Abdomen arc- 1/4 of the total circumference of the fattest part

Apex- the doll’s nipple if she has one or the tip of her breast

Arc- 1/4 of complete circumference measurement

Basic block- your pattern that you drafted from your measurements it has no design to it

Bias grain- the diagonal of the fabric and your grain line is lined up with it for a different drape

Blend- making separate lines look like 1 continuous one

Bust- chest level on a child or man or the breasts of a lady doll

Bust arc- the distance from the flat ribs below the bust to the apex

Bust bridge- distance between apexes

Cap- height distance from biceps to cap at center

Center back- center of the back usually where there would be a spine

Center front -center of the front of a doll where there would normally be a breast bone

Circumference- distance around somewhere

Cloth body- the body is made of cloth and is very soft and huggable.

Composition body- the body I made of a plastic substance and does not squish when you hug your doll

Cross grain- grain running from selvage to selvage

Crotch- area where a drink and wet doll wets and where panties would normally go

Dart leg- one of the lines that makes up a dart

Dart point- the tip of the dart

Darts- used to fit a garment close to the body primarily for lady dolls but can be used on children or men but never on a baby.

Drape- holding and pinning a piece of fabric up to a doll and pinching the material until it fits then marking where darts are and making a basic pattern from
the fabric markings in a connect-the-dots style.

Elbow level – elbow of doll

Finger span- the distance around all the fingers at the largest point

French curve- plastic tool used to draw curves various sizes are available including ones specifically for dolls

Grading- the act of enlarging or shrinking a pattern

Grain line- center of garment running normally from top to bottom of piece

Horizontal balance lines or HBL- horizontal lines used as a basis of where the bust waist and hip lie so that measuring is more accurate and easier

Notches- used at the armhole and top of sleeve to ensure that the sleeve doesn’t end up crooked when sewn

Porcelain body- made of porcelain doesn’t squish and is very hard similar to a composition body only very fragile

Princess line- the style of a pattern where the bodice or skirt has been split into 2 pieces for each quarter of the body

Right angle or RT angle- a 90-degree angle commonly found at necklines centers side seams and armhole bottoms

Rulers- measuring tool

Seam allowance or S/A- allowance of extra fabric so that your sewing machine has a little extra to grab on to when it tries to feed your fabric through.

Sleeve cap -the curved top section of the sleeve from the front to the back

Sleeve ease- the added room needed to allow the arm to move if necessary

Straight grain- the vertical grain of the fabric

Style lines- various lines made on patterns to create a new look or design

Truing the pattern- checking to be sure that all areas match up side seams are the same length, shoulder seams are the same etc.

Waist arc- 1/4 of the total waist circumference measurement

Wrist level- the bottom hemline area of a sleeve, level with the wrist of the arm

1) Full Height Head to toe height with or without wig

2) Bust /Chest Around the fullest part of the chest

3) Waist Around waist

4) Hip Measure widest area parallel with the floor

5) Center Front /Back Length
Center neck to waist nape of neck to waist for back

6)Full Length Waist to shoulder at neck over bust (determines shoulder seam) waist to neck over shoulder blade

7) Across Shoulder From shoulder tip to shoulder tip on front and across the back at the fullest point. ONLY RECORD 1/2 of measurement

Side Seam Length Bottom of armhole (about chest high) to the waist

9) Shoulder Length Shoulder tip to neck

10) Shoulder Slope Center of waist to shoulder tip
over bust diagonally same on back. Should be almost as long as full length within about 1/4″

11) Bust Span (lady only) from apex to apex of the
bust (where a nipple might be)

12)Bust Depth (lady only) Measure from tip of bust (apex or Measure from tip of bust (apex or nipple) to waist straight down

13) Side Seam To Floor Side at waist to floor

14) Back Waist To Floor Center back to floor

15) Crotch Depth Depth from waist to crotch level (if doll does not have an official crotch approximate the right area for it.)

16) Hip Depth center front to hip line

18) Finger Span Around the fingers of both hands
to determine which is bigger Finger Span or Wrist

19) Wrist Around the wrist

20) Around Foot Around the circumference of the foot at sole level

21) Upper Arm Around where the porcelain or vinyl meets the cloth of the rest of the body

22) Sleeve Length From shoulder tip to wrist

23) Armhole Depth On back from center at the neck to chest ribbon

24)Waist To (A)Knee, (B)Ankle, (C)Floor, (D)Short Train (lady only), (E)Long Train (lady only)

(A)Center front Waist to knee

(B)Center front waist to ankle

(C)Center front waist to floor

(D)Back waist to beyond floor for only an extra inch or so

(E)Back waist to a larger distance beyond floor for longer train 4-5″

25) Inseam From Crotch to ankle where pants would end. No seam allowance or hem added

26) Outseam Waist to ankle along side of body

Hip arc Divide hip circumference measurement by 4 and add ease using section chart

Arm type Where the porcelain or vinyl meets the rest of the body determines minimum sleeve length

Leg typeWhere the porcelain or vinyl meets the rest of the body determines minimum skirt or pants length

Body type Cloth porcelain vinyl etc determines if you need extra ease

Finger type What type of fingers your doll has- a mitt, some fingers spread or individual fingers. Especially important for sleeve openings if the fingers are spread out then you have to adjust and use the finger spread measurement and not the wrist measurement if you have a porcelain or other fragile type doll and
a straight sleeve without elastic or other style of opening at the hem.

Guidelines are simply lines of undetermined length to provide a place to measure or draw a line to. They are not precise and do not have set lengths, most however, do need to be a squared (90°angle) angle from another line.