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Measuring guide

How to take your measurements for a pattern

A made-to-measure pattern is only as good as the numbers you give it. The good news: most of them take a minute with a tape measure and a mirror, and you enter them once, into a profile that every model reuses. This page lists every measurement the engine can use, where the tape goes, and how many of the 65 models need it.

Bust circumferenceWaist circumferenceHip circumferenceBack length
The engine drafts every model from a base like this one. The horizontal lines are girths — bust, waist, hip — and they set the width at each level. The vertical arrow is a length: it decides how far down your body those lines fall.

Five rules before you start

  1. 01

    A soft tape, not a metal one

    Use a flexible tailor's tape. Check it against a ruler once: cheap tapes stretch and can be off by a centimetre over a metre.

  2. 02

    Underwear or close-fitting clothes

    Measure over what you will wear under the garment. A thick jumper adds several centimetres you do not want in the pattern.

  3. 03

    Stand naturally

    Feet slightly apart, arms relaxed, breathing normally. Do not pull in your stomach or hold your breath: the pattern would fit the pose, not you.

  4. 04

    Snug, level, not pulling

    The tape should touch the body all the way round, sit level with the floor for girths, and not dent the skin. Slide a finger under it: if it does not fit, the tape is too tight.

  5. 05

    Get help for the back

    Back length, shoulder width and crotch depth are hard to take on yourself. Ask someone to help, or take each one twice and check that the two readings agree; if they do not, take a third and use the middle value. Save the profile and check it again after a few months.

Every measurement, one by one

Measurements are grouped by body area and ordered by how many models need them. The same note appears next to each field when you fill in your profile.

Torso and girths

  • Hip circumference

    Measure around the fullest part of the hips, keeping the tape level.

    56 of 65 models

  • Waist circumference

    Measure around the narrowest part of the torso (waist).

    55 of 65 models

  • Back length

    From the seventh cervical vertebra to the waistline along the spine.

    38 of 65 models

  • Shoulder width

    Back shoulder width: from shoulder point to shoulder point.

    35 of 65 models

  • Bust circumference

    Measure around the fullest part of the bust, keeping the tape level across the centre back and bust apex.

    34 of 65 models

  • Neck circumference

    Around the base of the neck, just above the collarbones.

    34 of 65 models

  • Front length

    From the centre of the front shoulder, over the bust point, down to the waist.

    23 of 65 models

  • Height

    Total body height. Used to automatically calculate proportions of other lengths.

    6 of 65 models

  • Chest

    Chest circumference measured horizontally under the arms, at the fullest point.

    4 of 65 models

  • Bust height

    From the neck point to the bust apex.

    4 of 65 models

  • Bust point distance

    Distance between bust apex points.

    4 of 65 models

  • Head circumference

    Circumference around the temples and above the eyebrows, useful for hoods.

    1 of 65 models

Arms and shoulders

  • Arm length

    Put your hand on your hip so the arm is bent. Measure from the shoulder bone over the elbow to the wrist bone.

    15 of 65 models

  • Wrist circumference

    Loose wrist circumference.

    8 of 65 models

  • Upper arm circumference (biceps)

    Biceps circumference at the fullest point.

    7 of 65 models

  • Armhole circumference (on a garment)

    Measured on a garment, not on your body. Run the tape right around the armhole seam of a top that fits you well — over the shoulder seam and under the arm. This is the line the sleeve is sewn into, so it comes out larger than the same loop taken around a bare arm.

    1 of 65 models

Legs

  • Crotch depth (sitting height)

    Sitting height — measure seated: sit upright on a hard, flat seat and measure at the side from the waist down to the seat surface. Taken standing it comes out too short.

    18 of 65 models

  • Inseam

    Inner leg length from crotch to ankle.

    11 of 65 models

  • Thigh circumference

    Thigh circumference at the fullest point.

    11 of 65 models

  • Ankle circumference

    Around the ankle, over the ankle bone — not above it.

    9 of 65 models

  • Knee circumference

    Knee circumference at kneecap level.

    8 of 65 models

Garment lengths

  • Trouser side length

    Side seam length from waist to ankle.

    10 of 65 models

  • Skirt length

    From the waistline down to the desired skirt length.

    7 of 65 models

  • Dress length

    Length measured downward from the neck point.

    2 of 65 models

Create your measurement profile

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