Recently I have been getting into larger chest pockets. When I order a custom shirt, as of late, I have been ordering it with an enlarged chest pocket. It sounds like such a strange thing to get into. It is niche, it is super specific, it isn't the most important thing in the world, but if you spend years in a style-world, you start to focus on different more specific elements. Thusly, we have the large pocket discussion.
The pocket in this photo is a larger pocket. This is a custom popover from Ratio Clothing. A large flap pocket on a pink popover is a real heavy duty shirt. Talk about niche. I love the large pocket for a few reasons. I genuinely use the front pocket on my shirts. I keep a pad of paper and a mechanical pencil in it. If the pocket is a bit larger it gives more room. This is a practical reason.
There is of course an aesthetic reason as well. The larger pocket just feels heavier, it feels more adult, it feels more traditional and more classic. It is strange because although it feels more classic, the past wasn't only made up of shirts with large pockets. In the past there were actually a lot of pockets on shirts that were not so large, they were small. There were also eras in which the OCBD from Brooks Brothers didn't have a pocket. Nevertheless, there is also a certain image from the past of a larger pocket. It isn't gigantic, it isn't absurd in size, it is just a bit heftier. It is a sign practical use and not just adornment for the sake of appearances.
There is just something that feels heavier, more classic, more hardcore, more work-day about a larger pocket. It is hard to describe, words don't really work so well, it is more of a feeling. It is just maybe an inch or two larger on the side and the bottom, yet that inch or two does a lot of work. Like the lowering of the second button, it really does push the feeling around. There is a different feeling you get, even if you can't pinpoint it. Like the feeling of a full collar, a traditional roomy fit - it just feels like more. You can feel it, its essence, more. Is it the most important thing? No. Is it noticeable like a bright flashing sign? No. Is a smaller pocket worthless? No. Is there, however, something more useable, heavier and simply "more" about a larger pocket? Absolutely.