A form-fitting garment is an article of

clothing Clothing (also known as clothes, garments, dress, apparel, or attire) is any item worn on a human human body, body. Typically, clothing is made of fabrics or textiles, but over time it has included garments made from animal skin and other thin s ...

that tightly follows the contours of the part of the body being covered. A feature of Modern Western societies is the popularity of form-fitting clothing worn by women, compared to equivalent male garments. These include

T-shirt A T-shirt (also spelled tee shirt, or tee for short) is a style of fabric shirt named after the T shape of its body and sleeves. Traditionally, it has short sleeves and a round neckline, known as a '' crew neck'', which lacks a collar. T-shir ...

sweater A sweater (North American English) or pullover, also called a jersey or jumper (British English, Hiberno-English and Australian English),

shorts Shorts are a garment worn over the pelvic area, circling the waist and splitting to cover the upper part of the legs, sometimes extending down to the knees but not covering the entire length of the leg. They are called "shorts" because they ar ...

, and

jeans Jeans are a type of trousers made from denim or dungaree cloth. Often the term "jeans" refers to a particular style of trousers, called "blue jeans", with the addition of copper pocket rivets added by Jacob W. Davis in 1871 and patented by ...

. Some cultures and religious communities disapprove of form-fitting clothing, especially outerwear, which they consider to be immodest. There are numerous types of clothing which typically are or which can be made form-fitting. For example,

stockings Stockings (also known as hose, especially in a historical context) are close-fitting, variously elastic garments covering the leg from the foot up to the knee or possibly part or all of the thigh. Stockings vary in color, design, and transparen ...

leggings Leggings are several types of leg attire that have varied through the years. Modern usage from the 1960s onwards has come to refer to elastic close-fitting High-rise (fashion), high-rise garments worn over the legs typically by women, such as leg ...

tights Tights are a kind of cloth garment, most often sheathing the body from the waist to the toe tips with a tight fit, hence the name. They come in absolute opaque, opaque, sheer and fishnet styles — or a combination, such as the original concep ...

, and

socks A sock is a piece of clothing worn on the feet and often covering the ankle or some part of the Calf (leg), calf. Some types of shoes or boots are typically worn over socks. In ancient times, socks were made from leather or matted animal hair. ...

are usually form-fitting. Clothing used in dance and in exercise, such as leotards, unitard, and swimsuits, are usually form-fitting.

Undergarment Underwear, underclothing, or undergarments are items of clothing worn beneath outer clothes, usually in direct contact with the skin, although they may comprise more than a single layer. They serve to keep outer clothing from being soiled ...

s or

foundation garment Foundation(s) or The Foundation(s) may refer to: Common uses * Foundation (cosmetics), a skin-coloured makeup cream applied to the face * Foundation (engineering), the element of a structure which connects it to the ground, and transfers loads f ...

s such as

corset A corset /ˈkɔːrsɪt/ is a support garment worn to constrict the torso into the desired shape and Posture correction, posture. They are traditionally constructed out of fabric with boning made of Baleen, whalebone or steel, a stiff panel in th ...

girdle A belt without a buckle, especially if a cord or rope, is called a girdle in various contexts, especially historical ones, where girdles were a very common part of everyday clothing from antiquity until perhaps the 15th century, especially for w ...

bodysuit A bodysuit is a one-piece form-fitting garment, form-fitting or skin-tight garment that covers the torso and the crotch. The design of a basic bodysuit is similar to a one-piece swimsuit and a leotard, though the materials may vary. Thong or T ...

brassiere A bra, short for brassiere or brassière (, ; ), is a type of form-fitting underwear that is primarily used to support and cover a woman's breasts. A typical bra consists of a chest band that wraps around the torso, supporting two breast cu ...

s, and underpants are form-fitting to give a smooth line to the outer clothing.

Skin-tight garment A skin-tight garment is a garment that is held to the skin usually by elasticity (solid mechanics), elastic tension using some type of stretch fabric. Commercial stretch fabrics ('elastomerics') such as spandex or elastane (widely branded as 'Ly ...

s are usually also form-fitting, but are held to the skin by elastic tension. In contrast, non-form-fitting garments are commonly referred to as "loose". Though many materials can be used to make form-fitting garments, the thinner materials, such as

synthetic fibers Synthetic fibers or synthetic fibres (in British English; see spelling differences) are fibers made by humans through chemical synthesis, as opposed to natural fibers that are directly derived from living organisms, such as plants like cotton ...

, are the most commonly used, because of the smooth line that can be produced as well as their extra strength when pulled tight. Some fabrics cling to the skin or do so when wet, giving a form-fitting effect. File:Col roulé, porté non plié.JPG, A turtleneck Image:Bianca Rinaldi e Dudu Braga.jpg, Bianca Rinaldi with a

t-shirt A T-shirt (also spelled tee shirt, or tee for short) is a style of fabric shirt named after the T shape of its body and sleeves. Traditionally, it has short sleeves and a round neckline, known as a '' crew neck'', which lacks a collar. T-shir ...

File:Skinny jeans 05.jpg, Tight

References

Clothing {{clothing-stub

See also

References