“Accentuate the positive”: investigating knitwear for the 3d body shape of larger women

This research is achieving a better understanding of fully fashioned weft knitting related to individual, larger, 3D body shape. Transferable results are being produced on industrial Shima Seiki knitting systems. Women over fifty comprise an increasing proportion of our population, yet there appears to be an imbalance between their sartorial aspirations and availability of desirable clothing. In parallel with middle aged women, women of size 16 and above find clothes shopping fruitless, and frustrating. Consequently both bigger and or older women become excluded from their peer group and disregarded by fashion. Consideration is also given to the psychological affects of larger body size. This research addresses these issues in the practical context of knitwear. One significant finding of this research is that larger and or older women’s response is to look to custom made clothing. Towards this end, garment templates in an internationally transferable format have been created to facilitate the possibilities of bespoke production within the European Union. A pilot study has culminated in a capsule collection of prototype garments and contributed to the development and inception of a main study.