I am the "Fit Specialist" on the Black Diamond Equipment (based in Salt Lake City, UT) apparel team. When garments are designed and developed, like any other product, they go through a prototyping and sampling process. When the team first begins to develop a style, it prototypes in one size only. For men, this is a size medium, for women, this is a size small. These are known as the "base" or "sampling" sizes. Part of my job is to get the fit of our styles just right in the base size. When a prototype arrives, I call a fitting with fit model, designer, developer, and line manager. We discuss the fit goal for the style (slim, relaxed, etc.), the kind of activity the wearer will be doing (hiking, climbing, etc.), the layering intentions (over a light puffy, over a helmet, etc.), and where it sits fit-wise with other styles in the line. I then pinpoint any fit issues the model is experiencing with the piece (we also often send the piece out for field testing to garner additional feedback), and later I take a closer look at the style's patterns to determine how those issues can be improved. My findings and comments are then relayed to the factory. Once design and fit is just right at the base size level, that style is "graded" out into all the other sizes. I also oversee the grading process. In general, my goal is to ensure that our fit is true to our core, athletic customer, and to ensure that grading/sizing is appropriate and consistent.
How did Human Ecology prepare you for your career field? Human Ecology prepared me for my career field in two major ways:
1. In my major, there was always a "you get out whatever you put into it" mentality. And within Hum Ec there were ample opportunities to explore new directions and broaden skills. After my junior year, I decided that I wanted to go into the outdoor sector of the apparel industry. My decision was supported by a variety of extra-curricular classes, including one for active sportswear design, and one for learning about new, innovative textiles and textile processes.
2. Studying apparel design at Cornell was unique in that the college, and the university itself, is steeped in a tradition of research. Other design and/or art colleges do not have this root. Having cultivated a practice of scientific attention to detail and problem-solving is probably the single most important reason why I ended up in my current position. Fit is very personal and highly subjective, and opinions and preferences are often all over the board. At the end of the day, I have to be able to sift through the noise, and find measurable ways to prove out the best possible direction.
