Abstract
This study was intended to analyze conventional grading increments and methods for middle-age men's pants, and to suggest new grading guidelines that will enable to improve satisfaction with size and silhouette as a result of combining the concept of grading, which help maintain the ratio and proportion by sizes as one of ready-made apparel's advantages, with body form oriented and aesthetic approaches. In the apparel industry, the current sizing specifications and methods adopted by relevant companies, as well as the characteristics of body forms of men aged 35 to 55 years were comparatively analyzed to find out problems and ultimately to suggest their solutions or improvements. It was considered that as the conventional grading practices used in the industry were customary on the basis of the past experiences, it was required to take the body forms of target consumers into account and also, to reconsider the conventional grading methods. Analyses of sizing and specifications by brands show that 4 to 19 sizes including 82 or 84 as standard size have been produced. Since men's apparel has a large number of sizes with the large range of sizes, grading is critically important. As silhouettes depend on the distribution of grading rule values at each point of increment pattern in the main regions during grading, it is necessary to consider both size grading and form variations. To maintain an appropriate silhouette with keeping the angle of center back line of a pattern, it is desirable to set the ratio of side line part to center part from the crease line to approximately 3:7. It is required to diversify the values of grading rules according to different sizes and pattern regions in consideration for the body forms of key consumers. In addition, if the natural lines of designs and patterns for the width increments of waist circumference and hip circumference, the increments of hip width in pant's front and back panels, the ratio of grading rule values of the right and left sides of crease line, knee circumference, thigh circumference and so on are taken into account, grading will be satisfactory in the all aspects of size, silhouette and ratio.