Shirts With Pen Pockets

[Keyless Works]

I have most of my dress shirts custom made. I don't like pockets on my shirts but I am certain you could have one made to any size you like and reinforced in a similar style to cuffs. A local suit/shirt maker should cost you $180+ depending on the fabric and other options. Name brand bespoke shirts are always more money and not necessarily better.

[MrThoth]

Yup, I've had shirts custom made in the past and will resort to it again if necessary. Fortunately I know a great seamstress.

[Keyless Works]

Yup, I've had shirts custom made in the past and will resort to it again if necessary. Fortunately I know a great seamstress.

I think you get what you pay for and a nice shirt is worth owning. I still have bespoke shirts that are going on 8 years now and they look beautiful. Most off the rack shirts won't last more than 2 years...I can think of some exceptions like Borrelli, Charvet, and Isaia but those are all as expensive or more expensive than a custom one.

[wykeite]

Mmmm.....Pockets on dress shirts, what an interesting thought. I like to keep the front of a dress shirt plain.

 

Wait on how about a sleeve pocket?

[ac12]

2 ideas

#1 - Take your shirt to a tailor and have him sew a stitch in the pocket to create a pen pocket. Yes your pocket will decrease in width by the size of the pen pocket.

#2 - Do what us geeks do/did, get a pocket protector. The pocket protector also protects your pocket from ink leaks.

[Moshe ben David]

Virtually all of my business shirts are button down either pinpoint oxford or oxford cloth, from either LL Bean or Land's End. I've never had a problem with clipping my fountain pens in these pockets; including my Pelikan m800 or any of my Parker Duofold Centennials. I also can recommend Paul Frederick broadcloth shirts in the same way.

[damonism]

It's not a shirt, I know, but I love this pen pocket that one of my suit jackets has, underneath the regular inside pocket. I'm not sure how common it is on suits (I don't have many and it's a while since I've brought one), but it's very handy.

 

(Excuse the crappy phone photo.)

[MrThoth]

daomism -- agreed, I love a sportscoat or suit jacket with a dedicated inner pen pocket. The sportscoats I typically wear has them, which was a strong reason I gravitated toward that brand of sportscoat in the first place. (I don't recall the brand offhand, but I could go look it up if anyone's interested.)

[Jackson]

Scottevest sports jackets have four dedicated pen pockets. Their travel vests have two. I'm pretty sure most of their shirts have divided breast pockets...

[wikeh2004]

Where I live, Aloha shirts are the standard. Only lawyers (!) wear suits. :-) Fortunately, most Aloha shirts have decent pockets, although some are quite shallow and one has to use shorter pens or have them go diagonal in the pocket. Still, I can wear an Aloha shirt to work every day and have a pocket for my pen(s). I also wear reading glasses, so that goes in there too. Can't live without pockets!

 

I would love to see polo shirts with pockets, but those are rare, and if they do have them, the pockets are usually too shallow and too small.

[MrThoth]

Update: I have found a line of shirts with actual pen pockets. The C. E. Schmidt shirts from the Tractor Supply Company have true pen pockets, immediately right of the left breast pocket. They're about 6" deep, plenty long enough to accomodate the longest pens I own (my beloved Cross Townsends). Here's an example:

 

http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/ce-schmidtreg%3B-mens-chambray-short-sleeve-work-shirt-everglade-green

 

Now, these aren't nice/dress shirts like I wanted -- they're work shirts, albeit comparatively nice ones. But they're still pretty good. I wouldn't wear one to a business meeting or a cocktail party, but they're just fne for running errands, getting together with friends for a cookout, puttering around the house, etc.

[Nonstickron]

I always wear button ups and they usually have a generous pocket. If I'm listening to a book or music on my phone via headphones, which is near constant, it's in that pocket. It can look pretty rediculous, especially if it's one of the shirts that is now way too big on me (hooray for getting fit!), pulling my shirt to one side. Regardless, I find it easiest to just slip/clip my pen between two buttons on the front of my shirt. For some reason it looks less dorky. Or if it's a long sleeve, sometimes I'll clip it inside my shirt cuff.

[DaveBj]

My uniform shirts for the security company from which I retired from, but for which I am still on standby, have a pen pocket, but on some of the shirts I've had to cut a few stitches to make it accept anything fatter than a chrome Cross ballpoint. Haven't tried to force my Jinhao 159 into one of those pockets, nor will I try.

 

Pocket protectors -- Amazon is selling packs of 12 for $7.50. Haven't had one of those in years!

[spotted and speckled]

C.E Schmidt Workwear brand work/casual shirts from Tractor Supply Company have nice deep pen pockets in their shirts.

 

These are wonderful! My husband is a 2 pocket & pen guy. He usually winds up with Ropers or Stetsons from the western store, but these are much less expensive. He's going to be getting some of these!

[Sasha Royale]

In the breast pocket of a shirt, sew a vertical column of stitches one inch form the pocket's edge. The stitch column only has to be 1/4 inch.

Mom did it for Dad's dress shirts for thirty years. For my shirts, too, until I started having my shirts tailor-made.

[carlos.q]

In the breast pocket of a shirt, sew a vertical column of stitches one inch form the pocket's edge. The stitch column only has to be 1/4 inch.

Mom did it for Dad's dress shirts for thirty years. For my shirts, too, until I started having my shirts tailor-made.

 

Now this is a sensible and economical solution!

[Tasmith]

 

I'm checking those out online, Tasmith -- thanx for the suggestion!

 

Question: from the pictures I'm looking at, I can see the stitching for the pen pocket. But is it an actual full, discrete pocket, entirely separate from the left breast pocket, or is it just a flap of cloth attached inside the pocket along one edge (as with my Tri-Mountain shirt)? If it's the former, I'll definitely order a shirt.

It's entirely separate.

Edited July 23, 2014 by Tasmith

[ac12]

 

2 ideas

#1 - Take your shirt to a tailor and have him sew a stitch in the pocket to create a pen pocket. Yes your pocket will decrease in width by the size of the pen pocket.

#2 - Do what us geeks do/did, get a pocket protector. The pocket protector also protects your pocket from ink leaks.

 

The Tractor supply shirt looks like they did what Sasha and I suggested.

 

If you want to decrease the geekiness of the pocket protector, just don't put the flap over the pocket. The pocket protector would just sit inside the pocket, and be less visible. That is what I did in college.

But it also has no secure hold on your shirt, so if you bend over, it could slide out and fall.

[Moshe ben David]

Where I live, Aloha shirts are the standard. Only lawyers (!) wear suits. :-) Fortunately, most Aloha shirts have decent pockets, although some are quite shallow and one has to use shorter pens or have them go diagonal in the pocket. Still, I can wear an Aloha shirt to work every day and have a pocket for my pen(s). I also wear reading glasses, so that goes in there too. Can't live without pockets!

 

I would love to see polo shirts with pockets, but those are rare, and if they do have them, the pockets are usually too shallow and too small.

 

Both LL Bean and Lands End market polo shirts with pockets. Never have bought them myself so I don't know how they are for pens. On the plus side, both of these outfits have absolutely fantastic phone customer service people (even US based!!) who I've found are receptive to most any question and will work hard to get a good answer for you... Check the websites.

[ac12]

Where I live, Aloha shirts are the standard. Only lawyers (!) wear suits. :-)

 

I think it gets a bit more specific.

Only lawyers going to court wear suits.

 

I talked to a few lawyers who wore aloha shirts to the office.

They kept a sport or suit jacket and tie in the office, just in case they had to run to court.

Hmmm aloha shirt with a tie ???? What's wrong with that picture.

Edited July 24, 2014 by ac12