International Journal of Textile and

Fashion Technology (IJTFT)

ISSN (P): 2250-2378; ISSN (E): 2319-4510
Vol. 11, Issue 1, Jun 2021, 1-12
© TJPRC Pvt. Ltd

DESIGN ANALYSIS OF INFANT-WEAR GARMENTS

MS. ASHIMA ARORA & Dr. DEEPIKA PUROHIT

1
Department of Design, Banasthali Vidyapith, Rajasthan, India
2
Department of Design, Banasthali Vidyapith, Rajasthan, India
ABSTRACT

The Global Baby Apparel market size was valued at USD 135.5 billion in 2018. Three most important factors while
selecting Infant-wear garments are Safety, Comfort and Convenience as per few studies conducted before. As part of the
ongoing research in which the overall study focuses on the Design improvements of Infant-wear garments and its impact
on Export/Import trend of India. So, the Research paper focuses on the major factors considered while designing Babies
garments. Infants (0 to 18 months) have a sensitive skin, increased mobility and they outgrow their clothes faster. So
parents face challenges in regard to the comfort, price and regular requirement of new clothes as per the growth stage of
the baby. Though a comfortable and durable garment with product safety guidelines followed is the mandatory
requirement of Infant-wear Apparel but at the same time, Design plays an important role during Product Development
considering convenience of the parents and their babies. The study is focused on the observations from 5 products and

Original Article 1
inputs from few designers have also been taken.

KEYWORDS: Infant-wear, Design Analysis & Buyer/Parents’ preference

Received: Dec 14, 2020; Accepted: Jan 04, 2021; Published: Jan 28, 2021; Paper Id.: IJTFTJUN20211

1. INTRODUCTION

Infant-wear in the age group of 0 to 18 months (up to 85 cm height) has undergone a tremendous change, receiving a
great impetus as a style statement by parents all over the world, making the suppliers to shift their focus to this
segment of the apparel industry.

Infants and children are often physically active and so comfort is the major requirement so that they can
move freely. More-over children outgrow their clothes quickly (grows almost 6 cm every 2 months in height and
gains 4 to 6 ounces a week) and frequent washing leads to fading and weakening of fabric. So quality needs to be in-
built in every part and step while manufacturing these garments. Probably babies have more clothing challenges
than any other group.

Moreover, quality standards/compliance like BSCI (Business School Compliance Initiative), GOTS, The
Oeko-tex standard, The European Ecolabel, REACH etc. need to be followed for Infant & Kids-wear. As kids-wear
can become dirty so parents prefer styles which have lesser risk of shrinkage or fading even after washing them at
fairly high temperatures. Consumers prefer natural materials so 100% Cotton is the most preferable fabric.

2. LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Body Proportion, Growth & Movement

Length of Infants is measured with the help of Stadiometer (Measuring table) while they lie on their back. By the
age of 5 months, normal-term infants increase about 30% and by the age of 12 months or a year, the growth is more

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2 Ms. Ashima Arora & Dr. Deepika Purohit

than 50%. During the first year, infants usually grow about 10 inches (25 centimetres). Growth in boys is more as
compared to the girls. Boys attain half of the adult height by the age of 2 whereas girls attain half the adult height at 19
months.Growth in length is nearly six centimetres after every three months till the age of 6 months and after that nearly
four centimetres till 9 and 12 months.

Babies are dependent on his or her parents in the first year of life. Babies gain control of their muscles, moving
from sitting to crawling, standing up and then walking.

Figure 1

After 2 weeks of birth, new-borns usually gain about 1 ounce per day during first 2 months and 1 pound per
month after that. Due to this weight gain, by the age of 5 months body weight is double the birth weight and by the end of
1 year body weighs triple the birth weight.

2.1.1 Physical Development Patterns:

a. Head to Foot

Development of baby body begins at the head and then moves down to neck, then arms, legs and feet.

b. Near to Far

Development begins near trunk of body & then moves outward. This is the reason that babies can wave their arms before
they have precise hand and finger control so the stress points in Baby garments are armholes, elbows, hip area and knee
joints.

c. Simple to Complex

Large muscles develop before small muscles. For this reason, babies have a Fig.1 Near to far Development better
grip with whole fist much before the individual fingers.

