Why Is It So Hard To Find Clothes To Fit?

I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t making my own clothes. When I was only 12 years old my grandmother gifted me her mother’s Singer Sewing machine. It was possibly this that defined my path in the fashion industry. I studied at Central Saint Martin’s then worked as a designer in industry before setting up my own label. I discovered there were almost no resources for new labels to size and grade their clothing ranges, relying on factories to create the size range. 

Moving forward in 2006 I went to work in Shanghai, China as a university teacher. Teaching technical classes was my passion, but students found it hard to understand the complexities of pattern cutting, so I used to create technical illustrations to help them. In 2013 I published my first book, ‘A Technical Foundation, Women’s Wear Pattern Cutting’. This was, in essence, formatting all my handouts into a book. All other pattern cutting books at the time showed how to make specific garments, not how to make blocks from measurements. So there my book was born, how to create different blocks from anthropometric body measurements.

Teaching made to measure in classes enabled students to really start to understand fit and how anthropometric body data is translated into a 2D garment block. This was way over and above curriculum and very difficult at times, however, the end results were worth it when students knew how to make something to their own body size. Unfortunately, I found many teachers provided garment blocks to students so the understanding of not only making a block from measurements but also fitting to different figure shapes was limited. In 2014 I moved to Hong Kong to work at Hong Kong Polytechnic University and that is where my doctorate degree started. I wanted to really understand why there was such a big problem with the sizing of clothing and try to find a solution for the masses.

Why is there a problem with the fit of clothing for women?

I discovered the problem of the sizing of clothing began in the 1950s, when female fashion sizing was standardised after the first anthropometric study into body sizes. Two thirds of women were outside what was considered the norm – but those statistics were ignored in favour of profit. It’s an issue that has since been exacerbated by our changing bodies: in 1957, the typical western woman was 157cm tall, weighed 61kg, and was a British size 12 (EU size 40); today, women average 165cm in height, weigh 70kg, and are a dress size 16 (EU size 44).

Over the past decade, a lot of new technology evolved in bra construction, lifting, shaping, and increasing bust size, but when every single item of clothing sold on the high street is still cut to a standard B-Cup, be a UK size 10 or 28, there’s clearly a growing issue.

As part of my doctorate research, I analysed 1,261 women’s body scan measurements provided by Manchester Metropolitan University. I began by clustering the data into a size range based on the hip girth. This data was analysed against forty-seven retailers’ published online size chart measurements, the bustline, waistline and hipline. An interesting development was that I downloaded the retailers’ online measurements in 2015 at the start of my doctorate journey, and again at the end in 2020 and discovered multiple retailers had changed their measurements for the same body size.

One of the key analyses I performed for my study was based on bra cup sizing, where three different clustering techniques were conducted. Statistics showed 27.31% of women measure a D cup bra size, with a total 80.88% a C cup or larger. The findings showed that only 19 per cent of women in my study fitted the bust, waist and hip measurements of high street clothing.

My research continued with pattern cutting theory and evolution, referring a lot back to a book published in 1984 by Kunick, whose publication was an analysis of the 1950’s British Anthropometric survey. I analysed in total nine publications, on how they develop a bodice block and found that only three publications develop a garment block to the hipline, compared to the other six that stop at the waistline. This would not create top body garments as most fall below the waistline.

In industry all clothes are created from a garment block, which has been developed from measurements, a standardised starting point. Patterns are then developed from blocks: detailed and customised to include design elements. However, the majority of garment blocks are created from fitting models, young women who fit an outdated industry standard. They’re usually in their early 20s, a standard size 12 and always a B cup, so, when you turn these blocks into patterns for the size range, you simply get a scaled-up B cup in every piece of clothing.  Pattern cutting is the foundation of garment creation. It involves designing the blueprint of a garment, ensuring it fits well and looks appealing. A well-drafted pattern ensures that the final garment fits perfectly. However, the starting point, the garment block created from body measurements, often fails this process of creation.

Developing a better approach to fit

Through multiple experiments I created a pattern cutting framework to add bust cup sizes into each body size. This was then professional fit tested under the PhD study and proved to fit 79% of women.This led to the creation of the Body and Cup Sizing System (BCSizing), a digital solution designed to help brands produce garments that accommodate a wider range of body shapes.  

A retailer can now create a shirt, dress, or top in any clothing size and any bust size. So rather than standardising every garment to a B cup users can instantly create a block and pattern for a shirt in a size 8 double F, a size 16 A cup, or even a size 40 C cup. The beauty of the BCSizing system is retailers can select the size range suitable for their consumer profiles and size. Not every garment needs all bust cup sizes integrated, but fitted garments do. BCSizing accommodates that, with every size stored in the library, retailers can use the size range suitable for the garment. As the first pattern is created digitally, any fit amendments are as quick as a few clicks in the system. Grading is performed block to block, a revolutionary new way to improve the sizing of clothing compared to current grading rules using X and Y coordinates. 

By working digitally rather than from massive pattern tables, brands can negate space and location constraints. In addition, digital pattern cutting can help reduce returns, which have become a significant issue in the fashion industry: in 2020, $428 billion worth of clothing was returned. While 3D technology has transformed preproduction by working with model size avatars, it does not impact the full-size range used in mass production. Despite digital advancements, the core issue of inconsistent clothing fit remains unresolved. A more integrated approach to garment sizing is still needed to bridge the gap between digital advancements and real-world wearability.   

From the first pattern through to mass production, BCSizing hopes to take the whole process of clothing production digital, not only saving time and space, but also improving the fit. For the end consumer, the end goal is to help women find clothing that fits their diverse figure shapes. For fashion brands, to facilitate reduced clothing returns by improving garment fit, which in turn enhances their carbon footprint.