Fit model’s blog

Just when you’re sure the web couldn’t become more diverse, you find a fit model’s blog! Carolita is -get this- a fit model and a professional cartoonist for the New Yorker. This is her personal favorite:

My favorite cartoon is here. Through Cartoonbank, you can order her cartoons as prints -or even on tee shirts. Perhaps an ideal last minute gift for Father’s Day?

When not reading, eating, sewing or cartooning, she’s working on a new solution to bird flu.
Enjoy!

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35 comments

  1. Judith says:

    I like this N.Y. Kette. I so love the dress cartoon. My answer always is ( I will wear it in Paris on a pinic) for a dress I cant afford. I had to think of something to say to my mom and Dh. When I was 17, I used to say I will wear it when I wash the dishes. When I got older I thought I would have to think of something better to say.

  2. jenna says:

    I am interested in becoming a fit model. I am 5’9″ with a 28 inch waist and a long torso. Everyone tells me I should try to be a fit model since clothes always tend to fall right into place on me. Any suggestions or contacts. Thanks for your help.

  3. Kathleen says:

    If you’re really serious about it, you’ll need some way for people to contact you. It’d also help if you said your location.

    I don’t know about for other markets but your dimensions sound great for western wear. I mean, if you were close to me, I’d be intrigued enough to have you come in for measuring. Not that I’m doing western wear anymore. It’s just that I know one company that really dominates in that market because of the sizing of their fit model and I’d just be curious to see how close you came to her.

  4. Alison Cummins says:

    I live in Montréal and the Help Wanted ads regularly feature requests for receptionists who wear a size 8 with given measurements. Sometimes the ads are for fit models who would also do some clerical work.

    So I would say to check out the Help Wanted section.

  5. Charmain says:

    Our company needs a Male Fit model. I need help to what to look for in a male fit model. We do classic, modern designer menswear. Help, I don’t know what to look for e.g. height, weight, measurements?????????????

  6. lucy says:

    I’m interested in becoming a fit model. I am 4’11” with a 25 inch waist.Everyone tells me I should try to be a fit model for petite women. Any suggestions or contacts. Thanks for your help.

  7. Charlotte says:

    I have been a fit model on and off for the last 3 years in NYC. The job has been very part time, and I’m interested in finding more work, but don’t know where to begin, since I initially got the job off of craigslist. I am just under 5’8″, with a 27.5inch waist. Any suggestions to help point me in the right direction?

    Thanks for your help.

  8. Willie says:

    Lucy,
    Anyone looking for fit modeling work needs to look for all the apparel design locations within one hundred miles of your area. You could start with the major clothing stores and then work your way down to the labels in clothing and use the internet to find their offices.

    Good Luck.

  9. jenx says:

    I sort of accidentally am a fit model, my friend is a designer and asked me to come in and try some things and I did it for a while as a favor, for fun. But I see now that I could probably do this for work, who knew!
    My question now is, I’ve answered an ad and have been asked to come in to “check me out” I guess. I need to know what to charge, I don’t know the going rate in LA, do I charge for the first “check out” visit? Anyone with any ideas, I would really appreciate the help! Also if you know of any books or websites that could advise me that would be a huge help!
    Thanks Jen

  10. Roy says:

    I am a 25 year old male in philadelphia, PA. I would like to move to NYC to become a fit model. I am 5’11- 160lbs- 32×32. Does anyone think I have a chance? I have an athletic body type also.

    Thanks!

  11. holly says:

    I thought I actually use myself on a generic hang tag (without my head of course) to show my garment that would be for teen – adult alike. I am 5’8″-125 lbs. (youngish 50 year & old size 6). My teenage daughter and I share some clothes (she is size 1) How much would a fit model even have charged? I also have a adult friend in her late 30’s that is so petite she buys in all junior stores. As long as I just show the body (waist area) I would think I or my friend or possibly my 16 yr. old should be good for the tag to cover both markets.

  12. I thought I would chime in, I was a fit model for 14 years making a 6 figure income.
    The LA market is very different from NY, as the rates differ.
    Established fit models usually find agency representation. It is best to seek out fit modeling agencies that have a long track record of booking for fit. Since it is such a specialized niche, it is important to find someone that knows the Fit industry. Back in 1997 I started Peak Models & Talent in Los Angeles, and have some of the top booking fit models in the industry. If you are truly a fit model and want more information, feel free to email me your specs and I will be happy to see if we can find you accounts in your size range.
    Be careful out there, if you try to book directly, make sure you know the going rates before agreeing to any fit positions.

