Textile and Apparel Industries

How Understanding Female Plus Size Body Shapes Throughout a Size Range Can Affect Apparel Grading and Design Attributes

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Abstract

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), reported the prevalence of U.S. adult obesity at 39.8% of the population, which affects about 93.3 million (Hales, Carroll, Fryar & Ogden, 2017). Of those adults, 41% were estimated to be women (Hales, Carroll, Fryar & Ogden, 2017). This demographic represents a $21.4 billion apparel industry (George-Parkin, 2019). Over the last five years, there has been an increased interest from apparel companies to manufacture products for this body type ;(George-Parkin, 2019). As there is a lack of accessible measurements and sizing standardization for plus sizes, companies have developed their own systems, often linearly grading from existing sample “core sizes” - often a size small 4/6 or medium 8/10. These sample size bodies typically have an hourglass shape, so the question for this research was – do plus size women really have hourglass body shapes?

Keywords: Grading, Shape, Plus Sizes

How to Cite:

Sokolowski, S. L. & Bettencourt, C., (2020) “How Understanding Female Plus Size Body Shapes Throughout a Size Range Can Affect Apparel Grading and Design Attributes”, International Textile and Apparel Association Annual Conference Proceedings 77(1). doi: https://doi.org/10.31274/itaa.11894