How **SHOULD** a sweater fit?

Whenever we introduce ‘shoulds’ into art, I get a little itchy. It implies an objective metric for something subjective, right? At the same time, we throw the phrase ‘well-fitting’ around as if we all have a shared language and that it means the same thing for everyone. Let’s unpack it, y’all!

What is good fit?

For me, good fit means the garment is comfortable, functional, and doesn’t pull, ride up, or have drag lines, and has equal tension throughout the fabric.

In other words, it goes on, stays on, and matches the shape of your body appropriately for the ease in the garment.

What’s a drag line?

A drag line is a fold or wrinkle in the fabric. It shows a tension gradient, at one end of the line the fabric is being pulled too tight relative to the other end of the line. Generally, this means you need to add fabric to release tension.

In this picture of Local Meadow, the drag line runs from the bust (too tight) to the hip (enough room). That's happening because the dress form is padded to have a larger bust than the designer had