  13. Liz says:

    Natasha,
    Are you familiar with the NYC market? If so I would like to pick your brain on the best way to get into the industry.
    Thanks

  14. Kathleen says:

    Liz (anyone really): Natasha’s name is a hyperlink, you can contact her that way. There’s no guarantee she’s subscribed to the comments on this entry and will know you posted.

  15. kristen says:

    Hello…I live in Northern New Jersey, I am every interested in being a petite fit model in NYC. I am 5’4″ with a 27inch waist. Is that too short? THANKS!

  16. Elizabeth says:

    Natasha,
    I saw your response to shay’s post and was hoping that maybe you would be able to give me some advice or let me know if there are any accounts in my size range, here are my specs:

    SHoulder width 14 inch
    bust 34B waist 25 upper hip 34 full hip 37 inseam 27 thigh 21 height 5’6.

    Let me know if you have any advice.

    Thanks,

    Liz

  17. jane says:

    Hi

    I am looking for a fit model for a size 10 to try on a pants sample in nyc sometime in the next 2 weeks. Any suggestions on which agency I should contact, and how much I should expect to pay?

    I would also like the same model to pose for photos for a web-site. The web-site photos will show customers how to measure their waist, hips, rise etc to insure a proper fit. Would a fit model do this also? These photos would not show the model’s face.

    Jane

  18. Marie says:

    Hello,
    I live in San Francisco Ca. and I have been working part time as a fit model for the past 8 months. I have a regular gig at a large brand here in the city and I fit about 3 days a week, about three hours a day. They also use me for presentations in SF, NY, LA and Seattle. These presentation can last anywhere from one hour to all day.

    I have a question concerning payment and professionalism… My agent assures me that this is normal for the business, but running a business of my own, I have a hard time seeing the logic in it and I hope one of you can shed some light on the subject, so that I don’t push too hard in a direction that might piss someone off resulting in me losing work and earning a bad name.

    I get paid $150/hr
    2hrs = $300
    3hrs = $450 (this all makes sense)

    when I’m booked for 4 hours, they only pay me (the half day rate), which is $400
    ???????
    I’m no business buff, but doesn’t that seem odd? By booking me 4 hours, they essentially pay me less than if they were to book me for 3. So I told my agent I could only work for three hours at a time. Now my agent tells me that “well, the half day rate is really 3-4 hours” and so instead of me getting paid $450, I get paid $400. I can live with the $50 loss, but the inconsistency scares me and when I get booked for a whole day and only get paid $750 (subtract my agent’s cut) $600…I wonder if they think standing still for more hours gets easier or what?

    Some tips on where I stand would help. Thanks

  19. Kathleen says:

    Marie, this is a weighty problem surely and I probably won’t help any. I think your agent is calculating the half day discount based on the full day rate. Were it exactly half, it’d be $375 but she/he is charging $25 over that. I agree it’s not much of an incentive for business owners to be more efficient with your time and it is problematic that this represents a loss to you at this point.

    I think it would be good if you could draft a counter proposal on fee structure to your booking agent. What have you considered to be fair? Maybe a cap on time blocks? Say, a half day rate at a maximum? Iow, someone wanting you a full day would pay the half day rate X 2 ($400 x 2=$800 instead of $700). This might be a compromise he/she could go for, you each absorbing a loss on the difference.

    Also, does your agent have a minimum? In developing a counter proposal it would be helpful if you tracked and analyzed your bookings. If you do the math, you might find that having a lower hourly rate but a firm flat rate, is actually more profitable and would simplify matters. For example, if you were billed out at $125 per hour flat rate but most of your bookings were 4 hours, it’d be a win over what you have now ($500 as opposed to $400). A full day would be $1000 instead of $700. You’d be surprised to learn customers may actually like this. They’ll see $125 an hour vs $150 and think to themselves that an hour or two is all they’ll need but the people doing the fittings wouldn’t be so focused on time (plus things always come up) so they’d run over on time and you’d end up with more. Like I said, analyze your booking time frames to see.

    I also realize that for a lot of people reading this (who may want to be a fit model), $150 an hour sounds like manna from heaven but doing it as a full time gig can be exhausting -and even sometimes demeaning. I don’t have that kind of money but I know you earn it.

