How to Take Body Measurement?

Knowing your bust, waist, hip and inseam measurements accurately is the key to having clothes that fit your body perfectly. It would be very helpful to know other measurements, including shoulder width, sleeve length and inside leg length. A few tips we will share in this article will allow you to take your measurements very easily and accurately. Let's start!

PRELIMINARY

Wear the right underwear and a light layer of clothing. It is difficult to move the tape measure on bare skin as it will resist slipping. This difficulty will result in inaccurate measurement. Instead, it is better to choose to wear thin clothing on which the tape measure can slide easily. A thin T-shirt or strappy bustier and tights will be appropriate. Using different underwear under your clothes will result in different measurement results. Don't forget to wear the bra you plan to wear with the outfit you plan to buy. If you are going to buy an Evening Dress, you can choose to use a different bra, if you are going to buy a Daily Dress, you can choose to use a different bra or not use a bra at all.

• To get your measurements accurately, make sure your underwear is not tight.
• If you plan to wear body shaping underwear under your clothing, just wear it.
• If you're taking overall measurements, choose underwear that accurately represents your everyday underwear. For example, if you always wear a push-up bra or only wear a sports bra, wear one of these.
• Do not wear something too thick, such as a sweatshirt, as it will increase your measurements.

Wear shoes with the correct heel height for hemline or inseam measurements. This is especially important when taking measurements for a dress or trousers. To prevent the hem from being too short, slip on the shoes you plan to wear with your clothes or a pair of similar height.

• If you are taking measurements for a Long Evening Dress and have ordered a pair of 10cm high heels for this event, wear a similar pair of shoes with 10cm high heels.
• If you do not want to fold your clothes, it will be useful to wear the right shoes when taking measurements. Wearing high heels changes your posture and therefore your measurements. Therefore, it is best to take measurements of your body as it is in your clothes.

Stand upright with your feet hip-width apart and your head up. Correct posture is the key to an error-free measurement. Distribute your weight evenly on both feet, keeping a distance of at least 15 cm between your feet. Do not shift your weight to one side or bend your knees. Otherwise, your measurements will be distorted. Focus on looking directly ahead rather than looking down and leaning over your head.

• If you need a break from standing straight, that's okay! Pause for a moment to relax your body or sit for a while before continuing.
• It can be really tempting to bend over and look down to see the tape measure or watch your friend help you measure the inseam. Resist this urge!
• To help you focus, pick a spot on the wall and pretend you're balancing a book on your head. If you're standing in front of the mirror, make eye contact with yourself.

Use a soft tape measure. Tape measures made of soft fabric or plastic can be easily found in haberdashery stores and online at low prices. Some tape measures are free-standing, while others are sold as retractable reels.

• Rulers or metal tape measures are not suitable for taking body measurements because they are not flexible.
• Do not use a very old tape measure. The material may be stretched or the numbers on it may be blurred and may be read incorrectly.

Hold the tape measure completely flat when measuring your body circumference. When taking bust, waist and hip measurements, as well as other horizontal measurements, it is important to keep the tape measure level on all sides as you wrap it around your body.

• Double check whether the strip is flat all around before confirming the measurement. Looking in a full-length mirror will help you determine whether the tape measure tape is parallel to the floor or tilted to one side. Turn your body while looking in the mirror to make sure the tape measure is completely straight.
• Adjust its stance by sliding your fingers under the tape measure strip to correct any parts that are not parallel to the ground.

When measuring, start from the zero point of the tape measure. If you are taking a horizontal measurement, such as a waist measurement, place this end in the middle of your body and wrap the rest of the tape measure around the measurement area. Or, if you are measuring a length such as an inseam, hold the end of the tape measure at the starting point and pull the rest of the tape along your body until it reaches the stopping point.

• If you are measuring the circumference, the point where the tape measure reaches the zero point is; If you are taking a height measurement, the stopping point of the tape measure will be your measurement result.
• If you are not careful, you can start measuring from the end of the tape measure. This may give you convincing measurements, but they will be inaccurate.

Tighten the tape measure at the right point and bring it up to your eye level. If you have to look directly ahead, you may wonder how you should view the tape measure. There's a simple trick to this! While in the correct position and looking straight ahead, hold the tape measure firmly with your thumb and forefinger at the line corresponding to the zero point. Then, bring the tape measure to your eye level and see what size you have tightened.

• Holding the tape measure tight, release the tape from around your body and lift it up for a closer look.
• Check where your thumb is on the tape measure and use that as your measurement result.
• For example, if the tip of your thumb shows 79.4 cm on the tape measure, write this as your measurement result.

Make a list to write down your measurements. Create a simple Size Chart before you start measuring. In the first column, write the names of the parts you will take measurements on. The second column should be empty and you should write each measurement here as you go.

• Your first column is "Bust, Waist, Hips, etc." Even if it's as simple as writing them down, it will still be useful. It's easy to forget numbers, especially fractional ones. Don't trust your memory!
• If you're taking a lot of measurements, it may be helpful to have a friend write down the results for you. If you want, print a Measurement Chart from your computer. This way, you can always easily access the measurements of every part of your body.

HOW TO TAKE BREAST AND UNDER BREAST MEASUREMENT?

