Keep or Return? or "The Unbearable Cheapness of Bean"

Is it me or have men's cotton turtlenecks nearly vanished from mainstream fashion?

I know you can still find them here and there (Ralph Lauren, L.L. Bean, Lands End), but they used to be everywhere.  How are men keeping their necks warm these days?

I was looking for a good quality cotton turtleneck last week and finally ordered one from L.L. Bean: $22.95 with no tax and free shipping.  When it arrived, however, I was disappointed.  While the cotton is soft, the fit is way off.  I'd ordered a size Small.  The torso is narrow enough, but the sleeves are wide enough for a pair of legs - make that two pair -- and the armholes hang down to mid-chest.  I mean, I know different brands use different fit models, but this is weird and nothing like the size Small turtlenecks I remember from the past.





Also, the cuffs and collar aren't particularly elastic -- not much stretchier than the regular jersey.   A look inside shows that the side/sleeve seam is serged, and I could easily tailor the shirt for a better fit.  I pinned a bit -- though not nearly enough -- to get a sense of how it might look if I took it in.





Here you can see the slightly tailored sleeve on my right.



I hate the idea of having to re-do RTW, but I know many people do this as a matter of course.  The shirt was cheap, and I could probably do a good job without too much of a time investment, but still, it irks me to have to restitch a brand new shirt.  The alternative would be to return it.

What would you do?

In other news, today I started tracing my coat pattern and boy, is it a chore.  I don't mind tracing per se, but seam allowances have to be added and this pattern calls for different seam allowances on different pattern pieces -- the lining pieces in particular are hard to figure out.





I'm hoping in the morning, when I'm fresher, I'll be able to make sense of all these numbers.





And that's it!  I hope to have everything traced by tomorrow so I can spend the rest of the week on the muslin.

This pocket alone (below) may take an afternoon!



In closing, aside from hemming a pair of pants, do you often have to tailor your RTW (ready-to-wear) clothing purchases?

Have a great day, everybody!