  20. It does make sense to pay less per hour when offering a greater commitment. For instance, I am paid very well but because I am a full-time salaried employee I am paid much less than you are per hour. If I were working here and there through an agent, I would expect to charge much more per hour. I have chosen to give up a possibility of earning more per hour in favour of more security.

    It’s true, the math doesn’t quite add up. (You shouldn’t be paid less for 4 hours than for 3.) But what it looks like to me is that on average, you are being paid $110 just to show up. Once you’ve shown up, you get $80/hr to work. That sounds pretty fair to me.

  21. Kristen says:

    did you all get into fit modeling through an agency originally? i met with an agency and they told me i’d have a good chance if i lose 3/4 an inch from my waste, high, and low hips. is this standard? im already pretty thin. maybe its to make me more proportional?

  22. Kathleen says:

    Kristen, no one can know the answer to this question. “Thin” is subjective -my mom thought I looked emaciated when I weighed 160lbs (I’m 5’5″). More importantly tho, each manufacturer has a profile customer shape in mind. It could be you’re suited for one that focuses on another body shape but you might have been outside the range of their medium (median size) of their size spread. By definition, fit models cannot be fashion model thin.

  23. Kristen says:

    kathleen, thank you. i’m 5’9″ and about 135. But i totally get what you are saying. I’ve been eating really healthy and no sodium and I’m almost there.

  24. Kathleen says:

    It depends on the intended consumer market, it really does.

    For a line that is targeting a fitter profile that has a larger proportion of people who are hgt/wgt proportionate, then the window of optimal weight is 100lbs plus 3 to 5 lbs for every inch over 5 foot. Ex: You should weigh between 127 and 145 lbs so you’re already there. Your height could be more of an issue. 5′ 9″ is a bit too tall, pushing the limits really but your other proportions may be suited for what they have in mind (only tops, only bottoms etc). The average hgt for a woman is about 5’4″ so you could not fit clothes sold at inexpensive outlets (wealthier are also taller).

    Fit models should not be fashion model thin unless one is selling clothes to fashion models.

  25. Dawn says:

    I just had my second/final fitting for a fit model position with a popular american-urban clothing line but when asked about my request for pay, I wasn’t sure what to say. This would be my first Fit model job (I’m in Los Angeles) and I saw that Marie from San Francisco has only worked 8 months and works for $150 hr. Is this normal rate pay?

    I would really appreciate anyone able to give REAL NUMBERS advice on what I should request .. both Fulltime and Part time since I’m being considered for both positions…

    Thanks in advance…

  26. Barb Taylorr says:

    The agencies I have worked with do charge higher hourly rates, because one needs to consider the time it takes the model to travel between appointments, change clothes, etc. It would not be worth their trouble to come in for just one or two hours because they would not be able to work an 8 hour day if it were split between 3 or 4 clients in different parts of town. I am very used to seeing day rates, 1/2 day rates, & hourly rates with a minimum fee for very short appointments. The numbers Marie showed seem in the right ballpark compared to NYC agencies I have used. Consider also that pattern-makers & designers time is valuable too, so I would not worry that a company would stretch out fitting time just to get the day rate.
    Rates also vary with experience. For $150 / hr I would expect a very experienced model; quick, efficient, knowlegable (about what a pattern-maker & designer does and does not need them to say & do). I would also expect them to keep his/her measurements extremely consistent from one booking to the next. If you are a complete newbie I suggest you cut that rate in half until you build some experience and relationships with clients or your customers might be very dissatisfied and not give you a 2nd chance.

    I would not expect to pay anything to look at a prospective fit model. that is the same as a job interview.

    I also agree that your best bet is working for an agency that supplies fit models for the industry.

  27. Jenna says:

    I am living in Paris, France. Which is a major fashion capital and I believe would have a need for fit modeling. I am interested in Fit modeling, but does anyone know of any international or French agencies?

  28. TARLA says:

    I have been a professional fit model for several years and it is a great, fun way to make a living. It’s definitely more profitable in NY than LA as not only are the rates double but you can take subways to appointments that are located fairly close to one another. The only downside in LA is the driving distance so you might spend as much time in the car as at your fitting. But when you’re good at organizing your drive time with phone calls, you can have a mobile office. I do love helping to shape pieces that I see in stores and enjoy the fit modeling process. You get paid basically to try on clothes…what could be better?

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