How to Deal with a Tailor and Choose the Best Fabric for a Dishdasha or Thobe?

With winter around the corner, sometimes visiting the tailor to get a dishdasha or thobe can become a difficult encounter because you might not be sure what he or she is saying most of the time. The tailor might mention lots of phrases that you have never heard or even discuss with you absurd sewing words that make you question why are you here in the first place. Regardless of what the tailor is saying, it’s best to be aware of the basics before visiting the tailor, whether the tailor is of Indian, Pakistani, Egyptian, African, or Nepali descent. So here are some basic terms to know when you visit a tailor for a dishdasha or thobe in the Middle East.

As soon as you walk through the door of a tailor in the GCC and request a dishdasha also called a thobe or kandora in some areas, they are going to request fabric from you or you may want to purchase fabric from their store or buy textiles from a fabric shop. Before doing so, put in mind that tailors nowadays have a lot of undone tailoring work and they may take more than 2 weeks to tailor a dishdasha, so ask how long will it take to finish before proceeding to choose the fabric. When choosing the fabric for a thobe, please put in mind the season you are going to wear the thobe. For the winter, we have seen that most fabric weights are between 175 to 250 GSM (grams per square meter).

A typical adult will require 3.5 meters or 4.0 yards of fabric, while a taller individual will need 4.0 meters or 5.0 yards of fabric. A child may only need 2.0 meters or 3.0 yards of fabric, depending on his age and height. You must be aware that the required dishdasha fabric length will vary if the width of the fabric is less than 1.5 meters. 

You may find that some fabric rolls are 1.0 meter wide, which means you will likely require double the fabric length to the numbers mentioned above. A fabric roll with a length of more than 1.5 meters may reduce the amount of fabric needed by approximately 20%, depending on your overall height. We use a simple fabric length calculator that multiplies 2.0 by the height of an individual, which gives us an overview of how much fabric that individual will require.

Now for the technical terms you may hear from a tailor, written based on the most common phrases for tailoring a dishdasha. A “double line” or “single line” refers to the side stitching you see on a dishdasha. The “single line” is typically for slim or thin individuals, while a “double line” are for individuals who want to cover their belly or conceal their body figure. A “visible” or “hidden” placket which is what lies in front of the front buttons is just based on your preference. 

A “double” or “single” top collar button is also a fashion statement that has no affect on the dishdasha whatsoever, and this is typically followed by a “snap” button question that’s placed behind the top collar button, if requested. A “mandarin” or “spread” collar is based on your fashion preference, where most individuals are choosing the “mandarin” style since its quite common in Kuwait while the “spread” collar is more common in Saudi Arabia and Qatar. The stiffer collar is typically chosen for “spread” collars, which is made by fusible interlining. The fusible interlining is a thin polyester fabric with a sticky surface that binds to a fabric via applied heat, ranging from 150 to 250 degrees Celsius for a duration not exceeding 30 seconds.

When it comes to the side pockets, many of them may recommend you place a “phone pocket” which is an additional inner pocket designed to hold a phone. Some tailors may alter the side pocket design as you please, whether rounded or rectangular. The top pocket design may also be based on a curved or squared bottom, some tailors may ask whether you request a “pen sleeve” within the top pocket or not. One common thing you may hear is the tailor asking whether you want to have the sleeves be “cuffed” or “normal” on the ends, where the “cuffed” sleeves have a button hole for cufflinks, while the other sleeve does not.

Another basic phrase you will likely hear is whether you want “hand stitched” or “machine stitched” features, that mainly apply for the sleeve cuffs, dishdasha bottom, and front placket of the dishdasha. You must put in mind that “hand stitched” is more expensive because it takes more time to complete. Why do people choose “hand stitched” is still a mystery to me, since the likelihood of a sewing error is more likely, however many individuals prefer the “hand stitching” method because it looks more traditional. The more unlikely terms you may hear is a “break” which is a single line at the front of the dishdasha underneath the button placket and a double line behind the dishdasha starting from the top shoulder and diminishing within the middle of the back, which is just a design feature and has no impact on the dishdasha performance, but may impact how you iron the dishdasha.

When it comes to the tailor taking your measurements, make sure to not look down and be relaxed when he is measuring your body. A relaxed fit is the best fit as most fabrics shrink with washing or laundry and being comfortable is what is most important. However you might find some individuals may prefer a slim fit to showcase their weight lifting bodies or to display their muscles, which is quite ridiculous, since its not comfortable to wear most of the time. Lastly, remember that tailors make mistakes just like everyone else and its recommended to wear the dishdasha or thobe to see whether the thobe is satisfactory to your requests. If the dishdasha is fitting properly that is great to hear, if not communicate with your tailor your concerns or doubts, so they can adjust the thobe and get accustomed to your custom preferences.