructions and a few tricks

Typically, shirts are hung in the closet on hangers, this allows them to be stored in an impeccably ironed state. But there are situations when a wardrobe item needs to be compactly packed. In this case, you should know how to properly fold a shirt so that wrinkles do not form on it.

In fact, it is not that difficult, it just requires a little patience, following some useful tips, and the ability to visually separate things into parts and make straight lines along the edges is also welcome.

Preparing to fold

Before you fold your shirt, you definitely need to prepare it. This means that the product must be washed and dried. Under no circumstances should dirty and damp items be packed with other wardrobe items, as this can lead to the formation of mold fungi.

Also, before folding shirts, they need to be ironed first. Otherwise, you agree, what’s the point of trying to neatly fold crumpled items?

Before folding the shirt, you need to iron it and dry it well.

After ironing, do not forget to let the shirt cool. If this is not done, creases and folds will instantly appear on the warm folded product.

Double-sided folding method

To begin, lay the shirt back side down and iron it on all sides to remove any wrinkles.
Fasten each button on the garment.
Now fold it in half, carefully moving half of the shirt onto the other half. As a result, the sleeves should match.

Re-smooth the product with your hands.
Then take the sleeves by the edges and turn them to the right side, holding the armpit seam with your hand. After this, you must each time turn the sleeves in one direction or the other using the “accordion” method until their entire length is completely on the surface of the product.

Grasp the shirt by the bottom edge, grabbing the fabric on both sides, and pull it toward the sleeves.

Now take the top of the product and fold it over the bottom folded part. It should be a square.

Life hack: to avoid wrinkles on your shirt after washing, first let it dry completely and only then fold it. Now let's look at another way to fold a shirt, which can be useful for men going on a business trip. We will teach you how to fold a shirt correctly!

Shirt folding technology

How men's or women's shirts should be folded depends on the density and wrinkleability of the material, as well as the sleeve length.

For long sleeve shirts

If the product has long sleeves, fold it this way:

Place the item with the front facing down;
Visually divide it lengthwise into three equal parts, bend one of them back to approximately the middle of the shoulder;
Leaving the cuff open, fold the sleeve into three folds;
Do exactly the same actions with the opposite part of the product, laying out the sleeve parallel to the first and lifting the cuff up to the collar;
Fold the bottom of the shirt (the one that is usually tucked into the trousers) to the width of your hand, and then fold it again, raising the bottom of the product to the collar.
That's it, you can put the shirt in your luggage or on a storage shelf.

You can fold a long sleeve shirt in 7 easy steps

For short sleeve shirts

A shirt with a short sleeve is no more difficult to fold than a shirt with a long sleeve.

Place the shirt face down and divide it vertically into three parts using the eyelet;
Bend the left side in a straight line;
Turn the sleeve twice;
Perform similar actions with the right side of the shirt;
Fold the bottom of the product to the sleeves;
Connecting the bottom part to the collar, fold the shirt in half.

You can fold a short sleeve t-shirt in 6 easy steps

Polo

We also include products made from synthetic fabrics in this group. The folding algorithm here is:

With the shirt face down, use one hand to grasp where the collar meets the left sleeve. Using your free hand, align the bottom edge so that there is a straight line from the collar down.

Fold the left sleeve along this contour;

Mirror the same steps with the right side of the shirt;

Raise the bottom edge first to the center, and then to the collar;

Folding a polo is no more difficult than folding a long sleeve shirt

Turn the product right side up.

Rules for storing shirts

If the size of the dressing room allows, it is best to hang shirts inside the closet on hangers, with each item given a separate place. You can save space using the traditional installation method. The shirt is laid out on a flat surface with the back facing up. The sleeves are folded parallel to the rest of the item. The product is rolled up on the sides and folded in half. Wrinkles may form that need to be carefully straightened out with your hands.

How to beautifully wrap a shirt as a gift

Usually purchased products are already packaged in standard polyethylene. Such packaging can hardly be called beautiful, neat and festive. And if you wrap an expensive item in parchment, craft paper, burlap, linen or satin, you will get a very original gift for a loved one - a man.

