Recent statistics have indicated that nearly nine million American children are categorized as “overweight”. Buying or making clothes for the plus size child can be a very stressful and difficult process as there is literally NO standard size that fits properly.
Size 16 Plus Doesn’t Fit a 9 Year Old Girl
My friend has a 9 year old daughter who has a 36″ chest, 34″ tummy and 38″ hips. Buying pre-made clothes for her is impossible since a skirt that fits in the waist has a length that goes past the feet, and long sleeves hang several inches below her fingers in order to get a size that fits in the chest and shoulders. My friend decided to try making some clothes, only to find similar problems with patterns. Thinking the new “plus” sizes would fit, she was disappointed to find that, while a 16 Plus would fit the chest, the “waistline” hung about 2-3 inches below her waist, the skirt length was way too long, the neck and armholes were much too large and the shoulder width fell way off the shoulder. After all, the measurements used in the store-bought patterns are for a “chubby” 16 year old, they’re not designed for an extra chubby 9 year old.
Sarah J Doyle, pattern making author and instructor of over 40 years has focused her years of experience and knowledge into the overlooked area of sewing for plus size children. With an intimate knowledge of the frustration in sewing for plus size children because of friends and relatives wanting to enlist her help in getting clothing patterns to fit properly, Sarah has gone the extra mile to make her patterns available to everyone with similar issues. For nearly a year and a half, Sarah collected the measurements of overweight and obese children from website customers, friends and relatives. With a database of several thousand sets of “real” measurements of those overweight and obese children, Sarah sat down to the overwhelming task of separating and assembling those sets in age groups in order to make the plus size childrens’ patterns according to ACTUAL plus size childrens’ measurements.
PSC Patterns (Plus Size Childrens Patterns) have been designed and made using those actual plus size childrens measurements so that the patterns will fit the majority of plus size children.
PSC Patterns offer the consumer many benefits, including:
**All patterns are made using actual plus size childrens’ measurements.
**All patterns are downloadable, so you don’t have to worry about “lag” time from when the patterns are ordered until they get to you, or if you are out of the U.S. – the patterns are ready for immediate download.
**All patterns are multi-sized, so you can use the same pattern for several children, or use the same pattern as the child grows. Size ranges are 4-5-6; 8-10-12 and 14-16.
**All patterns come with several variations – several different necklines or several sleeve styles/lengths, or several styles/lengths of skirts, etc.
**All patterns contain a “size chart”, which contains the sizing of the majority of children of that certain age, according to the measurements sent in to us by thousands of mothers, grandmothers and friends of plus size children.
**Patterns come in a variety of styles, from blouses and skirts to dresses, jeans and jean shorts and elastic waist slacks and shorts.
Something to think about when buying a pattern and fabric for clothing for a plus size child is what the “appearance” of the finished garment will look like. For example:
** Dresses with several rows of elastic sewn at the waistline will appear to thicken the waist and shorten the height, while semi-fitted dresses with vertical line designs and A-line skirts will give a thinner and taller appearance.
** Solid colors and vertical lines will heighten the body, while contrasting colors in tops and skirts, as well as big bold prints will shorten it.
** Waists seem to expand with wide or conspicuous belts or buckles.
** Hips will seem to increase in girth with tight or full skirts. The A-lines or princess style skirts will create a more slimming appearance.