Body Measurement Techniques

INTRODUCTION:
Garment fitting is based on taking body measurements. So it is very important for a dress maker to know how to take accurate measurements. The following points will be very useful, for this purpose.

Body Measurement

BODY MEASUREMENT:

a.    Care to be taken:
1. Try to know the customer’s requirements, regarding the fit, style and shape of the garment (pockets, collar, buttons, seam, finish etc.) before taking measurements. A preliminary talk with the customer, showing fashion pictures are stitched garment will help one to understand the design.

2. Observe the figure carefully and if any deviation in proportion is found, do not simply remember but record it in the order book, in without giving any idea of the deformity to the customer.

3. The person to be measured should stand erect, but in a natural pose, in front of a mirror.

4. Measurements should be taken comfortably without pulling the tape too tight or loose.

5. The measurements should be taken in proper order and with a certain sequence.

6. All girth measures should be taken tightly, as ease for movement is included in the draft.

7. To avoid any mistake, take the measurements twice.

b. Observing Human Body:For a successful garment cutting, one must know the size and shape of the human body, for which he has to design. A student should therefore remember the following points about the anatomy, before he starts to learn cutting.

Eight Head Theory:
A grown up human body is divided into eight equal parts, which are equal in height to that of the head. So each part is known as the “head”. All these eight divisions or heads are as follows :

1st head : From hair to chin or nape of neck.

2nd head : From chin to chest or bottom of scye.

3rd head : From bottom of armhole to waist.

4th head : From waist to hip.

Eight Head Theory

5th head : From hip to mid thigh

6th head : From mid-thigh to below knee

7th head : From knee to calf muscle

8th head : From calf to tip of toe.

b.    Calculating other measurements using chest circumference:

Measurements             Men                                    Women

Waist                     Chest – (4 to 5”)                     Chest – (5” to 7”)
Hip                         Chest + (1 to 2”)                     Chest + (2 to 4”)
Shoulder              (Half) ¼ Chest – ½”            1/6 Chest + (1 to 2”)
Armscye              depth 1/8 Chest + 1”            1/8 Chest + (2” to 2.5”)
Neck                      1/3 Chest + (2 to 3”)            1/3 Chest + (2 to 2½”)

TAKING BODY MEASUREMENT:

a. Bodice measurement:

1. Bust:
Measure around the fullest part of the bust raising the measuring tape slightly to a level just below the shoulder blades at the back.

2. Waist:
Measure snugly around the waist keeping the tape parallel to the floor.

3. Neck:
Measure around the the neck, passing the tape just above the collar bone time front and along the base of the neck at the back.

4. Shoulder:
Measure from the neck joint to the arm joint along the middle of the shoulder (A to B in fig. a)

5. Front waist length:
Measure down from highest point of shoulder to waist line through the fullest part of the bust (A to C fig. a)

6. Shoulder to bust:
Measure down from highest point of shoulder to tip of bust (A to D in fig. a)

7. Distance between bust points:
Measure in the horizontal direction, the distance between the two bust points (D to E fig. a)

8. Back width or across back measurement:
Measure across back from armhole to armhole about 3 inches below base of neck (P to Q in fig b)

9. Back waist length:
Measure from the base of neck at the centre back to waist line (R to S in Fig b).

10. Armscye depth:
Measure from base of neck at centre back to a point directly below it and in level with the bottom of the arm where it joins the body. (R to T in fig b).

c.    Sleeve measurements:

11. Upper arm circumference:
Measure around the fullest part of the arm.

12. Lower arm:
For lower arm, measure around the arm at desired level corresponding to lower edge of sleeve.

13. Elbow circumference:
Measure around the arm at elbow.

14. Wrist:
Measure around the wrist.

15. Sleeve Length:
For short sleeve length, measure down from tip of shoulder at top of arm to desired length of sleeve (B to F in a) For elbow length sleeve measure from top arm to elbow point (B to G in a) For full length bend the elbow slightly and measure down from to of arm to back of wrist passing the tape over the elbow point (B to H in a).d.    Skirt measurements:
Waist:
Measure snugly around the waist keeping the tape parallel to the floor.

16. Hip:
Measure around the fullest part of the hip horizontally. (7” to 9” from waist approx.)

17. Waist to Hip:
Measure down from waist at centre back to fullest part of the hip (S to U in fig.b).

18. Skirt Length:
Measure down the centre back from waist to desired length of skirt (S to V in fig. b) length from waist to floor can be taken at the same time and te difference between the two noted. This difference will give the number of inches the skirt is above the floor level. After taking your measurements compare then with the sample measurements for ladies garments given table. 1. Any measurement which appears too small or exaggerated must be rechecked at once.

Sample measurements for ladies garments
(All measurements are inches)

These measurements depend on the height of the person.

