to think that children clothes sizes are ridiculous!!

[macdoodle]

My DD1 is 8, she is tall and big framed, she has a healthy appetite , but is very active (swimming, trampolining, playing out, not a couch potato).
She is a healthy girl, with a solid build and a little roll of puppy fat round her tummy, and very early little breast bud developement.
She is NOT obese or even fat, her height and weight are on the 98th centile as they have been since she was born!

But bloody hell, clothes sizing is doing my head in, how is a age 8 supposed to fit all age 8's, her best friend is a tiny little thing but almost exactly the same age!

We bought a lovely pair of sparkly shorts in Asda for a xmas party today, age 10-11, she put them on this morning no way they would do up , very upset little girl, she wore something else.
I changed them at lunchtime, no sparkly shorts left, got a xmassy skirt age 11-12, nope this didnt do up either, cue very distressed little girl in tears because she is fat ! She really isnt, not just mummy saying so

Bloody hell, luckily best friend across road has a tiny 16 year old DD, who lent her a pair of satin shorts (adult size 8), and though a little big and baggy, did actually fit better than any of the childrens clothes!

Is it me?? AIBU?? Do I have a giant child?? She isnt obese, she is just big and well developed for age, where on earth do I buy her clothes (have been looking at New Look 915 teen range online)? She hates shopping with a passion and trying clothes on but am at a loss as to what we do now, without denting her poor fragile self esteem even more!

[mysteryfairy]

My DD is eight in January and is 135 cm tall - I didn't know percentile charts existed for DCs this old but from a quick google I'd say like your DD she is around the 98th centile.

From looking at the photos on your profile your lovely DD is an entirely different build from mine - she doesn't look remotely fat, just a lot chunkier and a more solid build.

I am 5ft 10 and a size 8-10. It doesn't surprise me that my DD is also fairly willowy. I wouldn't be able to wear the same clothes as another woman my height who was an equally healthy size 12 or 14. I don't see why it should be any surprise that two eight year olds of the same height would need differently cut clothing.

I guess the problem is that children's clothing is made to the lowest common denominator. It is cheaper, the market for any particular height is a lot smaller, so it is harder to get a decent fit.

I am really careful about what I buy for my daughter as she can be so disappointed if something is gaping or hanging off her. I think the only solution is to know your daughter and her body shape and height and buy accordingly. Part of that might be knowing where to shop. I guess the shops I avoid for my DD could be your friend - GAP and Next both seem to cut generously (Next also does a wide fit in some items) and Monsoon which has been good for DD in the past has very generous clothes this season.

[coldtits]

She's big and well developed, so maybe she needs adult's clothes? If her breasts are coming already, then pound to a penny so are her hips. Meaning children's clothes of any age will not fit her.

Try her with tunics and leggings.

[Highlander]

I have the opposite problem - I find most clothes are cut for fatties. The DSs can't wear anything without an adjustable waist (add another 5 quid )

[Morloth]

I am not sure the age/size thing applies much after say 3.

DS is 5 and wears size 8 trousers for the length but they have to be the ones with the adjustable waists cause he is a skinny pole.

The only way to buy him clothes these days is to drag him to the shops with me and make him try stuff on. Which he hates and as I result I do as well.

Still at least he couldn't give a fuck as to what I actually buy, as long as I make the decision quick so we can get out of there!

[MintyCandyCane]

Clothing sizes are a bit odd I think it does depend on the shop. One of my dds is large for her age though not fat, the others are tiny - we tend to go for an elasticated waist - she often wears boys skateboarder jeans with a dress top over them which is very flattering. You dd is beautiful and not fat - Merry crimbo !

[WeThreeNinks]

I think it must be very common. My DD seems perfectly slender until she's undressed and then there's the tummy. It's good news that it may drop onto her hips when she is older, I didn't know it worked like that so thanks to the person who pointed that out

Buying waisted clothes is difficult and I try not to draw attention to the fact that she is wearing 11-12 clothes at 9.5, it is a worry when young girls are sensitive about it.

Boys clothes are more forgiving I think with the elasticated waists, there are a lot of too-skinny jeans and hipsters for children around atm

DD has had a few bits from New Look but we prefer the 9-16 section at BHS, we bought some lovely things there for the winter which were fashionable but not inappropriately so IYKWIM.

[FimbleHobbs]

I really feel for your DD. She is a beautiful girl and not at all fat (and even if she was, so what? Its whats inside that counts) - but I am sure you have told her all that.

