Measuring with a helper: what to tell them

Before you start

• A soft tailor’s tape, not a metal tape or a ruler. Check that it starts at zero and is not stretched.
• Thin, close clothing: a vest or fitted T-shirt and leggings, and the bra you will wear with the outfit.
• The shoes you will wear most with the outfit, for every length.
• A ribbon tied around your natural waist, left on throughout, so every waist-related measurement starts from the same place.
• Paper and pen, or the notes on your phone, with the unit written at the top.

What the person being measured should do

Stand naturally with your weight on both feet, arms relaxed by your sides, looking straight ahead. Breathe normally and do not hold your tummy in. Looking down to watch the tape is the most common slip on this side: it rounds the shoulders and shortens the back, so let your helper do the looking.

Lift your arms only when asked, for example while your helper passes the tape around your bust, then lower them before the number is read.

What the helper should do

Keep the tape level for every circumference. Check the back in a mirror, because the tape tends to dip at the back on bust and hip measurements. Hold it snug against the body, flat, not twisted, and without a finger trapped underneath. Read the number where the tape meets the zero end, not from the far end of the tab.

For lengths, start at the exact point the size guide describes: the shoulder point beside the neck for kameez length, the shoulder bone for sleeves, the waist ribbon for trousers. Let the tape follow the body over the bust rather than hanging straight down in the air.

Slips helpers often make

• Pulling the tape tight to be accurate. Snug means it touches all the way round without pressing in.
• Measuring over a jumper or a thick top, which adds centimetres everywhere.
• Reading the wrong side of a tape marked in inches on one side and centimetres on the other.
• Saying “fifteen” and writing fifty, or the other way round. Read each number back.
• Measuring the sleeve on a straight arm when full sleeves need a slight bend.
• Measuring shoulders across the front, where they are narrower. Shoulder width is taken across the back.

Writing it down and sending it

Take each measurement twice. If the two readings differ by more than about a centimetre, take a third and use the two that agree. Write each one next to its name, with the unit, and add anything unusual in the notes, such as one shoulder sitting lower than the other.

Our measuring help page explains the support available, including a guided session on WhatsApp if you would rather be talked through it. Whether you are in London or Paris, you can measure this way at home before ordering. When you are ready, enter the numbers on the quote form, or read about stitching in France.