You can pack a shirt in gift paper using the following algorithm:

Remove the product from a standard bag or polyethylene.
Roll the product using any of the listed methods, depending on the length of the sleeve.
Carefully place in a prepared gift bag or box.
Place parchment paper on top and tie the box with a satin ribbon.

Advice! You should not use bright colors (pink, purple) for packaging a men's shirt, as well as decorations in the form of beads, butterflies, flowers or ruffles.

A creative gift for a man should be tastefully packaged accordingly; a gift in the form of a shirt can be complemented with expensive alcohol, perfume or jewelry.

Stylish packaging options for a men's gift

How to fold a shirt in a suitcase

Storing clothes on shelves in a closet in a static state is much easier than transporting items from city to city. Those who frequently travel on business should learn some simple ways to fold office clothes into a suitcase or travel bag.

Method 1. Products made from delicate fabrics do not have to be folded using traditional methods - into squares or rectangles. Silk or cambric shirts can be simply rolled with a roller to prevent vertical and horizontal wrinkles.

Attention! Before rolling the item, you need to fasten all the buttons and straighten the resulting wrinkles. Do not roll the fabric too tightly, place the main material on the collar and put the shirt with the collar down inside the suitcase.

Method 2. You will need a sheet of thick cardboard. It can be cut from an appliance box. The rectangle should fit the width of the shirt. You need to roll using the same method as for long-sleeve products, just put the cardboard inside.

Instead of thick cardboard, you can take any thick magazine

How to fold a shirt in a suitcase without it getting wrinkled

A shirt folded for travel will look perfect when you take it out of your suitcase, but only if you follow some rules.

Before packing your shirt, make sure it is clean and fasten all the buttons;

The product can be folded using any of the above methods, but it is important to secure it using cardboard cut to size (if the original packaging has been preserved, you can fold it into it);

You can fix the shape of a folded shirt using a cardboard rectangle

It is advisable to pack the product, especially one made of delicate fabric, in a paper bag.

How to quickly fold a shirt

Sometimes there is sorely not enough time to pack a suitcase for a trip. The Japanese invented and taught the whole world how to quickly fold a shirt like this:

This time the shirt should be placed face up;
Imagine two lines on the product: one from the right shoulder down parallel to the side seam, and the other perpendicular to the first in the middle of the product;
Determine the intersection of the lines and carefully grasp this place with the fingers of your left hand;
With your other hand, grab the seam on your right shoulder and slowly pull it down;
Having reached the intersection, intercept it with your right hand;
Straighten your arms sharply;
Shake the shirt, lifting it from the surface;
Lower the product back so that the sleeve touches the surface first and lies down.

You can see more clearly how to quickly fold a shirt (T-shirt) in our video. After viewing, we recommend repeating the folding process in practice.

Japanese folding method

First, you must place the shirt on a flat, hard surface that is free of any dirt.
After that, start fastening all the buttons on it, including the first and last.
Let the product lie with the front side facing you so that the collar “looks” to the left.
Now you must make a visual line for yourself on the product from the beginning of the left shoulder (from the collar) to the middle of the stomach. The line should be straight. With one hand, take one point and slightly lift the fabric, do the same with the other point.

If you did this action correctly, then one of your hands should be parallel to the other. Make sure to grab the front and back of the shirt, not just the front.
Now that you are holding the shirt with both hands, place one hand under the other so that one shoulder is under the side seam.

After this, you need to hook the side seam with your left hand to connect it to the sleeve.
Don't cross your arms; if you have to cross them, it means you're doing something wrong.

As you straighten your arms, lift the product up, then pull it back slightly and shake it off.

Now turn the shirt over and straighten out the wrinkles by smoothing with your hands.

When you need to look brand new upon arrival

If you often go on business trips, be sure to purchase a special bag for transporting shirts (sport bag). This device practically guarantees that upon arriving at your destination, you can immediately put on the ironed product and go to a business meeting in it.

The most convenient way to transport shirts is in a special bag - a briefcase

A bag for transporting shirts can be found on sale in specialized stores, or ordered online.

How to get rid of creases

Sometimes, having arrived at the place and taken out a folded shirt from the suitcase, to your displeasure, you can find creases on it in the area of the sleeves, belt, cuffs or collar . You don’t want to appear in public in such a shirt, especially if you have a romantic meeting ahead. To avoid such an incident, there are several simple rules that will help you get rid of creases on your shirt:

The shirt should be steamed . A special steamer or iron that has a steam release function can help with this.
After steaming, the shirt should be allowed to cool and dry .

