Children's and Young Teen Sizes: (Discussion and Estimator)

Link to adult sizes and head sizes, including babies' heads.

As a convenience, I am providing a calculator to help you estimate small children and teen sweater designer measurements based on their "store size".  This page has a discussion of sizes, and  provides for men and women's sweater dimension.  Warning: This estimator may not match the one in the "full" generators.  This is because the I  found a different "standards" table!

To use these estimators, pull down the appropriate size. The table will provide my guesses for the wearer's size. I have made some judgments when determining ease.  I'm not going to explain them all, but I have inserted a few notes. In general, my ease values are for "moderate" fit. 


After you knit your first sweater, decide if you agree with my ease judgments or not.

The estimator for children.

This estimator is unisex. It applies to young children.  The larger sizes apply to kids who are large for their age, but still have more childish figures.  I advise using the "teens" chart for anyone in their teens.  Consider using the "teens" chart for pre-teen girls. 

In priciple, the sizes apply to kids of a certain age. However, the standard was written in the '50s when kids were smaller.  When I was a kid, Jenny Newell and I were the smallest 6 year olds in our class.  We wore size 6X, which is supposed to fit 7 year olds. (I skipped 6 X.) ,Amercan children generally wear a larger size. I have not yet found a more recent standard size chart with the full set of measurements. 

For sizes 8 and above, I have added probable height and weight associated with a size.  If you are knitting for a child, and you can't get their parent to weigh them, at least get the parent to tell you their height and weight. (Or, locate a kid who seems similar in size, and ask them their height and weight. )

All values are in inches.
Choose the child's size.
Pull down:
Pull down: 
Probable height and weight
 inches lbs


Body dimension
 Ease
 Sweater Dimension
(To enter in "EZ generators)
Fullest part of chest

Shoulder Width


Neck Width before adding trim: At the absolute minimum, the neck needs to fit around your neck. The opening needs to be big enough to let your head through.
 
The smaller value for the ease is the neck width that fits very snugly around the back of your neck.  For children, do  not use this value unless you are making a very, very deep V neck, or using a button closure at the neck.   

I estimate the smaller value using a "rule of thumb" from hand knitting design books. (A better estimate requires knowing  your neck circumference.)

The larger value will permit your head to pass through the opening even if you make a very shallow V neck.   I generally use the larger value.




Upper arm (biceps):
to
to
Armhole Depth:


Arm Length (Measured from shoulder to wrist measured with elbow bent.)
0
 NA
Full Sleeve Length (From spine to shoulder, then down to wrist measured with elbow bent)
0
Wrist
0
Sweater Length: My book doesn't recommend sweater lengths, and I don't have kids!  For sizes 8 and above, I've scaled  using data for adults. (Meaning, if the child is 1/2 as tall as an adult, their sweater is roughly 1/2 as long as an adults!)
0

The estimator for teens:

Choose indicate whether the wearer will be a boy or a girl then choose the appropriate size. (Ignore the toggle that doesn't apply.)
 Pull down:
Pull down for teen girl:
Pull down for teen boy:
Probable height and weight.
 inches
 lb.

Body dimension
 Ease
 Sweater Dimension
(To enter in "EZ generators)
Fullest part of Bust or Chest.

Shoulder Width


Neck Width before adding trim: At the absolute minimum, the neck needs to fit around your neck. The opening also needs to be big enough for your head to pass through.

For children, I recommend the larger value.  The smaller fits around the neck, but may not permit the head to pass through the opening.

The larger value will permit your head to pass through the opening even if you make a very shallow V neck.   I generally use the larger value.




Upper arm (biceps):
to
to
Armhole Depth: If you have beefy arms, like I do,  you will probably want to make the armholes deeper than recommended here.



Arm Length (Measured from shoulder to wrist measured with elbow bent.)
0
 NA
Full Sleeve Length (From spine to shoulder, then down to wrist measured with elbow bent)
0
Wrist
0
Sweater Length: My book doesn't recommend sweater lengths, and I don't have kids!  For sizes 8 and above, I've scaled  using data for adults. (Meaning, if the child is 1/2 as tall as an adult, their sweater is roughly 1/2 as long as an adults!)
0