Plus Size Knitting

Front and back measurement is the same

I'm currently working on a pattern for plus size knitting with another designer. We've spent a lot of time discussing the fit issues and I realized in my previous two posts on the topic of bigger bust lines that I missed covering part of the explanation of why these methods work in place of short rowing. Short row shaping is a problem to execute in highly textured or detailed stitch patterns so having other techniques to use expands  the possibilities for an appropriate fix on multiple design variations.

If you read through this article by Kathryn Brenne on adjusting for a full bust you will notice that the alteration does not just add length, it also adds width. This is a standard type of adjustment in the sewing world. My Garment designer program has two design variations, simple fit and refined fit. Refined fit means that you use separate measurements for the front and back of the body. Simple fit is the form that knit design typically uses, making the front and back one half the total measurement ignoring that many people measure larger at the front. While women with bigger girls are what we normally think of as having bigger fronts, apple shaped torso's and men with the beer belly shape also benefit from a larger front.

When the wearer's front is larger, more of the available ease is used up on the front of the garment. Side seams are often pulled forward and may not hang plum. Good fit standards say that seams should be perpendicular to the floor.

Front is larger than the back

If you take a knit and stretch it horizontally it cannot stretch vertically as much as gravity would normally allow it to. If you make the front bigger to accommodate the body shape with the appropriate amount of ease the knit will be relaxed enough to stretch vertically and will stretch to provide the extra length that would normally be introduced by short rows.

The post on increasing at the bust-line and easing can be found here.

The post on knitting bigger fronts can be found here.