Sample measurments for childern’s garments 
(All measurements are in inches)

These are typical measurements for girls. For ages up to five, the body measurements
(i.e. all except the last four items in the table) apply also to boys.

Sample measurements for boys’ garments 
(All measurements are in inches)

Costume Designer

Industries:

Fashion and Textiles | Film | TV

Departments:

Costume

The lowdown

• Being in charge of designing, creating, acquiring and hiring all costumes for Actors and extras
• Managing a team of skilled personnel
• Supervising practical issues, such as departmental budgets and schedules, the organisation of running wardrobes, and costume continuity

Is this role right for me?

To do this role, you will need to:

• be creative and imaginative
• have excellent design skills
• have good communication skills
• be skilled in research
• know about costume history and modern fashion
• have good stamina
• be able to work under pressure to strict deadlines
• be highly organised
• have the confidence to motivate a team
• put others at ease (when working closely with Actors in a physical sense)
• break down scripts in terms of costume plots
• know about story structure and character arcs
• have good garment production skills and knowledge of textiles
• have a wide-ranging cultural knowledge base

What does a Costume Designer do?

Costume Designers' work helps to define the overall ‘look' of TV productions and films and their role requires a great deal of expertise. This must be achieved within strict budgets, and to tight schedules.

They work closely with the Production Designer to make sure the costumes fit in with their overall vision and work with the chosen lighting and camera angles. They also collaborate with the hair and make-up team to make sure a cohesive look is created.

During pre-production, Costume Designers break down scripts scene by scene to work out how many characters are involved and what costumes are required. They then develop costume plots for each character. Plots ensure that colours and styles do not mimic each other in the same scene, and highlight the characters' emotional journeys by varying the intensity and depth of colours.

Costume Designers must carry out research into the costume styles, designs and construction methods suitable for the time period, using resources such as libraries, museums and the Internet. They may also discuss costume and character ideas with performers.

They deliver initial ideas to Directors about the overall costume vision, character plots and original costume designs, using sketches and fabric samples. They also discuss colour palettes with the Director of Photography and Production Designer.

Costume Designers ensure that accurate financial records are kept and weekly expenditure reports are produced. They prepare overall production schedules, as well as directing the day-to-day breakdowns of responsibilities.

They choose and hire appropriate suppliers and Costume Makers, negotiating terms with them, and communicating design requirements (on a smaller-scale production a Costume Designer would be involved in both the design and the making processes).

They arrange fittings for Actors and extras. They supervise fabric research and purchase, and ensure that garments are completed to deadlines.

Depending on the numbers of costumes to be created and the scale of budgets, Costume Designers may decide to create a dedicated Costume Workshop.

They should be on set whenever a new costume is worn for the first time to make sure that performers are comfortable, to explain special features, and to oversee any alterations.

Once filming is completed, Costume Designers are responsible for the return of hired outfits, and the sale or disposal of any remaining costumes.

Costume designers may be required to work long hours; evening and weekend work may be involved when working to deadlines.

They can be based in a studio, office or home-based environment when designing and making the garments. Travel to locations for TV and film productions is common and they are often required to attend meetings at theatres or TV/film production companies.

What might I earn?

A typical starting salary for a Costume Designer may be between £13,000 and £18,000 a year, which could rise to around £28,000 a year with experience.

Senior Costume Designers with considerable experience of the industry may earn over £35,000 a year.

Will I need a qualification?

You will need an HND, degree or postgraduate qualification in a subject such as Costume Design, Fashion, Theatre Design or Performing Arts (Production).

If you are interested in film and TV you can apply for an apprenticeship-style training scheme, such as the BBC's Design Training Scheme.

You will undergo further training on the job by learning from more experienced designers.

You can also join organisations such as the Society of British Theatre Designers and the Costume Society to gain professional recognition and for networking and training opportunities. Some drama schools, such as RADA and the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, offer vocational training in costume for theatre, film and television.

It is important to update your portfolio or show reel.

You can also gain practical garment production skills by taking relevant ABC, City & Guilds, NOCN or SQA courses.

As travel is often required, you will also need a full, EU driving licence.

What's the best route in?

The role of Costume Designer is not an entry-level position and you will need considerable knowledge and experience in order to design for feature films.

After gaining qualifications, you can expect to start your career as a Costume Assistant or Wardrobe Trainee before progressing through the costume department.

Alternatively, you could work for one of the large Costumiers.

You will probably need to work in theatre, film and TV until you become established and specialise in one area.

You can look for jobs in the national press, trade publications and on industry websites but competition is strong and networking and word-of-mouth is the most common route to employment.

Interested? Find out more...

