How to Fold any Long Sleeve Shirt the Right Way

The challenge of learning how to fold a long sleeve shirt can seem complicated. Folding clothes in general can be frustrating because it seems like every dang garment has its own particular way of being folded.

With the right guidance though, folding long sleeve shirts can be easy and practical in room organization. Utilizing KonMari methods from tidying expert Marie Kondo, folding long sleeve shirts, sweaters and dress shirts will be a walk in the park.

Long-sleeves

Before the masterclass on how to fold long sleeve shirts, let’s dive into the KonMari method. Marie Kondo is an expert in tidiness. She has taken the world by storm transforming cluttered homes into organizational oases.

Making appearances on shows such as The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and in publications like Time Magazine, Marie certainly has authority over folding-organization.

According to the KonMari method, focusing on consolidating space and organizing with intention helps create the best way to fold long sleeve shirts.

Step 1 is finding a flat surface. This is important in preventing any wrinkles during folding. Also smooth and straighten out the shirt before moving on.

Step 2 is folding the long sleeve into perfect halves. The direction in folding a long sleeve shirt doesn’t matter as much as where you divide it. Choose a side to fold from and roll with it.

Step 3 is folding the sleeves into a triangular shape. You start by folding the sleeve towards the shirt while keeping it pressed. It helps to go along with the armpit crease. Then fold the sleeve again in the opposite direction slightly above the elbow. This forms the triangle.

Step 4 changes depending on where you want to store your shirts. If you want to store them on your shelves then folding the shirts in half will suffice. This condenses the shirts to stack them efficiently. Know that if you have a large amount of shirts to store that you’ll need decent surface area. More than 3 shirts in a stack can make pulling out any bottom shirts more difficult and cause shirts to exit the stack.

Now, if you want to store your shirts in drawers then folding them into thirds is best. Because they’re condensed you’ll have more space to work with and can store more shirts. The smaller size does mean that you’ll display less of the shirts so if that doesn’t work stick to halves.

Sweaters

Because sweaters are thicker, folding them is slightly different. That doesn’t mean you can’t still store them in a sleek, compact way. The differences in folding are light and can be pretty easy to adapt to.

Step 1 is essentially the same as long sleeve shirts. Lay out the sweater on a flat, smooth surface to allow for optimal folding.

Step 2 is where things start to change. Fold one sleeve over towards the other partway. Essentially the end of the shoulder will line up with the middle of the neck while the sleeve ends up almost perpendicular to the other. It sounds complicated, but in practice it’s relatively simple.

Step 3 is very similar to the long sleeve shirt’s step 3. Take the sleeve from last step and fold it outward from above the elbow to form the triangular shape again. The cuff of the sleeve should line up with the bottom of the fold at the hem of the shirt.

Step 4 is simply repeating all of the previous steps for the opposite side of the shirt. Once all that’s done you should be left with a long rectangular shaped sweater.

Step 5 is where you bring the bottom of the sweater to the top to fold it in half. Then, fold it in the same direction one more time. This creates a thick bundle that you can store in your drawers.

Dress shirts

Dress shirts can be trickier than the others. They tend to wrinkle easier and have the collar and buttons that can make folding more difficult. But never fear, the KonMarie method is here.

Step 1 involves buttoning up every button so the shirt will hold its form during the folding process. If not, the shirt would spread and slip out of form.

Step 2 is the same as the other two methods with the front of the shirt facing down. So spread it out on a flat surface and make sure that it is buttons faced down.

Step 3 is folding one sleeve over the back from the shoulder crease. Make sure that this forms a straight line along the outside of the shirt while keeping the sleeve inside of the back area. If the sleeve is too long just fold the cuff inward towards the shirt.

Step 4 just repeats step 3 for the other arm. Aim to cross the two sleeves evenly while still keeping that line along the side of the shirt.

Step 5 involves folding the shirt into thirds. Start the folding from the bottom of the shirt and fold up twice. This creates a compact shape that fits anywhere be it luggage, drawer or shelf.

Step 6 Flip over the shirt and fix the collar in case it was flattened or messed up during the process. Smooth out any wrinkles created and it’s ready to store!

Closing statements

We hope that this guide was helpful to you and your personal folding journey. If you have any inquiries about ordering new shirts to practice your newfound folding skills on, connect with our team and check out our custom t-shirt buyer’s guide!

Interested in something a little different? We’ve also written about how team names bring success to basketball and the best eco-friendly t-shirt brands.