However, if trouble occurs on the road or in a hotel, then an iron or steamer may not always be at hand . In this case, you should use the following tips:

The shirt should be hung on hangers above the bathtub.
You should open the hot water tap for a while or fill the bath with boiling water.
It is worth waiting until the product, under the influence of steam, acquires its original appearance.
Then the shirt is hung on hangers in a dry place so that the fabric dries out after steaming.

This method will take a lot of time, but it will allow you to successfully cope with an unpleasant situation.

A few tricks

If you haven’t found a briefcase for sale, and the process of folding shirts, despite reading in this article, still seems incomprehensibly difficult to you, use an alternative option: just select products from wrinkle-resistant fabrics.

To prevent shirts from becoming too deformed, they need to be laid as compactly as possible to each other, for example, “jack”, when the collar of the top item is in the hem of the bottom one.

To prevent the collar from becoming deformed, tie a scarf under it, or use a special holder (they often come with a new shirt).

Folding method “on the go!”

Let's start with washing. If, after arriving, you plan to immediately take care of business, but simply do not have time to wash your clothes, do it in advance, since it is not appropriate for a respectable man to show up to a work meeting in an unwashed shirt.
Wait until the shirt is completely dry and starch it. This should be done to prevent wrinkles from appearing on it during the trip and to prevent it from becoming wrinkled.
After this, iron the product well.
When you pack your shirt, don't pack it too tightly or it may wrinkle.

A few more tips:

For convenience, you can use a special sample shaped like a rectangle. It has a length that is equal to the distance between the seams of the left and right shoulders. Such samples are sold in clothing stores, but if you want to save money, you can make it yourself by cutting it out of cardboard.
Always fold your shirt correctly, especially if you'll need to put it on straight away when you arrive and won't have time to iron it.
You should only fold your shirt when it is dry and clean. In this form, it practically does not wrinkle, and if you fold it correctly, you will significantly increase the chances that after unpacking your things, the product will look like you just bought it.

These are the methods for folding shirts. They are quite simple and do not require much ingenuity, so, if desired, any man can fold his shirt correctly.

Helpful Tips for Folding Shirts

Finally, read a few more tips on how to fold a shirt correctly:

When packing shirts in your suitcase, especially those you plan to wear right away, place them on top of your other items. It is especially not recommended to press them down with heavy objects;

Shirts made from capricious delicate fabrics need to be folded carefully into a suitcase, and it is also a good idea to wrap them in additional soft cloth or parchment.

If you don’t have a suitcase, it is advisable to put the shirt in a suitcase with a rigid frame, so there is a better chance that it will not get wrinkled.

You will see the process of folding a shirt clearly and in detail in our video.

Features of storing shirts

Most often, they try to hang such an office wardrobe item on hangers, but there are situations in which the item needs to be folded. There are several general rules:

You only need to fold a carefully ironed shirt. It is recommended to collect all washed items, iron them and begin the folding process only after the fabric has cooled. Cotton fabrics that are hot after ironing can become very wrinkled, so you need to wait about 30 minutes, hanging the clothes on hangers during this time.
Fasten the buttons from top to bottom, as well as on the cuffs of the product, using your hands to smooth out any wrinkles that may have formed. This will prevent the appearance of unwanted fabric deformations.
Carefully fold the shirt on the shelf on top of other items. There is no need to put heavy things on your office outfit; one stack can contain no more than 3 light wardrobe items.
A men's shirt made of expensive fabric should not only be folded neatly, but also wrapped in parchment paper. This will provide the product with protection from accidental stains during transportation.
The shirts are folded with the right side outward; they must be placed on the shelf with the jack on top of each other. It is important to support the collars; for this it is best to use special plastic holders from new things or select suitable soft objects.
Men who often go on business trips are advised to purchase a separate bag for storing their office wardrobe; these can be found in stores. You should also buy products made from special fabrics that do not wrinkle too much.

Advice! It is recommended to iron shirts starting from the collar, moving from it to the sleeves.

Delicate items are placed in special bags