Kamakura Shirts Vintage Ivy vs Ametora: Which Fit Should You Choose?

At Kamakura Shirts, Vintage Ivy and Ametora are two fits from the Kamakura Classics line, both rooted in traditional American menswear. Vintage Ivy, designed with illustrator Graham Marsh, recreates the shirt seen on American college campuses in the 1960s: a regular, slightly tapered body and a soft 3-inch button-down collar. Ametora recreates the dress shirt of 1950s Madison Avenue, with the looser body of that era. According to the official charts, in the same collar size both fits share the same neck, sleeve and length. Only the body changes: Ametora is clearly wider and straighter. Vintage Ivy suits a clean look, tucked in or not. Ametora suits anyone after more room, or a dress shirt worn with a jacket and tie.

Every model we carry is in the Kamakura Shirts collection.

• Vintage Ivy: the 1960s Ivy shirt, short button-down collar, slightly tapered body.
• Ametora: the 1950s American shirt, a wider and straighter body in the same collar size.

Left, the Vintage Ivy University Stripe. Right, the blue Ametora Straight Collar. Same model, same framing, same trousers.

[TO CONFIRM IN STORE] Size worn by the model in each of these photos.

Vintage Ivy vs Ametora: the differences at a glance

Vintage Ivy vs Ametora: the key difference

The difference between Vintage Ivy and Ametora lies in the body of the shirt, not the collar or sleeves. In Kamakura's official charts, in the same collar size, both fits share the same neck, sleeve and length. Ametora, however, gives around 10 cm more chest and 12.7 cm more waist, on a slightly narrower yoke. Vintage Ivy is the clean, slightly tapered Ivy shirt; Ametora is the fuller, straighter American shirt of the 1950s.

Vintage Ivy vs Ametora: the fit differences in figures

The comparison uses size 15½, which is M at AURA. Both official charts use the same collar sizes and the same measuring method, so the values can be compared directly.

The pattern holds across the whole chart, from 14 to 17½: chest +10.1 to +10.2 cm, waist +12.5 to +12.7 cm, yoke −1.2 to −1.3 cm, with identical neck, sleeve and length. The gap between chest and waist sums up the difference in line: around 10 cm on the Vintage Ivy, 7.6 cm on the Ametora. Vintage Ivy narrows towards the waist; Ametora falls straighter. Ametora is not simply a Vintage Ivy cut larger: it is a different pattern, wider in the body on slightly narrower shoulders.

In profile, same model: Vintage Ivy on the left, Ametora on the right.

The Kamakura Shirts Vintage Ivy fit

Vintage Ivy was designed with Graham Marsh, illustrator and co-author of The Ivy Look. Kamakura describes it as the shirt found on American college campuses in the 1960s. The body is regular and slightly tapered, with a box pleat at the back. The button-down collar, which Kamakura describes as short and soft, is 3 inches long with a soft roll. It carries the two classic details of the genre: a back collar button and a locker loop. The cuffs are pleated and the six front buttons are takase shell.

Kamakura states that Vintage Ivy shirts are pre-washed for a softer hand and to limit further shrinkage. The fit works tucked in or out, and it is the more versatile of the two.

The 3-inch button-down collar of the Vintage Ivy, and the straight collar of the Ametora worn with a tie.

At AURA, the Vintage Ivy comes in:

• blue University Stripe, striped oxford
• Navy Oxford
• Pink Oxford
• Blue Oxford
• White Oxford
• blue Graph Check Poplin, small-check poplin
• Japanese Denim 7oz, dark indigo Japanese denim
• Blue OX Straight, the same blue oxford base with a 2¾-inch straight point collar with stays, inspired by JFK

The Kamakura Shirts Ametora fit

Ametora is Japanese slang for American traditional, the East Coast collegiate style that shaped Japanese menswear in the 1960s. Kamakura presents the Ametora fit as a recreation of the dress shirts seen on Madison Avenue in the 1950s, with the looser body of that era. The line is exclusive to the brand's Global Online Store and is not sold in Japan.

At AURA, the Ametora comes as the Straight Collar: a straight point collar in the spirit of JFK's shirts, 80/2 cotton selvedge poplin woven on traditional looms, front placket, button cuffs and a chest pocket. Kamakura designed it for an Ivy suit or a blazer. Kamakura also makes button-down Ametora shirts, with a longer 3.5-inch collar, but AURA does not stock them.

• Ametora Straight Collar in white
• Ametora Straight Collar in blue

Vintage Ivy or Ametora: which should you choose?

Choose Vintage Ivy if…

• you want a button-down shirt with a short, soft collar;
• you prefer a line that narrows towards the waist, tucked or untucked;
• you mostly wear your shirts without a tie;
• you want a choice of fabrics: oxford, poplin, denim.

Choose Ametora if…

• you want a straight-collar dress shirt for a jacket and tie;
• you find the Vintage Ivy too close in the chest or waist;
• you want to keep your collar size while gaining around 10 cm in the chest;
• you like a straight drape, close to 1950s American shirts.

How does Kamakura Shirts sizing work?

Kamakura sizes its shirts by collar, in inches: from 14 to 17½, in half sizes. The number is the neck measurement: 15½ equals a 40.6 cm neck in the official chart. At AURA, sizes S, M, L and XL correspond to the manufacturer's collar sizes 14½, 15½, 16½ and 17½. Whole sizes (14, 15, 16, 17) exist at Kamakura but are not stocked at AURA.

Collar size says nothing about the volume of the shirt. In the same collar size, an Ametora is around 10 cm wider in the chest than a Vintage Ivy. Kamakura recommends choosing a shirt whose chest is about 15 cm larger than your body chest measurement, within a range of 12 to 18 cm.

