# Do you avoid unbuttoning a shirt? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 14, 2009, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837 "2009-10-14T21:19:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2009, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/21 "2009-10-15T15:18:57Z")
I wonder how many people who always unbutton their shirts for removal are female. Like the other broads around here, I have boobs and wear fitted shirts. To be able to lift a shirt off over the twins without first unbuttoning is just not gonna happen. ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2009, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/22 "2009-10-15T15:34:00Z")
How busy are you that you can’t spare the five extra seconds it takes to unbutton your shirt? ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2009, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/23 "2009-10-15T15:56:11Z")
> [@The\_Controvert](#): > > Also, has the “put the collar on forehead and pull straight up” technique actually failed for you, or are you just afraid to try new things? :shrug: The “pull-up” technique probably works just fine. But why change habit? What’s the payoff here? Trust me, unbuttoning the shirt is so fast, I bet I can remove my own shirt by unbottoning faster than I can do the “pull-up” thing (for which I’d have to unbotton three or four buttons anyway). I think what you’re overlooking is that for most all men, fully unbuttoning a dress shirt is super-quick and easy. Really and for true. Who cares about taking 4 seconds to pull off a shirt when it only takes maybe 8 seconds to remove it conventionally? I don’t live in that kind of rush, and I don’t need those 4 seconds. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Controvert](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dec6dc/32.png) [@The\_Controvert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Controvert)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2009, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/24 "2009-10-15T16:14:05Z")
For me it isn’t about being in a rush as much as doing things efficiently. I avoid untying shoes, too. If I ever need to rush out the door, I know I won’t be wasting time because my shirt is already buttoned and my shoes are already tied. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2009, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/25 "2009-10-15T16:20:22Z")
> [@The\_Controvert](#): > > I avoid untying shoes, too. If I ever need to rush out the door, I know I won’t be wasting time because my shirt is already buttoned and my shoes are already tied. My shoes loosen progressively if I do this – I like lace-up shoes tied tightly. Some of my dress shoes are slip-ons, though 🆒 I can leave tennnis shoes and such tied if I tie them loose-ish in the first place, but then they give poor ankle support if I actually try to do something athletic in them. … However: I do keep my ties tied forever 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2009, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/26 "2009-10-15T16:31:08Z")
I just unbutton the top two and pull it off over my head. My chest is larger than my waist by more than a bit, so there is always plenty of room to work in around the waist area. I bet I couldn’t bring it off with a tailored shirt, but I have done with those “athletic cut” shirts. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2009, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/27 "2009-10-15T17:01:03Z")
The first time I saw someone remove a buttoned shirt by slipping it over their head, it was Steve Gutenberg (I think) in _Diner_. My friend and I laughed at the improbability of it but I don’t know that I’ve ever unbuttoned one since. Ironing isn’t an issue… I send them all to the cleaners except for the old, tattered, casual ones and they wouldn’t be ironed anyway. Never unbutton. ---
**Author:** ![Redwing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/dfb087/32.png) [@Redwing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Redwing)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2009, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/28 "2009-10-15T17:21:52Z")
Always unbutton. Less work, don’t have to remove glasses or fix hair after putting on shirt. ---
**Author:** ![Stealth\_Potato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Stealth\_Potato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stealth_Potato)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2009, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/29 "2009-10-15T18:34:43Z")
> [@The\_Controvert](#): > > Instead, I move the front of the collar to my forehead, reach for the back of the collar and pull straight up. Ah, I hadn’t thought to use that approach. I just tried it this way, and it does work, but only with much more hassle and difficulty than just undoing the rest of the buttons in the first place. Not really worth the extra effort. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Controvert](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dec6dc/32.png) [@The\_Controvert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Controvert)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2009, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/30 "2009-10-15T18:47:12Z")
Not that I care if you are wasting time or not, but part of me wonders if this is some sort of mental block. Shirts with buttons “should” be unbuttoned. Shoes with laces “should” be untied. Neckties “should” be undone when removed. Do you avoid owning any shirts without a complete line of buttons? Otherwise, when you slip those on, aren’t you experiencing undue “hassle”, “difficulty” and “extra effort”? ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2009, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/31 "2009-10-15T19:04:07Z")
