To wonder why the same age clothes vary in size so much?

[Sirzy]

Surely 1 pair of age 9 - 12 month trousers should be the same as the next? The difference in length of them silly!

Do manufacturers (even for the same shop) not have standard Sizings they use?

It's the same as adults sizing, it also varies between shops and styles of clothing.

Annoying.

But given that children of any given age also vary hugely in size and shape (not just height) it can actually be helpful to have some variation - once you've spent time working out that clothes from one shop will never fit your beanpole/doughball DC because if the waist fits the legs are always too long/short. Usually there is at least one shop that has roughly the right proportions for your DC.

If all shops conformed to exactly the same measurements for height/waist/chest, it would be fine for most 'average' children on the middle centiles, who would fit everything, but maybe not so good for everyone else.

But when it is the case that one 14 month old can have 6-9 clothes that are to big but some 12 - 18 that are to small something daft is happening! A bit of variance is one thing but you should be able to buy clothes in the size you know the child is and them be wearable (even if a bit big to start!)

Of course they shouldn't all be the same size. If you have an odd shaped child you'd never be able to clothe them.

YANBU. DD2 is 5 and has clothes (that fit her) ranging from size 3 years to size 8 years.

Shrinking in the wash can also contribute to the problem - if you are comparing a brand new item with an item you already own, some of the difference could be attributable to shrinkage.

when all children are born the same size i will understand your 'plight' and agree

until then YABU

My ds3 is 5 and hios range from age 6 -8 and hes not big but sometimes things are to short in the arms and the back i suppose its good in a way

This drives me insane!! What's 12-18 months in one store is 9-12 in another and 18-24 months elsewhere! Personally I look at the European size, so 80cm for 12-18 months, 86 for 18-24, 92 for 2-3 years etc. For example my dd is in 1-2yrs at h&m, 2-3 at gap and 12-18months at mothercare...

so if I have one child who at 18 months was very long and very skinny, and another at the same age who is short and chunky, what size should all the 18 month old clothes be and which one would you have liked me to dress in a potato bag?

i have no idea what 'size' my child wears from an individual shop.....I hold the garment up, it it covers the relevant body part, i buy it, if not change it for one which does THEN buy it.

treat the numbers as a guide,

not rocket science is it?

*wonders what size potato bag Buzz uses

Children vary in size (something which parents can't accept).

I worked in my friend's ethnic shop while she was on holiday.

A mum came in with this HUGE child and had a go at me for the 5-6 stuff not fitting. Telling me that 'she's only four'.

Really? She looked ten.

Is very awkward.

That said, when I shop I vary from a size 12 to 16. Is the way it is.

Think of the economy if we dressed them in potato bags all the time

(and wonders exactly whose children Buzz considers 'odd shaped')

I don't really see the logic in saying sizes should vary because children do. If your child is smaller than average for their age, or larger than average for their age, then you will know this and can adjust accordingly, eg buying size 2 if your child is aged 3 but petite. If sizes are totally inconsistent then people with non-average children can be caught out as much as anyone else, surely?

Thing is melpomene they don't just vary in height, they vary in other dimensions as well - chubby tummies, ultra-skinny, broad shoulders, slim hips or whatever.

Maybe they should start doing children's clothes in height measurements plus small/medium/large, eg 90cm medium might fit an average two-year-old, but some skinny three-year-olds might need a 90cm small and my DCs would probably have needed a 90cm medium to large at age one - tall, and with very broad shoulders which meant I could hardly get some tops on them.

But somehow I don't think most shops would want to offer that kind of variety of size - which is why we all end up shopping around.

Children's proportions vary so it is good to have things cut differently so you can find something for your DC.

My DS is extremely tall and skinny - it is not a question of buying a different size - some brands (marks and spencer for eg) will never ever fit him no matter what size I get. Getting a larger size to get the right length means that the waist will not stay up.

My DD - she is very tall and well built. So just going up a size to fit her build will mean that the legs will be too long for her. Some clothes will never ever fit her and they are different to the clothes that will never ever fit DS.

Obviously with T shirts or similar you can get away with an odd length, but for things like trousers, it is extremely difficult to shop for my kids.

I accept the variance needs to be there, I love pants with adjustable waists because DS is a skinny thing!

He is 14 months and only just in 9 - 12 clothes but thats not what annoys me. My problem is how can 1 pair of 9 - 12 trousers be the perfect length and another be 3 or 4 inches to long? (which is a lot on a child)

but that other 9-12 would have been perfect for someone elses child, thats the point. My DS1 was the longest skinniest child you could see. I had to go through a phase of making or altering trousers for him.