Wrap the tape measure around the widest part of your chest. Start by keeping the tape measure's starting point at the front-center of your body, in line with the widest part of your breasts. Loop the tape measure under your arm, wrap it around your back, and bring it forward to meet the front end.

• The widest part of the chest is usually at the level of the nipples.
• Position the tape measure strip flat and parallel to the ground.
• Pinch the tape measure where it meets the front end and record the resulting number in your chart as your chest measurement.

Take your underbust measurement by wrapping the tape measure around the base of your bra. For underbust measurement, align the tape measure under your breasts, where the bottom of your bra is located. Using the same technique, place the tape measure at the mid-front point, wrap it around your back, under your arms, and tuck where the tape meets the front end.

• If you are taking a bra size, this result will be your body size.
• The difference between your body size and your chest size is your cup size.

To determine your bra size, you can review our article titled How to Take Bra Size .

HOW TO TAKE ARM LENGTH MEASUREMENT?

Extend the tape measure along your bent arm to find arm length. Ask a friend to help you with this. Stand with your elbow bent at a 90-degree angle and your hand on your hip. Tell your friend to align the tip of the tape measure with the center of the back of your arm. Ask him to extend the tape measure from your shoulder, over your elbow, down to your wrist. It may rest on your wrist bone. Record this measurement as your arm length.

• This should be an exact measurement; Do not take partial measurements.

HOW TO TAKE MEASUREMENT OF BECEPS?

For bicep size, measure the upper arm circumference. Keep your arm slightly away from your body. Wrap a tape measure around the widest part of your upper arm. Record the value where the ends meet as Bicep Measurement.

• Use this measurement when ordering a Bespoke Shirt , Blouse or Long Sleeve Dress .
• Keep the tape measure slightly taut, but do not let it dig into your skin. Make sure you can slide 1 or 2 fingers behind the strip for comfort.
• If you have particularly large muscles, you may want to record the unflexed and flexed versions of this measurement.

HOW TO TAKE SHOULDER WIDTH MEASUREMENT?

Check the distance between your back and your shoulders for your shoulder width. Stand upright and relax your shoulders. Have a friend hold the starting end of the tape measure at the outer edge of your shoulder. Tell him to extend the strip down your back to the outer edge of your other shoulder. The tape measure should be parallel to the ground. Record this distance as shoulder width measurement.

• Shoulder size is most often used when ordering custom-made shirts, blouses, jackets and dresses.
• If you are taking this measurement on your own, you can raise your arms up while placing the tape measure in place. However, keep your elbows close to your body as you tighten the strip to determine the measurement.
• Repeat the same process in front for your front shoulder width.

HOW TO TAKE DRESS LENGTH MEASUREMENT?

Measure the length of your dress from your shoulder to your desired hem length line. Stand with your back straight and your legs hip-width apart. Have a friend hold the end of the tape measure above your shoulder. Ask the tape measure to extend along the front of your body, over your breasts, to your desired hemline.

• You can follow the same process to measure skirt length. However, start measuring at your natural waist instead of your shoulder.

HOW TO FIND YOUR NATURAL WAIST LINE?

Identify your natural waist. To do this, lean forward or sideways while standing upright and note where your body bends. This point is your natural waist. It is the narrowest part of your torso and is usually located between your ribcage and your belly button.

• If you plan to take many measurements of your waist, it may be useful to tie a thin string around the natural circumference of your waist. This way you don't have to find it again and again!

HOW TO TAKE WAIST MEASUREMENT?

Find your waist measurement by wrapping the tape measure around your natural waist. Keep the ribbon parallel to the floor as you wrap it around your waist. Do not hold your breath or pull your belly in as this will result in an inaccurate measurement. Make sure you don't pull the tape measure too tight.

• Slide 2 fingers under the strip to make sure it is not pulled too tightly.
• Without bending over or looking down, clamp the tape measure where it joins. Record the resulting number as your waist measurement.

HOW TO TAKE HIPS MEASUREMENT?

To take your hip measurement, wrap the tape measure around the widest part of your hips. The hip measurement refers to the widest part of your lower body, which is usually located approximately 18 to 23 cm below your natural waist. This can happen quite low in your pelvis. While holding the tape measure in front, hold it parallel to the ground, extend it towards the back of your body, and extend it to meet in front.

• It is common to measure your hips incorrectly. To avoid this, make sure the tape measure is parallel to the floor and that you measure at the widest part of your hips.
• The general tendency is to measure at the level of the hip bones. However, this gives an inaccurate measurement result. That part of your body is usually narrower than your hips.

HOW TO MEASURE INNER LEG LENGTH?

Find out the inseam length by measuring your inner leg length. Enlist the help of a friend for this measurement. Stand upright with your feet hip-width apart and hold the tape measure at the highest point of your groin. Your friend should position the end of the tape measure on the inside of your leg. To take a standard inseam measurement, the tape measure should be extended up to your ankle bone.

• If you're measuring for a pair of pants, have your friend hold the tape measure to where you want the hem to sit.
• Don't forget to take into account the heel height of your shoes.
• For example, if you are taking measurements for wide-leg Palazzo Trousers that you will wear with high-heeled shoes, put on your shoes and have your friend take the measurement by extending the tape measure to a height of approximately 1 cm on the floor.

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