Clothing Definitions — definitions of garments and clothing terms from Apparel Search
Plus size clothing is a general term given to clothing proportioned specifically for larger sizes. Plus-size refers generally to clothing labelled size US 12 and UK 16 and upwards for women, and the range is also called outsize in some countries, predominantly British, though that term has been losing favour since the 1990s. A related term for men's clothing in larger sizes is big and tall. Plus size patterns have traditionally been graded up from a smaller construction pattern, but many retailers now use statistical data from their own measuring projects and specialised body-scan data collection to modernise the fit and construction of their garments.
This page will hopefully help answer the question, "what is plus size fashion?".
Plus size clothing is a general term given to clothing proportioned specifically for larger sized or overweight people. Plus-size refers generally to clothing labeled size (US) 12/ (UK) 16 and upwards for women. Also called Outsize in some countries (predominantly British), this term has been losing favour since the 1990s. A related term for men's plus-size clothing is big and tall.
Plus size clothing patterns have traditionally been graded up from a smaller construction pattern, however many retailers are using statistical data collected from their own measuring projects, and from specialized Body Scan Data collection projects to modernize the fit and construction of their garments. U.S. companies Lane Bryant and Catherines teamed up over a three-year period to source data to modernize the companies' garment construction. Fourteen thousand women were measured in what was the most extensive female sizing study in the U.S. in over 60 years.
Fashion designers are starting to look more closely at the earning potential from plus-size clothing, and have used plus-size models for their advertising campaigns and catwalks. Jean-Paul Gaultier and John Galliano both used plus-size models in their Spring 2006 showings in Paris. Italian plus-size fashion house Elena Mirò now regularly stages biannual prêt-à-porter shows during Fashion Week in Milan. Mark Fast and William Tempest each used plus-size models during their own London Fashion Week showings for Spring 2009, and again as part of All Walks Beyond the Catwalk event held on September 19, 2009 in association with the British Fashion Council.
Learn more about plus size clothing.
If you would like to shop for plus size clothing, you may want to try the plus size fashion stores directory here on Apparel Search. Have you ever asked yourself, "what is plus size fashion?". Well, that is certainly a question you can ask at the Fashion Industry Network in the Plus Size Fashion Group section.
| The above article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/plus-size_clothing ). Modified by Apparel Search 2/27/11 |
Grading is the technical heart of the subject. A pattern graded up by fixed steps assumes every measure grows together, but real bodies distribute size differently, at the waist, hip, bust, upper arm and back in different proportions, so a simply enlarged small pattern commonly fits badly at exactly the points a wearer notices: armholes, neckline, rise and the balance of a skirt or trouser. That is why the measuring projects matter. In the study run by the United States companies Lane Bryant and Catherines over three years, fourteen thousand women were measured, the most extensive female sizing study in the United States in over sixty years, and the data was used to rebuild garment construction on actual plus size proportions rather than on scaled assumptions.
For the shopper, the practical consequence is that size numbers are a starting point, not a guarantee, and the retailer's own size chart, with bust, waist and hip measures for each label size, is the document to follow, since ranges start at different points and grade at different rates between brands. Fit checks that matter most in this range are the same as anywhere, shoulder line, fastening that closes without strain, a waistband that stays in place, and hems at the intended length, with the added note that styles cut specifically for the range, with shaped waist seams, considered dart placement and fabrics with some recovery, hold their fit through a day better than styles merely offered in larger numbers. Retail specialisation has followed the data: dedicated plus size retailers and fashion houses, such as the Italian house Elena Miro with its regular Milan shows, design from the range outward, and mainstream designers including Jean-Paul Gaultier and John Galliano used plus-size models in Paris showings, with Mark Fast and William Tempest doing the same in London, signs of a range treated as a fashion market in its own right rather than an afterthought.
Plus size clothing is clothing proportioned specifically for people of larger sizes. For women it refers generally to clothing labelled US size 12 and UK size 16 and upwards. The British term outsize means the same range but has been losing favour since the 1990s.
Big and tall is the related term for men's plus-size clothing, covering larger waist and chest sizes and longer body and leg lengths. It is the men's equivalent of the women's plus size range, sold as its own department by larger retailers.
Plus size patterns were traditionally graded up from a smaller pattern, enlarged by standard steps. Many retailers now build patterns from measuring and body-scan data gathered from plus size wearers themselves, since bodies do not enlarge evenly, and dedicated data produces a better fit than simple grading.