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| Found on Google.de |
Quite a while ago now, I've posted about my endeavours to draft a pattern for a jersey shirt and make the adjustments necessary to find the perfect pattern for my shape. I also included a bit on why normal t-shirts/clothes don't fit me really well. I also made jeans, that fit me well, but didn't trust the pattern I graded, because it looked so curvy... And when in shops, I try on beautiful things - just to look at myself in disbelief, and see how they don't fit. Or how jeans are uncomfortable and don't fit.
So I thought I'd write a bit about off the rack clothing. And body shapes. Basically, if you don't have the measurements that the manufacturer uses to make these clothes, they are not going to fit you perfectly well. And whose body is exactly what the manufacturers make things for?
When designing a garment, manufacturers also take into account how to get the maximum amount of shirts or jeans or whatever else from the given amount of fabric, to cut economical, to make it "sort-of-fit" a majority. So basically we are walking around in garments, that just "sort-of" fit. And that might sacrifice fit and design to a more econamical use of fabric.
And because that's all we get out there, we don't even notice the difference. Just sometimes a manufacturer will have measurements that approximate our own a bit more while another one caters more for another shape. Or it is just chance. I don't know.
I find getting clothes that fit me, really difficult. Jeans are a nightmare. Shirts acceptable but a good fit is different, they usually crawl up. Dresses are usually too long in themselves and if the top fits the hip usually doesn't or the waist is where my hip is, ...
Anyway, I found these sizing charts (international) really interesting, which also explain, why most clothes can't fit. Because a sizing chart for a whole nation - how likely is that going to fit me?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clothing_sizes
Even if you buy a pattern, you will find, you will have to make a lot of adjustments to achieve a good fit. So why not draft a pattern from scratch, which is at least as close to you own body as it can get and then work on those base patterns until they are perfect. You will learn about your body, about how clothes are constructed and understanding this will make it easier to alterate patterns and/or clothing in the future to make them fit better.
Let me tell you a bit about my own unique body shape.
I am small. I have slim shoulders, a slim chest, smallish boobs, a very slim waist and relatively wide hips and a round bum. I have a sway back and a little bit of a belly (which is due to the fact that I have two gorgeous daughter and my waist circumference in pregnancy was more than 100cms, I am still in awe, how the body manages all those changes!). I have slightly sloping shoulders (which I noticed gets a lot better when I do yoga regularly...)
I have a relatively high waist, an upper body that is slightly on the short side (I suppose being smaller, it's the normal length...), and thus a relatively long hip. I also have strong calfs. And small feet.
In numbers (all in centimeters, just the important ones)
I am 159cms tall.
shoulder width 10cm
Bust 86
Underbust 72
waist 66
hips 102
hip point 27
shoe size EU 35-36 (very important measurement for sewing...) :)
If you compare this to Standard German clothes ... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clothing_sizes#Germanic_sizes_(DE/AT/NL/SE/DK)
I am all over the size chart, from 36 to 42 (although I should say 18-22, because I need short sizes) (US size 6 and 10 - but standard measurement differ here...). Drama. Nothing fits, of course not.
Since I started making clothes, I've come more and more to the point, where I found it was SO much more comfortable to make my own clothes. Yes, it is rather costly (or is it? how much would you have to spend on made-to-measure clothes these days...), yes, it takes a lot of time... but I enjoy the process and I enjoy the result. It feels like a full circle, I started making my first "own" clothes in 2001 (dress up) - made my wedding dress - continued with historical clothes, got more into fitting and clothes constructions - until I've finally arrived at making "modern" clothes for every day life.
It is such an enjoyable thing to make and wear clothes, that really fit. That are just completely "me".
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