First Lite fit - need some help

[ScottP]

Hey guys,

I just got in the mail my new first lite chama hoody, my first piece from this brand. I wear a size Large in about every piece of clothing from every brand - I'm 5'11", <180lb, 42" chest, 34" waist, and in a dress shirt I have a 35" sleeve. I'm a perfect size L from the first lite fit chart.

So out of the package, the chama seems pretty huge. Its a tad long in the sleeve, which I'm ok with, but the volume at the midsection is pretty substantial.

So my question is this, does this stuff shrink at all when washing following the directions? Anyone else have this experience? How is the medium fit? I'm 1 for 2 in other merino pieces, my Kuiu didn't move much from the way it arrived and my smartwool lost 2" in the sleeve and body length. My wife carefully washes all of our merino, so no I didn't put it in the dryer.

I need to decide to keep and hope it shrinks some, or return for a medium?, or just return it.

thanks!

 

[Ryan Avery]

I would say FL's sizing runs a bit bigger. But I wear a Large in Kuiu and FL. Mine didn't shrink much if at all.

 

[ckleeves]

I would say FL's sizing runs a bit bigger. But I wear a Large in Kuiu and FL. Mine didn't shrink much if at all.

I agree. I wear a Xl in pretty much everything except a few brands I wear a large. FL Xl is pretty big in the chest and gut for me but it fits better than their large so I just go with it. Unfortunately I can only shrink shirts that don't need shrunk and I haven't been able to shrink the FL.

 

[UPnorth]

I've got a medium Chama hoody. I'm 5' 10", ~160 lbs, 32 waist, and I think my chest is somewhere around 38-40. When I first got the shirt, the fit was much bigger than I expected, but I kept it and it has worked out fine. I agree that the fit in the midsection is enormous, but the medium might be a little snug on you up top. I don't believe that mine has shrunk at all in the wash.

 

[ScottP]

Thanks for all the feedback, its very helpful. I was hoping someone would say it would shrink up a bit, but funny how that works... haha.

I will try it on over my 190 layer and decide if the lower portion is just too big or if i can live with it. One of the downsides of living out in the sticks and having to order stuff over the internet w/out trying on...

 

[ScottP]

In case anyone ever stumbles on this thread later...

My wife washed the chama as directed but switched the dryer to high for just the last few minutes. It definitely shrunk up a bit in our washer/dryer. Its still too big in the midsection, but overall the fit is much much better. Especially in arms and hood.