Websites

• ABC Awards
• NOCN
• City & Guilds
• SQA
• The Society of British Theatre Designers
• The Costume Society
• Chartered Society of Designers
• Design Council
• UKFT
• BBC Design Trainee Scheme
• The Broadcasting Entertainment Cinematograph and Theatre Union (BECTU)
• Equity, the performers' union, which also represents Costume Designers
• Drama UK
• Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA)

Sambalpuri saree

Sambalpuri Saree  is a traditional handwoven ikat saree (locally called shadhi) wherein the warp and the weft are tie-dyed before weaving. It is produced in the Bargarh, Sonepur, Sambalpur, Balangir district, Boudh District of Odisha. The saree is a traditional female garment in the Indian Subcontinent consisting of a strip of un-stitched cloth ranging from four to nine meters in length that is draped over the body in various styles.

Sambalpuri sarees are known for their incorporation of traditional motifs like shankha (shell), chakra (wheel), phula (flower), all of which have deep symbolism, but the high point of these sarees is the traditional craftsmanship of the 'Bandhakala', the Tie-dye art reflected in their intricate weaves, also known as Sambalpuri "Ikkat". In this technique, the threads are first tie-dyed and later woven into a fabric, with the entire process taking many weeks. These sarees first became popular outside the state when the late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi started wearing them. In the 1980s and 1990s they became popular across India. To provide protection to the weavers practicing this art, the hand loom silk sarees manufactured in Sambalpur and Berhampur (Berhampur Pattu) in Odisha were included in the Government of India’s Geographical Indications (GI) registry.
Most of them have been named after their places of origin and are popularly known as Pata. Paintings on Tussar saris depicting Mathura Vijay, Raslila and Ayodhya Vijay owe their origin to ‘Raghurajpur patta paintings’.

Fabric and design
Development

Sambalpuri fabrics reflect an original style of craft known as Baandha. Traditionally, craftsmen created Baandhas with images of flora or fauna or with geometrical patterns. More recently, new types of Baandha depicting portrait, landscape and flower pods are being designed. Baandha fabric is created using a tie-dye technique. The yarns are tied according to the desired patterns to prevent absorption of dyes, and then dyed. The yarns or set of yarns so produced is called 'Baandha'. The unique feature of this form of designing is that the designs are reflected almost identically on both side of the fabric. This versatile technique enables a craftsman to weave colorful designs, patterns and images into a fabric capable of inspiring a thought or conveying a message. Thus Baandha can be defined as "A length of systematically arranged yarn, dyed according to a preconceived design in such a manner so as to enable a weaver to portray the design when the yarn is converted to a fabric through the process of weaving". It is believed that this art migrated to Western Odisha along with the Bhulia community who fled Northern India in the year 1192 AD after the fall of the Chouhan empire at the hands of the Mughals. Since then and up to the year 1925 it flourished in Western Odisha in a limited number of designs and in vegetable colours and consisted mostly of saris used by the womenfolk of the Odisha. These saris were known as 'Bhulia-Kapta'. The demand was limited, distress sale was common and the craftsmen lived in penury.

Today the Baandha fabric is popularly known by its geographical and cultural name Sambalpuri owing to the pioneering efforts of Sri Radhashyam Meher, who brought about a radical improvement in the skills of the craftsmen and the quality of the products. Other master craftsmen who contributed to the development of Sambalpuri textiles were Padmashree Kailash Chandra Meher, Padmashree Kunja Bihari Meher, Padmashree Chatrubhuja Meher and Padmashree Krutharth Acharya. Sambalpuri textiles today include furnishing materials, dress materials and sarees in silk, cotton and mercerised cotton in a variety of colours and many different designs. Baandha craftsmen are also masters of the 'extra warp' and 'extra weft' style of designing which can be seen in almost all forms of Baandha textiles. Radhashyam Meher also produced Khadi textiles using the Baandha art.

In 1926, Radhashyam designed the first handloom to weave textiles of ninety inches width. This achievement made him the 'Parda agent' of the Government of Bihar for the production of furnishing materials. Later, after the formation of the state of Odisha, he became the 'Parda agent' of the government of Odisha. His dexterity in the Baandha art and his ability to motivate the weaving community in the region to improve their skills by providing the necessary training and incentives enabled the creation of new designs that received international fame and recognition.

Radhashyam Meher established his proprietary concern, named 'Utkal Parda Agency', at Sambalpur for the research, production and marketing of Sambalpuri textiles. Acknowledging Radhashyam Meher's unparalleled contribution to the growth and popularity of 'Baandha art', the Ministry of Textiles of the Government of India has sponsored textile exhibitions coinciding with his birth anniversary on November 20 and organised by the Director of Textiles of the Government of Odisha.

He also played an active role in the cooperative movement and organised the Meher Art Fabrics cooperative society Ltd and the Sambalpur Regional Cooperative Marketing Society Ltd. (RCMS) He was a member of the All India Handloom Board in the year 1953. Until his death he was always elected as the member of the Sambalpur Municipality.