The World Health Organization records that babies of 0-3 months gain approximately 900 grams per month, from
4 months to 12 months a standard baby must gain about 600 grams per month.

Gross Motor skills involve the large muscles of the body such as arms, legs, neck and trunk so in the first year,

Impact Factor (JCC): 6.5667 NAAS Rating: 2.94

Design Analysis of Infant-Wear Garments 3

babies learn to lift head, prop up body, roll over, sit, crawl, stand and walk. Fine motor skills involve the small muscles of
the body such as fingers. Babies learn to grasp objects, pass them from one hand to another, self-feed and drink from a cup
so Bib plays an important part of Infant-wear attire.

Figure 2

Baby can stretch his/her legs and kick in the first month. Whereas in the third month, infant can kick his/her legs
while lying on the back/belly. In the fourth month, there is increased mobility in Infants. In fifth month, infants start
crawling and are able to sit upright for long periods of time with support. By the ninth month, infants can roll, sit up and
lean forward. By twelfth month, physical activity increases with playtime.

Measurement around the largest area of a baby’s head is Head Circumference. Head circumference is important
as Head passage test needs to pass in all infant-wear garments. At birth, the brain is one-fourth of its future adult size
and head circumference is about 14 inches (nearly 35 centimetres).Brain is nearly 3/4th adult size by the age of 12
months.

Figure 2

Vision of an infant is blurry at first but by about 1 year of age, vision is similar to adults so they tend to get
attracted towards colours. New-borns prefer high contrast patterns. They get more appealed towards red and blue colours.

2.2 Product Safety &Design aspects related to Infant-wear

Product safety is an important parameter in Infant-wear so every country has a Garment Safety regulation to follow. Main
parts to control in these garments are Cords and drawstrings, Separable small parts (Any component which is attached
permanently to the garment like stickers and accessories), Non-separable small parts (like pressure fasteners, buckles, sewn
buttons, zippers, hooks etc.), Sharp points or objects (like decorative ornamental pins, exposed rhinestones, zipper parts
etc.). Safety standards have been developed to ensure safety of Babies and infants from potential mechanical hazards
caused due to application on the garments.

Clearing the Flammability test (Ability of a material or product to burn with a flame under specified test

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4 Ms. Ashima Arora & Dr. Deepika Purohit

conditions) is mandatory requirement for all Infant clothing.

Use of drawstrings, decorative or functional cords that protrude from back part of the garment or that are fastened
to the back must not be part of Infant-wear or Children’s clothing. Moreover, clothes should be designed in a way that
these drawstrings/cords are not present in the hood or neck area. The ends of the drawstrings, functional cords (Chain,
ribbon, drawstring with or without embellishments) and sashes (Decorative or functional cord of a textile material,
drawstring of not less than 30 mm in width that is worn around the waist of a garment) must not be tied and must be
protected to avoid fraying (thermal bonding and stitched). It is permitted till it does not create a risk of entanglement.
Zipper pulls, including any adornment, must have a length less than or equal to 75 mm measured over the body of the pull
and it must not extend beyond the lowest edge of the clothing designed to end at the ankle.

Metal Detection Policy is a mandatory procedure designed by almost all Apparel brands so that the products
manufactured and exported do not contain any needle, pic, staple or any metallic item that may cause any injury if
unintentionally left in the product. Apart from this, most Infant-wear brands around the world have policy of having 100%
ferrous free garments.

Separable Small Parts under standard EN 71-1 may cause potential hazard of choking caused by young children
sucking and partly swallowing ties, ribbons and similar items. Non-separable small parts may cause injuries because of
tension forces (buttons, popper fastener parts or zipper puller which might get detached from the garment).

There are different requirements of different niche markets in European apparel for example GOTS standard is a
mandatory requirement for Babies organic cotton garments. BSCI (Business Social Compliance Initiative) developed by
European Retailers helps to monitor Social compliance of suppliers.

