A custom competition suit is built to numbers, not to a letter on a hangtag. Guessing from street clothes, or sending last year’s off-season size, is how bottoms slide and tops gape on show day.

We build custom suits to bust, waist, hips, and torso length. For in-stock pieces we also work from a five-measurement set plus height, current weight, target stage weight, and check-in photos. If a landmark is unclear, we confirm it on consult—727-784-0844.

Use the competition suit sizing guide when you are ordering in-stock. Use this page when you need the full custom picture, including torso and cup.

What do you need before you measure?

A soft measuring tape. Not a metal construction tape.
Bare skin. No padded bra, no thick waistband.
A second person if you have one. Torso and back lines go wrong when you twist to see the tape.
Height (no heels), current weight, and target stage weight. We build for the body you will have, not only the body you have today.
Recent front, back, and side relaxed photos.

Do not suck in. Do not subtract inches because you “still have four weeks.” The tape should lie flat and snug. Measure during prep. If the numbers are more than a couple of weeks old and you are still dropping, retake them before we cut.

How do you measure bust and cup?

Cup is not a lingerie letter from 2019. We need two circumference numbers.

Over bust (cup). Wrap the tape around your back and across the fullest part of the breasts, typically over the nipples. Keep the tape parallel to the floor. Do not cinch.

Under bust (band). Lift the breast tissue if you need a clean line. Wrap the tape firmly around the ribcage where a bra band sits, straight across the back. This is the number that keeps a top from riding.

If you wear inserts on stage, measure the way you will compete. Send the inches, not a retail bra letter.

How do you measure waist?

Find the natural crease by bending slightly to one side. That is usually an inch or two above the navel, not at the navel, and not at the low rise of your posing bottoms.

Wrap the tape around that narrowest point. Relax the stomach. A sucked-in waist produces a suit that is already loose at check-in.

How do you measure hips?

Hips are two different measurements. Mixing them up is the most common error we see.

Hip bone. The bony points on the front of the pelvis. Wrap the tape directly over those bones. This is higher than the glutes. It is where connectors and the top edge of many bottoms will sit.

Lower hips (glutes). Feet together. Tape around the widest, fullest part of the hips and glutes, parallel to the floor all the way around. This is the coverage number. It is not the hip-bone number.

If you only send “hips,” we do not know which landmark you used. Send both.

How do you measure torso?

Custom construction uses torso length so the top and bottom meet your actual trunk. Our FAQ lists torso with bust, waist, and hips as the custom build set. The in-stock sizing guide does not spell out a single torso landmark, so do not treat the following as a secret house formula. It is a solid generic protocol. We will confirm the exact points on consult.

Front torso (standing). Stand straight, shoulders down. Place the end of the tape at the high point of the shoulder next to the neck (where a tank strap sits). Run the tape down the front, over the bust, to the crotch. Keep the tape on the body; do not let it bow away.

Side / waist-to-crotch. Measure from the natural waist down the side to the crotch, or to where you want the bottom to sit on the hip. This catches a long-waisted or short-waisted athlete that a bust-waist-hip set will miss.

Height still belongs on the card. Height plus torso is how we tell a 5'2" long-torso athlete from a 5'6" short-torso athlete with the same hip number.

If you are unsure which torso measurement we want, send both, or get on the phone. Wrong torso is how a top sits too short or a bottom’s front panel drops.

What else should you send?

Division. Bikini, Wellness, Figure, Fit Model, and men’s trunks are not the same pattern. Fit Model cannot use Bikini coverage, crystals, connectors, or side ties.
Cut preference. Catalog names (Rio, moderate, pro, classic) are maker language. We still cut to division rules. Confirm against current NPC/IFBB rules.
Target show date. Do not assume a website “weeks” line is the live queue. Contact the studio with the date. In-stock and Stage-Ready programs exist for short calendars; full custom is a different build.
In-stock or custom. In-stock suits are adjusted to your measurements before they leave Clearwater. Custom is cut from the start to those numbers. Custom cannot be returned.

Usual mistakes: measuring over clothes; sucking in; calling hip bone “hips”; sending a bra letter; skipping photos; measuring once at 12 weeks out and never again. Have someone else take torso and back.

How does this turn into a suit that stays put?

Bust and under-bust set the top. Waist and hip bone set where the sides and connectors live. Lower hips set how the back panel covers. Torso sets whether the two pieces relate on your trunk. Photos catch the cases where the numbers are legal but the shape is not. We do not call a stock size custom because it was pulled off a rack.

FAQ

What measurements does a custom SY suit use? Bust, waist, hips, and torso length—plus under-bust, hip bone vs. lower hips, height, current weight, target weight, and photos.

Should you suck in when you measure? No. Relax the stomach and let the tape sit snug, not tight.

What is the difference between hip bone and lower hips? Hip bone is the high pelvic line where connectors sit; lower hips are the fullest glute line that sets back coverage.

How do you measure torso if the site does not show a diagram? Take a shoulder-to-crotch front torso and a waist-to-crotch, then confirm the landmarks with the studio at 727-784-0844.

Can custom suits be returned? No. Custom is made to your measurements. In-stock may be returned unused within 30 days if the policy on the FAQ still applies to that order.

When should you measure? During prep, close enough to the build that the numbers match the body we will cut for—and retake them if you are still dropping.

---

Send the tape, the photos, and the show date. We will tell you if anything is missing before we cut. FAQ · bikini competition suits · Stage-Ready · 727-784-0844

How to Measure for a Custom Competition Suit