Can you stretch a wetsuit?

[Gunrock]

Basically what the title says. Wife tried on a wetsuit with attached hood in the store and it fit fine, but to get one in the color she wanted she had to order it. When the suit finally arrived and she tried it on at home it turned out to be tight in the neck area. I can see her face turning red the moment she squeezes into it. I did a search on trying to stretch neoprene and I didn't find a consensus; I did find some snarky unhelpful comments about losing weight. (BTW wife is petite and hasn't gained any weight so please, don't suggest that.) So the question is, is there any way to stretch the neck area to gain a little more room so she's not feeling choked?

If we were someplace else I might try to find someone who alters wetsuits but we're in Hawaii and to the best of my knowledge that's not an option here.

 

[BoltSnap]

she tried it on at home it turned out to be tight in the neck area. I can see her face turning red the moment she squeezes into it.

I wouldn't use this suit, this is the worst place for the suit to be tight. Feeling "choked" and "face turning red" are bad.

 

[Ski_Lounge]

If it's just a little tight, you can get neoprene to stretch out. I've stretched a tight hood by sticking a soccer ball in it. You can stretch the neck area by sticking it over a hard round surface, like a cylinder. Leave it for a couple days.

It will only stretch a certain amount though. If it's incredibly tight, you might have to consider a different wetsuit.

 

[Brett Hatch]

I'd say your wife is better off giving up on that suit and returning it before trying to stretch it. Go to another shop and try on every suit they have on hand. If you aren't having any luck, custom-made wetsuits are cheaper than they sound -- look for Yamamoto neoprene.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

The other thing you might be able to do is make a vertical slice on the backside of the neck about 4 or 5 inches long and glue in an elongated football shape of neoprene about a half inch or 3/4” wide at the widest point. This will alleviate the tight area.
I know guys who work out a lot on their arms, and their arms get too big for their wetsuit sleeves. So they slice the suit lengthwise right where it’s tight in the bicep area and add in a football shape of neoprene. This trick works and saves a ton of money.
I ordered a custom suit once and the builder had a habit if making the top of the head too round. I would get a big air bubble right at the top of my head, very annoying. So I did the reverse, I removed a football shape of neoprene right where it needed to come out and glued it back together. I solved the problem.
I also used to buy off the rack suits and the ankles to knee were always straight not curved in like they should be. So I don the suit and grab the excess to see how much needs to come out and mark it, then remove an elongated football shape and glue it back together. I also carefully hand stitch the nylon by hand after I do these modifications.