How to Measure Your Abaya Size: A Complete Sizing Guide

The short answer: our abayas are sized by height, not bust or waist, across five sizes from 52 to 60. Measure your height accurately against a wall, match it to the chart below, and size up if you fall between two ranges. The rest of this guide covers exactly how to measure yourself properly and what to do if you're unsure.

An abaya is not sized the way a fitted dress is. There is no bust measurement to obsess over, no waistband to negotiate with. What actually determines fit is height, because an abaya is designed to fall to a specific point relative to your frame, whether that is the floor, the ankle, or somewhere in between. Get the length right and everything else about the fit tends to follow, which is exactly why so many abaya brands, ours included, size this way rather than using the dress sizing you might expect from Western fashion.

Why Height-Based Sizing Makes More Sense for Abayas

A conventional dress size assumes a fitted silhouette that needs to skim the bust, waist, and hips in specific places. An abaya, by contrast, is a loose, flowing garment designed to drape rather than fit closely, which means the single measurement that actually changes how it looks and moves on your body is length relative to height. Two people of very different builds but the same height will both get the correct hemline, correct sleeve drop, and correct overall proportion from the same size. That's the entire logic behind the system, and it's worth understanding before you measure, because it explains why guessing your usual dress size will almost always give you the wrong result.

How Alkareem London Sizing Works

Our abayas, including pieces like the Khadeejah Grey Abaya, run on a height-based sizing system across five sizes:

This runs across the collection, so once you know your size, it carries over to most other pieces rather than needing to be re-checked for every new abaya. It's worth writing your size down somewhere you'll actually find it again, since it's the single most useful piece of information for every future order.

How to Measure Yourself Properly

Getting an accurate height measurement takes two minutes and makes the difference between a piece that falls exactly where it should and one that needs taking up. Small errors here compound: being out by even two centimetres can shift you into the wrong size bracket entirely if you're near a boundary.

• Stand against a flat wall, barefoot or in the socks you would normally wear, with heels touching the skirting board.
• Keep your posture natural. Don't stretch up or tuck your chin, both throw the measurement off by more than people expect.
• Mark the wall at the top of your head using a book or ruler held flat against your scalp, then measure from the floor to that mark with a tape measure rather than estimating.
• Measure in the morning where possible. Height can vary by up to a centimetre through the day as your spine settles under gravity, and a morning measurement tends to be the more reliable baseline.
• Ask someone to help if you can. Marking your own height accurately while standing still is harder than it sounds; a second pair of eyes reduces the margin of error considerably.

What If You're Between Sizes?

If your height falls right on the edge of two ranges, say 5ft4 and a half, sitting between the 54 and 56 brackets, the general rule is to size up rather than down. An abaya that runs slightly long can be worn with flats or simply hemmed by a tailor, while one that runs short cannot be lengthened without visibly altering the garment. This matters more for closed, pre-coordinated styles than for open abayas, which have more natural room to adjust through how they're worn and layered. Our Open vs Closed Abaya guide goes into that difference in more depth if you're weighing which style suits your build best.

A Note on Frame, Not Just Height

Because our sizing is height-led rather than bust-led, a smaller or larger frame at the same height will generally still fit well, since our abayas are cut with movement and layering in mind rather than a fitted silhouette that closely follows the body's shape. This is one of the more reassuring aspects of abaya sizing once you understand it: unlike Western dress sizing, you're not choosing between "fits my hips" and "fits my shoulders." If you are between the tallest bracket and a genuinely petite frame, or have any doubt at all after measuring, our customer team can advise on a specific piece before you order.

Common Sizing Mistakes to Avoid

• Using your dress size as a shortcut. A UK 10 in one brand tells you nothing about which abaya height bracket you fall into; always measure directly.
• Measuring in shoes with any heel. Even a small heel adds enough height to shift your result into the wrong bracket.
• Guessing rather than measuring. Most people overestimate or underestimate their own height by a couple of centimetres, which is exactly the margin that matters here.
• Assuming sizing is identical across brands. Height-based systems vary slightly between retailers, so always check the specific chart for the brand you're ordering from rather than reusing a size from elsewhere.

FAQ

Do all Alkareem London abayas use the same size chart?
The core five-size, height-based system runs across most of the collection, though always check the specific product page, as some limited pieces may have their own sizing notes.

Should I size up if I'm not sure?
Generally yes. A little extra length is easy to manage with flats or a simple hem; a piece that runs short is much harder to fix without altering the garment.

Does sizing differ between open and closed abayas?
The height chart stays the same, but open abayas tend to be more forgiving of a borderline measurement since they're designed to be worn loose over other clothing rather than fitted precisely to the body.

What if my height falls just outside the top or bottom bracket?
Contact our customer team directly with your exact measurement. For most people just outside a bracket, the nearest size still works well given the natural drape and movement built into the cut.

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