This study evaluated the fit of a one-piece dress using a 3D-printed dress form designed to reflect the body shape of middle-aged women and examined its potential for practical application by comparing the results with those from a 3D virtual fitting program. Therefore, a dress form was created based on the body measurements of middle-aged women using 3D body scanning and 3D printing, and an actual one-piece dress was fitted onto it. The same pattern was then simulated in a 3D virtual fitting program. A subsequent visual assessment was performed to compare and analyze the similarity between the 3D virtual fitting and actual fitting results. The analysis revealed that the 3D-printed dress form more accurately replicated the body characteristics of middle-aged women, making it advantageous for evaluating actual wearing comfort and garment fit. In contrast, the virtual fitting program demonstrated limitations in detailed expressions of elements such as wrinkles in specific body areas and fabric properties, resulting in lower consistency with real-world fitting outcomes compared to the dress form. This study confirmed that the 3D-printed dress form for middle-aged women can enhance accuracy in both fit evaluation and garment production processes. Future studies should focus on developing dress forms that accommodate diverse body types and refining virtual fitting technologies to enable more precise garment simulation and evaluation.

This study aims to develop a life-friendly, wrap-one-piece style dance sports practice wear considering the physical characteristics of middle-aged, abdominally obese women. These types of practice wear allow people to enjoy exercise easily and to wear these garments as daily wear while meeting the requirements for dance sports wear. The three participants selected for this study were all women with five or more years of dance sports experience and were all average sized on Korea’s abdominal obesity scale. In the first phase of the study, practice wear was created in a total of nine styles with three different styles of neckline depths for three different styles of dress skirt lengths. In the second phase of the study, the practice wear was created in 15 styles with five different styles of sleeve lengths for three different styles of waistline heights. After analyzing the design preferences of the participants, the fit preferences of the designs were evaluated and the final appearance was analyzed in order to suggest a pattern. The results of the subjects’ first and second preference evaluations showed a preference for a 10 centimeter neckline depth, for high waistlines, and for elbow to wrist-length sleeves. The implementation of this research is expected to be extensive, as its results can be used as basic data for making lifestyle dance sports practice wear that covers the physical insecurities of middleaged, abdominally obese women and enables them to enjoy their leisure time.