> [@The\_Controvert](#): > > Not that I care if you are wasting time or not, but part of me wonders if this is some sort of mental block. Shirts with buttons “should” be unbuttoned. Shoes with laces “should” be untied. Neckties “should” be undone when removed. Not for me. I do not lace my shoes because I don’t feel like it. I usually tuck them into my sneakers, which works just fine and is easier than tying my shoes. It is actually difficult for me to remove a non-stretchy shirt without first unbuttoning it perhaps, as several have mentioned, because fitted shirts and lady parts do not allow easily for doing so. > [@](#): > > Do you avoid owning any shirts without a complete line of buttons? Gods, yes. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2009, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/32 "2009-10-15T19:37:14Z")
> [@The\_Controvert](#): > > Neckties “should” be undone when removed. Damn right they should. You’re seriously screwing up your ties if you leave them knotted. ---
**Author:** ![Crowbar\_of\_Irony\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f08c70/32.png) [@Crowbar\_of\_Irony\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crowbar_of_Irony_3)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2009, 8:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/33 "2009-10-16T08:17:50Z")
I don’t think I can pull any shirt off me without first unbuttoning it; I risk all the buttons popping or something. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2009, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/34 "2009-10-16T17:40:48Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > I wonder how many people who always unbutton their shirts for removal are female. Like the other broads around here, I have boobs and wear fitted shirts. To be able to lift a shirt off over the twins without first unbuttoning is just not gonna happen. Dang it! We need a boob alert for this board. I went five whole minutes with out thinking about boobs then **MOL** fucks it up for me. So what do you say guys? **BTA** = **B** oob **T** alk **A** head? ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2009, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/35 "2009-10-17T15:31:00Z")
I’m a man. I can pull a shirt off with only a button or two undone at the top, and I have done this, but only once or twice. I find it far more convenient to unbutton and remove a shirt conventionally. Similarly, I untie my shoes before taking them off, as I normally wear high-tops, which can’t be kicked off anyway. Lower-cut shoes might get kicked off if I’m feeling lazy, but I would never try to slip them on again. I like my shoes tight, and prefer to re-tie them every time. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2009, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/36 "2009-10-19T03:58:43Z")
For me, the problem isn’t the taking it off, but that putting it back on takes longer. I find I spend more time debunching them after I put them on then I would if I just buttoned them up. Plus, I can take them off without messing up my hair, making switching from dressy to casual easier. As for the shoes, the time problem is the same, in that I can’t wear my shoes loose, so they need to be freshly tied. But I do usually take them off without untying them, as I can do that while using my hands to do something else. I just wind up either untying them before I put them on again, or if they are particularly loose, slipping them on and then untying and retying them (which is actually slightly easier). ---
**Author:** ![zweisamkeit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zweisamkeit/32/4360_2.png) [@zweisamkeit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zweisamkeit)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2009, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/37 "2009-10-19T21:31:50Z")
> [@The\_Controvert](#): > > I did a test with a non-stretchy dress shirt. The shoulder seam was less than an inch down the arm, but maybe that’s too “loose”. To compensate, I gathered up all excess fabric in the torso into a ball, making the shirt skin-tight. I am still able to easily slip the shirt on and off. > > Now for some quid pro quo. When you lay your shirt flat, are the torso sides straight lines or bulgy? > > i.e. are they: > > ```auto > > | | > | | > | | > > or > > | | > ( ) > | | > > ``` > > I’ve never seen any shirt like the second. Also, has the “put the collar on forehead and pull straight up” technique actually failed for you, or are you just afraid to try new things? As I said before, I’m a chick with boobs. I wouldn’t be caught dead with button down shirts that bulged out. Talk about making my awesome figure look like a beached whale! My shirts are fitted so I really can’t take a shirt off without unbuttoning it (or at least unbuttoning several buttons, at which point, just unbutton the last couple anyway). But my opinion is the same for menswear anyway. And your shoulder seams are too broad. The seams should actually be on your shoulders. That small detail seriously will make a huge difference in how your shirts look on you. ---
**Author:** ![congodwarf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@congodwarf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/congodwarf)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/38 "2009-10-20T01:56:02Z")
I have very few button shirts. My chest is too big for them to fit properly if fitted, and look stupid when they’re baggy. But, I do have one shirt. I’ve had it for 13 years (since I was 16) and I’ve unbuttoned it, maybe, 5 times. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837/39 "2009-10-20T02:07:59Z")
On the shoes question, what I do is the first time I put them on, I tie them normally. Then, I feed the ends through the extra lace-holes at the top of the row, and put an overhand knot in each so they won’t pull back through. This accomplishes a few things: First, since the loose ends themselves form loops, there’s less hang-down, and less accidentally untying shoes from stepping on one of the laces or the like. Second, it means that the overhand part of the shoelace knot never gets untied, so they’re always tied the same way, which makes it easier for me to do a square-knot-on-a-double-bight when I’m putting my shoes on on autopilot when I’m half awake, rather than accidentally doing a granny-knot-on-a-double-bight. The tightness at which I find shoelaces comfortable would make it very difficult to take them off without untying, and practically impossible to put them back on. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-unbuttoning-a-shirt/513837.md?page=1)