To say vanity sizes should be rolled back?

[amoreoamicizia]

I bought some vintage St. Michael shorts this weekend in a size 12 which fitted me perfectly. In current sizes I'm an 8 or sometimes- incredibly- a 6 (looking at you, Boden).

As flattering as it is to think of myself as a size 8, it's simply not the truth or a reflection of reality. A small size 12 does seem about right, as that was my size as a slim-ish teenager in the 90s.

Who is this vanity sizing really helping? Who does it serve? Isn't it about time clothing manufacturers were held to account and forced to roll back sizes to what they were in the early 00s, at least?

Not sure I’ve experienced this. I fit the same size across all brands I wear. From M&S, Boden, Fatface, TopShop, Whistles, vintage clothes, and have been same size all my life. Perhaps it’s the accommodation for hip/waist or bust/waist ratios that changes across brands.

are you really getting sized out of mainstream clothes though? there are not many full grown adult women who are smaller than my 12 year old, but she manages to find clothes from a huge range of high street retailers that fit her without having to give it much effort.

i can't see that the problem would exist at the higher price points either so where is it you are trying to shop that can't accommodate you?

What size are you, out of interest? I think it's actually the gaps between sizes that vary the most between brands, so I'm guessing you're a fairly standard size?

Yes, but do they actually measure up? IME they all use the same size chart and it bears little relation to the actual size of the clothes.

I bought some jean shorts that said 25 inches, I was like, hmm, yeah...they were more like 30?
Not that a true literal 25 in denim would have fitted me!
My mum gave me some of her 12s from the 70s, some were too small for me, I was an 8, aged 18!? It seems to have calmed down now though.
I feel I've been an 8 at the size I'm now for at least 20 years. It does depend on fabric and designer.

They just need to be consistent. Not a scenario where in one shop an 8 is too big (I see you M&S) and in another a 12 is tight. I need to buy work trousers and have been putting it off because of that. Just have waist and inner thigh measurements like in men's clothes.

If you sew then you find the measurements and sizes are consistent on the larger companies sewing patterns.

I am a 14 in these but always smaller on high street clothing. The number doesn't matter to me but it's easier with the sewing as the inches for each size are consistent.

The history of all this shows how bodies have changed over the years. The average woman was a 12 in the 1950s, but back then that was a 28inch waist. Interesting stuff

@TheBunyip where does your daughter shop, please? :) Assuming she wears adult clothes, of course. Would love more options!

I think so - I've been looking at different tops and they definitely show different measurements for length, shoulder width etc. in my size.

Renumbering the sizes to what they were in times gone by wouldn't help with that though. If all the size 14 became 18 and all the 6s became 10s all that would happen is they'd stock more 18+ and the size 8 and below would fall off. Its not the number that creates supply its the demand.

M&S are huge for everything except knickers! I mostly by an 8 sometimes a 10 if it's fitted on the hips, but for knickers want 12-14 to avoid vpl

This! The size 8 trousers hang off me but I too need the 10-12 in their pants! What's that about?

Fully agree with posters saying how large M&S clothing runs - it’s so far off, it’s ridiculous. Their size 8 tops are easily a 12.

Same with Zara. I bought a top from there online a few years ago, went for a S, but it was almost like a 14/16. I returned it to see the sizing on the XS but it was the same.

I don’t think the amount of added stretch in clothes helps with sizing accuracy at all either.

The trouble for me though, is that the size charts, by inches/cms, with suggested size just aren't right either. Many of them suggest 14/16. Every single time I have to return for a 10/12. So the sizes aren't even correct to the measurements.

My DD who is short, slight, but curvy, can't find anything that fits. Yes, the 6's are too big in the waist. It's bonkers.

Completely winds me up, as I end up ordering multiple sizes online and returning loads.

Different brand clothing fit differently. Some fabrics have more give than others. Then there’s cut and style…
Sadly I need to take the tape measure out and compare to the manufactures size guide every online purchase.
Frustrating but other than viewing size as utterly random I’m not sure what the answers are.

Didn't h&m do this ?

I don't really much care what my size number is - and if I were a 16 not a 12 it wouldn't make me lose weight any faster as I've been overweight BMI since I had kids - so for 19+ years, not for lack of exercise or effort with diet. I don't delude myself that I'm the same size as when I was a size 12 in the 1990s as I bloody know very well how much I weigh and that it's a good deal more than when I was in my 20s.

Indeed, I think it makes sense that my body dimensions makes me a sort of medium/average size in Western countries and not a plus size, given I am actually quite a bit slimmer than the average person aged 48 measuring at 38" 29" 38" and would only be thought big in sub Saharan Africa or East Asia. The range of common sizes in shops needs to reflect reality now, not the reality in 1994.

When I was a size 16/18 a few years ago it was hard enough to get certain clothes as it was - particularly workout clothing.

What I would like is sizing to be consistent. I tend to stick to shops where it is - I can just pick up a size 12 and know it will fit.

😂

It's a number, I just work out the number in each store and get that.

This would seem a sensible option but even this is totally off sometimes.

Ive bought jeans in a 26 which acutally
measure anything from 24 to 28. It's annoying, I don't care if I'm bigger or smaller. Just want an accurate size across all clothes.

H&M, Zara, Mango, River Island, Free People, Urban Outfitters Stradivarius, Bershka, Pull & Bear, Damson Madder, Motel, Oasis, Reserved. i mean anywhere really, she's a kid, her tastes change like the winds, but she has never struggled to find things that fit her. She's an averaged size kid.

I try to steer her away from shein, boo hoo, nasty gal type stuff but she loves clothes and i more or less let her have a free rein.

😂 vanity sizing tied in with my weight gain. So 10 years ago, I was a Size 14, I was healthy & fit though. I ran 1/2 marathons, played hockey, cycled and ate incredibly healthily except for my sugar addiction which was why I was never slim.

Over the years the exercise has dropped off and I’ve piled on about 2 stone, as I hit perimenopause, yet I’m still only a 16!!

I’m realistic enough to know that if I was measured 10 years ago, I’d likely be at least an 18 or 20 now, but secretly it helps my self esteem that I’ve only gone up one dress size.

Yes indeed. Or to show off about being slim. Oh well done you, have a pat on the head. Any actual life achievements?