An example, calculated from the official charts: for a 100 cm body chest, the target is about 115 cm. That points to a Vintage Ivy in 15 or 15½, but an Ametora in 14 or 14½. On the Ametora, following the chest alone therefore means going down a size, which also shortens the collar and sleeves. For a straight-collar Ametora worn buttoned with a tie, the neck measurement should decide first.

If you are buying remotely, from the UK or elsewhere in Europe, the most reliable approach is to compare with a shirt you already wear. Lay it flat, measure pit to pit below the armholes, the back length and the sleeve from the centre back, then compare with the charts below. The neck size in cm in the Kamakura chart can be compared directly with the labels on your own shirts.

Reference measurements: Kamakura Vintage Ivy

Measurements provided by Kamakura Shirts for the Vintage Ivy fit, in centimetres. These are garment measurements. Kamakura method: neck measured on the body; sleeve taken at the back from the centre of the collar base, along the yoke, then from the shoulder down to the edge of the cuff; pit to pit flat, below the armholes; waist flat at the narrowest point, multiplied by two; yoke (shoulder width) from the shoulder seam to the centre back of the collar base, multiplied by two; length at the back, from the centre of the collar to the hem. Chest is given as a circumference by Kamakura. The brand notes that pit to pit multiplied by two does not exactly give the chest on shirts with a back box pleat, so both values are shown as supplied, with no conversion. Stated tolerance: 2%.

Reference measurements: Kamakura Ametora

Measurements provided by Kamakura Shirts for the Ametora fit (the chart used for the Kamakura Classics Ametora models, including the Ametora Straight Collar), in centimetres, using the same method as the Vintage Ivy.

[TO MEASURE IN STORE] Vintage Ivy size M (15½), University Stripe or Navy Oxford, and Ametora Straight Collar size M (15½), Kamakura method for both: pit to pit flat below the armholes; waist width flat at the narrowest point; yoke width, shoulder seam to shoulder seam; back length, collar centre to hem; sleeve, centre back at the collar base to the edge of the cuff. Additional AURA measurements: collar point length and collar band height on each model. Record flat widths without multiplying.

Which Kamakura suits your wardrobe?

With raw denim or chinos

The Vintage Ivy in oxford, button-down worn open at the neck. The most natural use of the fit, tucked or untucked.

With wide trousers

The Ametora balances a wide leg better thanks to its straighter body. A Vintage Ivy gives a closer line through the chest.

With a jacket and tie

The Ametora Straight Collar, designed by Kamakura for the Ivy suit and the blazer. On the Vintage Ivy side, the Blue OX Straight with its stayed straight collar does the same job in a closer fit.

[PHOTO TO PRODUCE] Vintage Ivy and Ametora in size M, same model, same framing, same trousers: front, profile, back, collar open, collar closed. Close-ups: Vintage Ivy button-down collar roll, Ametora straight collar, back box pleat, fabric.

Kamakura Shirts in brief

Kamakura Shirts was founded in 1993 in Kamakura, Japan, by Yoshio and Tamiko Sadasue. Both had worked at VAN Jacket, the brand that introduced Ivy League style to Japan in the 1960s and 70s. Vintage Ivy and Ametora extend that heritage directly: one through the 1960s campus shirt, the other through the fuller American shirt of the decade before. Kamakura Shirts is part of our selection of Japanese brands.

Kamakura Shirts available at AURA

These are the shirts currently online. Stock moves quickly, especially in the middle sizes: visit the Kamakura Shirts collection for the up-to-date selection.

Vintage Ivy

• Vintage Ivy University Stripe Blue
• Vintage Ivy Navy Oxford
• Vintage Ivy Pink Oxford
• Vintage Ivy Blue Oxford
• Vintage Ivy White Oxford
• Vintage Ivy Graph Check Poplin Blue
• Vintage Ivy Japanese Denim 7oz Dark Blue
• Vintage Ivy Blue OX Straight

Ametora

• Ametora Straight Collar Selvedge Poplin White
• Ametora Straight Collar Selvedge Poplin Blue

The collection also includes the Open Collar Tencel Shirt, an open-collar shirt sized S, M, L and XL with its own chart, and the Take Ivy trousers. All of these shirts are made in Japan. You can also try them on in our store in Rennes.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Vintage Ivy and Ametora?

The volume of the body. In the same collar size, the official charts give the same neck, sleeve and length, but the Ametora is around 10 cm wider in the chest and 12.7 cm wider at the waist. Vintage Ivy is slightly tapered, Ametora straight.

How does Kamakura Shirts sizing work?

By collar, in inches, from 14 to 17½. The volume then depends on the fit: Vintage Ivy and Ametora do not have the same chest in the same size. Compare garment measurements rather than the label alone.

Which Kamakura size is a medium?

At AURA, M corresponds to the manufacturer's collar size 15½, a 40.6 cm neck. The chest is 116.8 cm on the Vintage Ivy and 127 cm on the Ametora.

What does 15½ mean at Kamakura Shirts?

It is the neck size in inches. According to the official chart, a 15½ corresponds to a 40.6 cm neck.

Does Kamakura Shirts run small?

It depends on the fit. Kamakura recommends a shirt chest about 15 cm larger than your body chest. Check that value in the chart for the fit you choose.

Which Kamakura fit is the roomiest?

Of the two, the Ametora: around 10 cm more chest than the Vintage Ivy in the same collar size.

Which Kamakura oxford shirt should I choose?

At AURA, the oxfords are Vintage Ivy: Navy, Pink, Blue, White, University Stripe, and the straight-collar Blue OX Straight. The Ametora shirts at AURA are in selvedge poplin.

Where can I buy Kamakura Shirts in Europe?

At AURA, in our store in Rennes and online at aura-estore.com, with delivery across France and Europe.