Comments on: Espionage for better sizing pt.2

By: Shelly

Shelly — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 15:49:44 +0000

I feel sorry for your lack of commentary, so here goes. I appreciate this topic as I am working on developing my own design company and the proper way to go about creating sizes and grades is rather foreign to me. I thank you for the time you put into this and other articles. I’m in the process of reading them all.

Best of luck with the rest.

By: Fashion Incubator » Blog Archive » Things you must know if you have a clothing line: garment measuring

Tue, 08 Mar 2011 00:03:29 +0000

[...] Before I go on, do not, I repeat, do not list specifics of rise or flat across measures (as this firm did) for three reasons. First, what consumer is going to have the means to measure this point or know it off hand? They’d have to grab a pair of pants they already had and measure it as a point of comparison. And since it would invariably differ, they’d have to put the pants on and pinch up any excess (or mentally add to it) to see if it is commensurate to fit their bodies. And that’s assuming they have a tape and the time. Most people don’t really know their measurements and if they do, research shows that they lie about them. The best option is to use espionage for better sizing (pt.2). [...]

By: Seth Meyerink-Griffin

Seth Meyerink-Griffin — Sun, 26 Dec 2010 15:31:29 +0000

You really, really make pattern CAD software (…and digitizing table, and plotter…) sound very desirable… Brother, can you spare $50K?

I know that if you are using certain software solutions for patterning you can send swatches in for testing to determine shrink rates, input the values into the program, and it will automatically correct the pattern for the shrink rates. How accurate is this, in your experience? Can you also request variations in washing (i.e., requesting multiple hot wash/dry cycles vs. multiple cold wash/air dry to get an idea of variations and worst-case-scenario in garment care), or is that going too far?

When I’m sewing for myself/friends, I usually wash/dry my washable yardage on hot before cutting to deal with shrinkage. How practical is this in terms of production? Clearly it will cost more.

By: Elizabeth

Elizabeth — Sat, 17 Feb 2007 00:39:15 +0000

Doesn’t sizing up (or down) uniformly across the measurements of a garment create fit problems at the outer ends of the spectrum? Some proportions shift differently than that from a size 4 to a size 14. I’m thinking specifically of underarm and armhole measurements on the size 14 or 16 end. So that while a woman might find a garment that fits in the bust and waist, the armhole comes halfway down her rib cage. Or, in a sleeveless garment, the armhole shows half of the side of the bra or worse flares out sharply from the underbust measurement – but not at the bust, where she needs it – from her side, under the arm. How do you correct for those problems – I’m thinking simply adding inches from your size 8 doesn’t do the trick to achieve good fit at the “outer limits.” This is also a problem with a B cup standard in commercial patterns – a 5′1″ inch 105 pound woman with a B cup looks significantly different than a 5′9″ 165 pound woman with a B cup – the proportions are not at all the same.

By: noel alvarez

noel alvarez — Tue, 13 Feb 2007 16:35:49 +0000

Thank you so much Colleen! You gave me a very clear picture of how things work in the real world – since I do all of my own designing, patternmaking and sewing myself (on weekends:)) I always wondered about all of the nuts and bolts of how a garment is produced in the real world. Kathleen’s book helped clear alot of that up, but it is also interesting to hear experiences directly from people who have worked in these areas – such as yourself.

I wish there were a video of the different phases of manufacturing; from patternmaking to production etc. I find it fascinating. For now, I’ll just trudge away at my dressform. Thanks again for sharing your experience and thanks for your patience!

By: Colleen

Colleen — Tue, 13 Feb 2007 16:13:53 +0000

Yes, Noel, you understand perfectly! The factory is aiming to meet garment spec within tolerance. The tolerance range (-1/2″; +3/4″, for example) is agreed to prior to production.

When production begins, the retailer often sends someone to measure garments and inspect quality before the finished garments ship to the warehouse (usually the Technical Designer). This person will work alongside factory QA inspectors to insure that everyone is measuring and evaluating quality the same way. This practice helps correct any errors before production is too far along.

Once production is underway, there is a statistical method used to select a percentage of garments to meausure. If these garments pass, great; if not, the QC Inspectors pull more garments to check. Oops – If there are extensive problems, the Product Development teams (Merchant, Designer and TD) and often their managers evaluate the problem and decide how to proceed (extend tolerances, re-size, etc).

Yes, a tolerance to the 1/8″ is difficult to measure and gain consensus on. Especially on an elastic, pull-on skirt!

By: Noel Alvarez

Noel Alvarez — Tue, 13 Feb 2007 14:55:38 +0000

Thank you for the clarification Colleen. Now I can picture it! I will be so embarrassed if I still don’t get it, but are you saying that when the skirt is made, the finished waistband must be measured by hand, and the relaxed elastic waistband must meet the finished spec within 1/2″ smaller or 7/8″ larger? Why can’t it be just + or -1/2″ of the 24″? Or, like you said, -1/2″, +3/4″? This is what you are describing, right? rounding to the nearest quarter inch? sounds cleaner.

And am I understanding this correctly, that a person is responsible for checking the finished garment(s) against the spec? Are ALL of the garments checked, or just one from a batch or is it random? And is the 1/8″ also an issue because it’s easier/quicker/more accurate for the quality control person’s eye to see the 1/4 ” intervals on the measuring tape rather than the 1/8″ intervals? I apologize if I am sounding so ignorant, but I have not worked in a real production setting, so I crave these nitty gritty details!

thanks again

By: Kathleen

Kathleen — Mon, 12 Feb 2007 17:49:31 +0000

Has anyone ever heard this before? I know this .7 is not being used for commercial apparel made today. Tragically, I can affirm it's rarely being used. Many of us can find things to fit our full hip but the waistlines gape. It's worse if you're slender because it's hard to find small misses sizes (0-4), but easier to find slender juniors sizes but then juniors aren't shapely with that differencial. The torso portion of pants are almost tube-shaped, barely cinching in at the waist. I've written about this ratio several times before, just two of the entries are History of Women's sizing pt.2 and The Zen of the Survival of the Prettiest

By: Tonya

Tonya — Mon, 12 Feb 2007 17:14:42 +0000

Speaking of measurements, I was watching tv and a plastic surgeon commented that studies have been done that show that women who have a .7 ratio waist to hip are thought to be most desirable. He further stated that the .7 ratio was more important than whether she was a size 6 or 16. Doing the math that means that a women with a 24″ waist, her hips should be 34.29″ and for a women with a 38″ waist the hip should be 54″. Has anyone ever heard this before? I know this .7 is not being used for commercial apparel made today.

By: colleen

colleen — Sat, 10 Feb 2007 01:41:59 +0000

Sorry my post wasn’t clear.

Noel asked, “OK – now I’m officially confused. Colleen, can you expand a little on your example of the size 8 skirt tolerance? I am trying to visualize a size 8 skirt with a natural waist measurement of 24″ (is this an elastic waistband?). My 7 year old has a 24″ waist, so I’m missing something in the paragraph”

Yes, it’s a pull-on skirt w/ an elastic waist.

Noel asked, “And when you mention the “1/8″ tolerance in the last paragraph, do you mean that the “committee” agreed that if a customer bought their size 8 unwashed skirt, that the waistline would only shrink 1/8″ after laundering?

No, I was complaining that the committee agreed to tolerance’s to the 1/8″ when I would have prefered rounding to 1/4″. For example, where they wanted +7/8″ I would have prefered +3/4″ or +1″. When the specs are precise to w/in 1/8″ it makes auditing the final garments more difficult. Especially when the garment is a garment washed, woven, pull-on skirt! In my humble opinion.

Hope this clarifies.