The world’s leading ecolabel Oeko-Tex standard is involved in testing textiles for presence of harmful substances
by its 3-level certification and the European Ecolabel is a voluntary label for products and services with reduced impact on
environment.

2.3 Right fabric

Babies are quite gentle and their skin is extremely sensitive to any fabric due to the presence of hard particles. So Hand-
feel is an important factor while choosing a fabric or garment for babies. It should not seem harsh to the soft skin of baby.
Apart from being soft, it should be light weight and porous in order to allow the sweat to dry.

It should be non-irritating, non-inflammable and easy to wash. So the best choice is Cotton as synthetic clothes
may lead to allergy on the baby’s skin.Classic fabrics for baby clothing are soft jersey, fine fabrics made of cotton and
wool, nicki velvet fabric and fleece. Materials with elasticity make dressing easier and allow sufficient freedom of
movement.

There are chances of presence of toxic substances and chemicals in the dyes used for conventional Cotton fabric.
So Organic Cotton is gaining popularity in Infant-wear clothing as it does not pose any threat to both the wearer and the
environment.

2.4 Convenience

Some baby-wear garments available in the market have big buttons, fancy zippers, hangings etc. but such outfits can lead

Impact Factor (JCC): 6.5667 NAAS Rating: 2.94

Design Analysis of Infant-Wear Garments 5

to discomfort to the baby and babies also try to pull out such amusing materials.

2.5 Comfort

Babies usually have a curled position and a chubby abdomen at birth. By age one, their arms, legs and fingers uncurl so
they start to lose the chubby look. Babies measurements are often more difficult and less accurate than measuring older
children and adults. Motor skills are not completely developed in new-borns and infants up to 18 months leading to their
inability to stand upright, to sit straight and to participate actively in the measurement process. In new-born babies and in
the first months, height can be determined by making them lie down with legs stretched. In babies and infants, the torso is
not very pronounced and chest, waist and hip circular measurements are relatively identical.

Pattern construction for babies is not very easy as their body proportions are very different from kids-wear
category. The head of the baby accounts for one-fourth or one-fifth of the body size. Therefore, the measurements should
be taken precisely and while constructing these garments, sufficient comfort width or allowance needs to be taken.

Infant-wear should be both comfortable and functional. Pajamas and rompers are always constructed with extra
length and sufficient space for the diaper. As most of the garments are one-piece so quick access to the diaper also needs to
be considered so push buttons or snap buttons are indispensable part of Infant-wear.

Most of the parents prefer one-piece baby outfits as they are easy to wear and take-off if needed. Most
comfortable and basic outfits for Infants are Leggings, bodysuits, pyjamas, dresses with shorts, rompers etc. Few fashion
conscious parents look for cute, stylish designs.

2.6 Labelling/Packaging

Information related to Composition, wash care symbols, size (in months and cms), Country of Origin and Ecolabels (if
applicable) need to mentioned on the labels of all Infant-wear garments. Language used for providing product information
should be the language of the country for which the clothing is destined. Those brands which sell a product in different
countries have labels in multiple languages.

Figure 3:.Examples of Labelling

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6 Ms. Ashima Arora & Dr. Deepika Purohit

3. METHODOLOGY

The data for study has been collected on the basis of Observations, Textual and visual analysis of Infant-wear garments and
unstructured interviews of Kids wear and Infant-wear designers. Top selling European brands were selected and garment
designs of different size-range (0-1 month, 1-3 months, 3-6 months, 6-9 months, 9-12 months and 12-18 months) were
studied for Design details vis-à-vis existing styles, Fabrics, Colour,Garment Construction details, types of
trims,fasteners,necklines,sleeves,prints and embroidery.

