Store-bought clothes are designed on one fit model in one base size, then graded up and down in fixed steps that assume everyone in the range has the same height and the same difference between bust, waist and hip. Few people match those proportions in all three places at once, and every brand uses its own chart, so the same label means different measurements from one shop to the next. Handmade clothes can start from your own measurements instead, so the waist fits your waist and the hem falls where you want it.
How are ready-to-wear sizes made?
A brand develops a sample in its base size, often an EU 38 (US 6, UK 10) or an M, and fits it on a fit model whose body matches its idea of a typical customer. The pattern is then graded: each size up adds a fixed amount to the girths and very little to the lengths.
You can see the logic in any standard size chart. In the women's chart Sewly uses as a starting point, every size from EU 32 to EU 44 adds 4 cm (about 1 5/8 in) to bust, waist and hip, but only 4 mm (about 1/8 in) to the back waist length and 2 mm to the arm, and the height stays at 168 cm (5 ft 6 in) for every size. That is typical of grading: it treats a size 44 as a wider size 38, not as a person with different proportions.
Why do clothes fit in one place but not another?
Because your proportions differ from the chart's. A typical women's chart keeps the difference between waist and hip at about 25 cm (10 in) in every size: 72 and 97 cm in an EU 38, 84 and 109 cm in an EU 44. If your hip is 32 cm larger than your waist, trousers that fit your hip gape at the back waist; if the difference is 18 cm, a skirt that fits your waist pulls across the hip.
| What you see | What usually causes it |
|---|---|
| Waistband gapes at the back | Your hip-to-waist difference is larger than the chart's |
| Buttons gape across the bust | Your full bust is larger than the size that fits your shoulders |
| Shoulders too wide, armholes gape | The size was chosen by bust on a narrower frame |
| Sleeves too long, waist seam on the hips | You are shorter than the fit model |
| Tops too short, trouser hems above the ankle | You are taller than the fit model |
| Trousers pull at the thigh but fit the waist | Your thigh is fuller than the graded thigh |
Height works the same way. Many women's patterns and brands are drafted for someone around 165 to 170 cm (5 ft 5 in to 5 ft 7 in). Petite and tall ranges exist but cover only some garments. Our post on petite and tall adjustments shows which lengths matter.
Why is my size different in every shop?
There is no single compulsory size standard. Each brand builds its chart for its own customers, and many have shifted their numbers over the years, so a given body now wears a smaller label than it would have decades ago: what people call vanity sizing. Europe has a labeling standard, EN 13402, that describes sizes by body measurements, but brands still choose their own size numbers. And the numbering changes across borders: a French 38 is a German 36, an Italian 42 and a UK 10. Our post on EU, US and UK sizes untangles them.
Why can handmade clothes fit better?
Because the starting point can be you rather than a fit model:
- Your measurements, not a label. A pattern drafted from your bust, waist, hip and height, or a size chosen by measuring, already avoids most of the problems in the table above.
- Different sizes in different places. With a multi-size pattern, you can blend from one size at the bust to another at the hip.
- Lengths where they belong. Bodice, sleeve, rise and hem lengths can all be set to your body before you cut.
- Ease you choose. You decide how close a garment sits: a fitted woven bodice might have 6 cm (2 3/8 in) of ease at the bust, a relaxed one 16 cm (6 1/4 in).
- A test before the real thing. A toile shows problems on inexpensive fabric first.
This is the idea behind made-to-measure patterns: instead of altering a graded pattern, start from the body.
Will sewing fix every fit problem?
Not automatically. Measurements describe girths and lengths, not everything about a body: posture, a forward head, sloping or square shoulders, a sway back or one hip higher than the other can still show in a toile, and you fix those by adjusting the pattern. A pattern drafted from your measurements gets much closer on the first try, so there are fewer of those adjustments to make. Our guide to fixing common fit issues covers the usual ones.
Where do I start?
Measure yourself carefully: bust, waist, hip and height are the minimum, and a few lengths help a lot. Our guide on taking your body measurements shows where to place the tape. For a first try, choose a garment with a forgiving fit, such as an elastic-waist skirt or pull-on trousers, before moving to fitted bodices.
In Sewly, you enter those measurements (four are enough to start; the rest are filled in from the nearest size and can be refined) and every pattern is drafted to them, with the ease of the fit you choose. You can also see the garment in 3D on a mannequin built from your measurements before you cut, which shows the proportions, though not the exact drape of your fabric.