How to take body measurements for sewing: a tailor’s guide with charts

For tailors and fashion designers in Nigeria · 11 minute read

A good outfit starts with good numbers. If the measurements are wrong, no skill at the machine can make the outfit fit. Most sewing guides online teach people to measure themselves. This one is for a tailor measuring a client, for Nigerian native wear as well as gowns and trousers, with tables you can fill in and a way to keep the numbers safe.

If you are new, read it from the top. If you have been sewing for years, use it to check your habits and to train your apprentice.

What you need

• A flexible tape. Soft cloth or plastic, with inches clearly marked. A stiff or stretched tape gives wrong numbers.
• A notebook and pen, or an app. Write each number the moment you read it. Do not keep numbers in your head.
• A string or thin ribbon. Tie it loosely around the client’s waist. It shows you where the waist really is, and it is your marker for back length and skirt length.
• A stool or chair, for the few measurements taken sitting, such as crotch depth.

A note on units: this guide uses inches, because that is what most Nigerian tailors work in. One inch is 2.54 centimetres. If a client sends numbers in centimetres, divide by 2.54 and write the answer in inches. Always write the unit next to the number.

Before you start: posture, clothing and who measures

• Light clothes. Thin clothes or underwear. Jackets, thick wrappers and heavy jeans add false inches. Measuring over clothes is only for a rough idea.
• Remove tight belts and anything in the pockets or around the neck.
• Standing, relaxed. The client stands straight, shoulders down, arms by the sides, breathing normally. Do not ask them to pull in the stomach or puff out the chest.
• Feet together. This keeps the hips even and gives steady length measurements.
• You do the measuring. Clients who measure themselves bend, twist and hold the tape loose. When the tailor measures, every client is measured the same way.

The rules of taking measurements

1. Tape snug, not tight. It should touch the body without pressing into it. You should be able to slide a finger under it.
2. Keep the tape parallel to the floor when you go around the body. A tape that tilts at the back gives a bigger number.
3. Measure twice. If the two numbers differ, measure a third time and find out why.
4. Write the unit every time, so nobody reads 38 and wonders what it means.
5. Note anything unusual. A leaning posture, one shoulder lower than the other, a pregnancy, a recent weight change, or a client who wants the outfit looser.

Women’s measurements, step by step

You will not need every one for every garment. A simple blouse needs fewer measurements than a fitted gown. Take what the style asks for, and write the number in the Inches column.

Men’s measurements, step by step

Print this page or copy the two tables into your notebook. Leave a row blank if the style does not need it.

Measurements for Nigerian native wear

Online guides rarely cover native wear, but this is what many of your clients order. Take the body measurements above, plus the extras below. Always ask the client for the length and the fit they want, and write the answer in words next to the numbers.

• Agbada. The outer robe needs its own length, its spread and the sleeve opening. The buba and sokoto under it need the usual top and trouser measurements. The full list is in how to take agbada and kaftan measurements.
• Senator and kaftan. Chest, shoulder, top length, sleeve length, round sleeve, and the trouser measurements if the set has trousers. Write down the collar type and where the embroidery goes.
• Buba (the blouse of iro and buba). Bust, underbust, shoulder, bust point, blouse length, sleeve length, round sleeve and neck. Ask how fitted she wants it.
• Iro (the wrapper). Waist, hip and length from the waist to where the iro should reach, measured in the shoes she will wear. Ask how she likes to tie it, because that affects the width you cut.
• Gown. The women’s measurements above, with gown length last. Note the neckline and sleeve style.
• Shokoto (also written sokoto) and trousers. Waist, hip, crotch depth, thigh, knee, trouser length and ankle or cuff opening.

Common mistakes

• Measuring over thick clothes. The outfit then comes out too big.
• A loose tape or a tilted tape. Both give numbers that do not match the body.
• Measuring once and trusting it. Measure twice.
• Forgetting the shoes. Hem lengths change with the shoes the client will wear.
• Not asking about fit. Two clients with the same numbers can want one outfit tight and the other loose.
• Writing numbers without the unit, or mixing inches and centimetres in one record.
• Leaving out the notes. Posture, a pregnancy and style details matter at the fitting.

