Taking Measurements for Medieval Garb

This is not (entirely) the way to take measurements for making modern clothing and certainly not the way to take measurements if you're doing serious pattern drafting. This is the quick, dirty, and easy way to do it so that you don't accidentally make things too small or buy too little fabric for yourself.

Ready? Let's get going!

Before you begin:

Make sure you're wearing relatively form-fitting clothing without a lot of bulk (i.e. no thick seams, big pockets) and whatever undergarments you're planning to wear with your finished garment. A bra really changes your shape, so whether you plan on going with or without, plan accordingly. Of course, you could take your measurements in only your undergarments if you're comfortable enough with your friend/helper.

You will need:

A measuring tape

Paper and writing implement or computer ready to record numbers

A friend (maybe)

When you or your friend take a measurement, make sure that whatever area is being measured is the largest it gets. Flex or relax your muscles and take in a deep breath or exhale accordingly. For example, for a bust/chest measurement, breathe as deeply as you can. For you bicep, flex. For me, I have to exhale and try to relax to get an accurate waist measurement. Likewise, try and stand normally and look straight ahead when taking length measurements (like shoulder to floor.) Those length measurements are the ones where it's good to have a friend to help. I tend to always round up to the nearest ½ inch for garb, but you can be as precise as your measuring tape will allow you, just keep in mind that you'll have to do math with the numbers later. Yay, fractions!

For garb, I think the most important measurement is your biggest torso circumference. Mine is my hips, but everyone's different. At any rate, you'll want to measure your bust, waist, and hips.

Measure your bust around its fullest point.

To find your waist, hold your measuring tape around the area where you think it is, then bend from side to side. Wherever the tape settles is your natural waist.

Measure your hips at their fullest point.

At this point, I like to measure the distance between my waist and my hips. That's one where a friend is useful.

You also want to measure from your shoulder to the floor. Start at the point where your shoulder meet your neck on the side and go all the way down to the floor, trying not to pull the tape too tight and going over your breasts in the front. Again, a friend is probably needed. Or you can do what I do sometimes and stand on the very end of the measuring tape and hope for the best (not recommended.)

You should also measure from your waist to the floor.

At this point, if you're making things that are not going to be floor length, you might want to measure from your shoulder or waist to wherever you think you want that thing to end. I would be careful doing that since it's always easier to make things shorter and very tricky to make things longer. I'm probably too generous with those sorts of measurements, but I'd rather trim a couple extra inches off the bottom than not have enough fabric. This is why my fabric scraps are out of control.

Take a measurement from where your shoulder meets your arm all the way down to your wrist (or wherever you want your sleeve to end.) If you aren't sure where to start the measurement, put on a button-up shirt that fits you well and see where the sleeve joins the bodice of the shirt. You have a bone at the right spot, though you may have to rotate your shoulders to find it. Again, if in doubt, be generous with the measurement. If you're making something with short sleeves, you might want to measure from the shoulder to wherever you want those sleeves to end. Measure around your armscye. This is the circumference that goes over your shoulder and through your armpit. This is another measurement where you don't want it to be too tight for garb. Without getting too much into pattern making, garb sleeves aren't like modern sleeves and don't fit as well. This makes them a lot easier to make and sew but also means they, well, don't fit as well. While taking the measurement, move your arm around, lift it up, hold it down at your side, and in general make sure it's comfty.

You'll probably find that you need to take other measurements later (because I probably forgot something) or at least look at your measuring tape to decide how big you want things to be, so keep it handy as you're working on your garb.