4. FINDINGS OF THE RESEARCH

Design#1 Bodysuit

Figure 4: Bodysuit
Source:www.jacadi.us

Impact Factor (JCC): 6.5667 NAAS Rating: 2.94

Design Analysis of Infant-Wear Garments 7

These bodies are designed for new-borns and are available in knitted fabrics in 2 styles – Envelope neck
opening and Wrap style. The snap buttons used at wrap opening are nickel free. Made from ultra-soft organic cotton,
the wrap opening makes dressing baby easy.It is either in 100% Cotton Single jersey fabric or in Cotton Rib. If
Organic Cotton is used, it is always GOTS certified. It is sold in a set of 2 or 4. Necklines and all edges are finished
with Bound-Seam.

Design#2–Dress

Figure 5: Baby Dresses

Source: www.jacadi.us

Such designs are ideal for the size range of 0-24 months but if combined with Panty the size-range can be
till 18 months. It is made of 100% OrganicCotton fabrics and are available in variety of fabrics like 40s Poplin, 60s
Cambric, 80sVoile, Dobby, Chambray or Light weight Denim fabrics. Ric rac laces are used in Infant-wear and
kids-wear garments very often as a design feature. Such dresses usually have a round neckline or a Peter Pan collar
and Button fastening. Frilled short sleeves and tiered skirt can be added to give it a more feminine look. If printed
fabric is chosen to make such dress, prints have floral motifs. An important point to be observed here is presence of

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8 Ms. Ashima Arora & Dr. Deepika Purohit

Button closure on back side of the garment reducing the risk of separable parts for babies.

Design# 3 -Unicorn Cotton Sleep & Play

Figure 6: Baby Sleep-suits

Source:www.kohls.com; www.jacadi.us

This sleep-suit is available in the size range of 0-9 months. The 2-way zipper feature keeps baby warm and also
makes it easier for the mother to change Diaper. This Polka dot printed Sleep-suit has an embroidered motif on it thus
making it inseparable part of the garment. It has a safety tab to protect chin from touching the sipper puller and built-in
footies to protect the babies against mosquitoes and also give them a cosy feeling.Cotton Interlock fabric has been used to
construct this garment. Instead of 2-way zipper, front snap buttons are also a good option.

Design# 4 - Bloomer/shorts

Figure 7: Baby Shorts & bloomers

Source: www.howtokissafrog.com, www.jacadi.us

Shorts shown here in Gingham checks are made from soft and flexible cotton. Waistbands are always elasticated in Infant-
wear garments making them easy to slip on. Legs in shorts are cuffed leaving space at inseam area for the Diaper pants.
Such shorts are usually available in the size range from 1 month to 12 months. Bloomers are made in 100% soft jersey
fabric and can be used from 6 to 18 months. Frills all over the backside give it a fancier look.

Impact Factor (JCC): 6.5667 NAAS Rating: 2.94

Design Analysis of Infant-Wear Garments 9

Design# 5 – Shirt or Blouse

Figure 8: Baby shirt

Source:www.jacadi.us

The shirt shown above in Figure 8 is made from soft and comfortable cotton. Here again the button closure
(Mother of pearl in this case) is present in the back. Such styles can be worn by babies from 1 month of age till 18 months.

5. RESULTS & DISCUSSIONS

Most often very subdued colours are preferred for European Infant-wear. The colour choices are not limited to pink or
baby blue but pastel shades of grey, ivory and plum are also visible in Baby-wear collections. Cute patterns, ditsy prints,
stripes, Gingham checks, Liberty of London fabrics are always preferred. French babies carry a chic style of clothing with
subtle yet classy shades whereas baby clothes of Belgian & Scandinavian brands are much more fashionable, colourful and
funky. Style is not compromised to ensure comfort rather the Infant-wear selling in European countries is stylish along
with being cosy and extremely soft.

At times, dresses are combined with T-shirts. Most of the styles in Infant-wear are made in 100% Organic cotton
knitted fabrics. Use of woven fabrics in Baby-wear garments has lesser visibility in the market.

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10 Ms. Ashima Arora & Dr. Deepika Purohit

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Impact Factor (JCC): 6.5667 NAAS Rating: 2.94

Design Analysis of Infant-Wear Garments 11

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