Ease and allowances

Ease is the room you add so the client can sit, breathe and move in the outfit. A body measurement is the body. The garment is always a little different from it.

How much room depends on the garment and on what the client likes. A gown can be close to the body. An agbada is meant to flow. A buba or a shirt sits somewhere between. This guide does not give one fixed allowance, because it depends on the cloth, the style and the person. Do this instead:

• Ask the client: “Close to the body, regular or loose?”
• Write the answer in plain words next to the numbers.
• Pinch the cloth on their body or hold the tape loosely to show what you mean.
• Check the fit at the fitting and write down any change you make.

How to record and reuse measurements

Numbers on a scrap of paper disappear. Numbers in a notebook are only useful if you can find them. For each client, write down:

• Client name and phone number.
• The date you took the measurements.
• The garment the numbers are for. A gown and a trouser use different numbers, and a client may have several sets.
• The fit the client wants, and the notes: posture, pregnancy, style details, left-handed, anything you will want to remember.

Here is a record you can copy:

Client: Funke Adeyemi
Phone: 0800 000 0000
Date: 01/11/2026
Garment: Gown
Bust: ___ in   Waist: ___ in   Hip: ___ in
Gown length: ___ in (in her heels)
Fit: close to the body
Notes: ___

Keep one page or one card per client. Never write measurements on the back of an order slip you will throw away. When the client returns, you reuse the numbers instead of measuring from nothing, and you only retake what has changed.

Measuring when you are not in the room

Sometimes a client is in another city, or cannot come before the event. Remote measuring is not as safe as measuring in person, so treat it with care.

• Ask the client to have someone else hold the tape, in thin clothes, standing straight.
• Ask for a photo of each tape reading, so you can see the tape is level and the number is right.
• Tell them which units to use. Inches are safest if you work in inches.
• Write “self-measured” in your notes and plan a fitting if you can.

You can send a message like this:

Good morning, Bisi. Please wear thin clothes and stand straight with your feet together. Ask someone to hold the tape snug, not tight, and send me a photo of each reading. Please use inches. Send bust, waist, hip, shoulder, sleeve length and the length you want. Thank you.

Questions people ask

Can I use my ready-to-wear size instead of measurements?

No. A shop size is a rough label, and different brands use it differently. Tailored clothes are cut from your own numbers. That is the whole reason a tailor measures.

How do I take men’s trouser measurements, including crotch depth?

Take waist, hip, thigh, knee, trouser length and ankle opening as in the men’s table. For crotch depth, ask him to sit on a flat stool. Measure from the waist at the side down to the stool, keeping the tape straight against his body.

Do I add ease, and how do I measure for darts?

Yes, add ease based on the garment and the fit the client wants, and write it down. For darts, take the bust point, the underbust and the waist carefully, because they help you place the shaping on a fitted top or gown. Check the dart position at the fitting.

Should I measure over clothes, sitting or standing? Do I need help?

Measure over thin clothes or underwear, with the client standing straight and relaxed. Only the crotch depth is taken seated. You can do most of it alone, but a helper to hold the tape end makes the back and sleeve lengths easier.

How often should I take measurements again?

Some printable charts suggest retaking measurements about every four weeks. For your clients, a better rule is to remeasure at each new order when it has been a few months, and straight away if the client says they have lost or gained weight, or you can see it. Keep the old set and write the new one with a new date.

What measurements do tailors use most?

Women: neck, shoulder, bust, underbust, waist, hip, bust point, back length, sleeve length, round sleeve, wrist and the garment lengths. Men: neck, shoulder, chest, waist, hip, sleeve length, round sleeve, top length, trouser length, thigh, knee and ankle. The tables above list them all.

Planning for a busy season? Read the December orders checklist for tailors.