I agree that sizing is all bollocks and varies so much within shops let alone from shop to shop.

Agree with GooseyLoosey re the head holes too. Its very wierd.

Anyway I don't have anything useful to suggest I'm afraid other than have you thought about getting some jumper dresses and tights - would avoid the waist issue and not too grown up for an 8 year old?

[pruneplus2]

Macdoodle try not to worry - my DD is exactly the same.

I not only have a problem with stupid age sizing but I also have a massive problem with inappropriate clothing.

What I mean is when shopping for clothes with DD we look at the sizes and they usually only go up to age 11/12 or 12/13 the latter which are usually sold out. Anything above that age usually goes into teen ranges/adult clothes which at 8 years old I am not prepared to let my DD wear. Everything at the moment is fitted or "skinny".

I found some ok stuff in Primark that fit her but other than that its all too small or all too grown up and inappropriate.

[TheLemur]

I've always found Asda clothes to be the smallest around and have given up on them for that reason.

[littlemoominmamma]

I have a tall thin girl who is 5yrs. We have to buy her age 3-4yrs. to fit on the waist and pretend they are three quater lenghths !!

The adjustable waist trousers are so bunched up they are uncomfortable and look awful.

Skirts are a nightmare, she thinks they are going to fall down ( which they do!) so will only wear pinafores to school, which to be long enough for her are big and baggy.

Retailers cater for the average child, so if your child is not average you are stuffed!

[TinselianAstra]

I don't get it. Your DD is on the 98th centile. Therefore she has to wear bigger sizes. What's the big deal?

Of course an age 8 isn't going to fit all people who are 8 years old, but it's supposed to fit the 'average' 8 year old. YOu dont have to buy the age that it says is right you know.

[expatinscotland]

there's height and then there's size.

although, 'puppy fat' and breast development at 8 years of age, is that a cause for concern?

it's a genuine question and not meant as a dig.

my niece was like that and had something called precocious puberty and needed hormone treatment.

[fiveisanawfullybignumber]

OP - you have my sympathies, but YABU.
As others have pointed out; the manufacturers have to start somewhere.

Afraid I have to agree with mistletoekisses, had the opposite problem with my (now 15 and a size 4-6) DD.
Try getting something with the waist 3-5 yrs slimmer than the length, virtually impossible.
I found Gap was good for jeans, they do slim, regular & sturdy fit in kids sizes.
I think LaRedoute do the same also.
Goodluck, but don't feel too bad, we're all different, and if it's any consolation my DD's slim build is the result of her thigh bones failing to rotate outward during childhood, she now needs 2, possibly 4 operations where they break her bones and realign to correct this and open her hips out a bit.

[clankypanky]

YABU....the sizes are only a guide, we all know that all people are a different size build. I have to buy everything with adjustable waistbands for my children but they are not skinny, different clothes hang differently on different people, but the clothing industry has to give a guide somehow...you just need to try them on...whats the big deal?

[TheGoatofChristmasPast]

just get handy with a needle and thread. i am always altering dd's trousers to get them to stay up.

[diddl]

Over here they just do sizes, not ages!

[GooseyLoosey]

I find the age thing just a convenient guide to how big the clothes might be. Eg ds (6) needs about 9-10 clothes - those are the ones I try on first when I go to a shop.

The thing about sizing that gets me most is head holes. There was a time when ds was about 3 when he couldn't get (his fairly normal size) head through the holes in any of the cotton tops or tee shirts he had. I had to buy V necks just to make sure he could get them on. Surely to God there is not that much difference in head sizes (people who shop in Gap must have particularly small heads).

[TheFoosa]

if you go with height then often the waist is massive

I have to do alot of sewing, the adjustable waists look ridiculous when pulled to their tightest

[nikki1978]

I also have the opposite problem as my DD is quite slender and usually has the wear the age below. Has anyone else noticed that Tesco clothes are ridiculously big? She was wearing 12-18 month tesco clothes at nearly 3!

I was a bit chubby when I was in primary school and at the start of secondary school. I remember a friends mum being shocked that I couldn't fit into a 11 year olds skirt when I was 12 and a half because her twig of a daughter could . She was an old bitch though

[kreecherlivesupstairs]

The height thing doesn't always work. My dd is 127cm tall according to her last height check. We went to buy her some new trousers last week which is torture in itself as she doesn't like trying clothes on. In H+M the 128cm came to her ankle bones, in C+A they were the right lenght but even on the smallest button on the waistband they fell over her hips, in Zara she fitted into 134cm sizes and in one shop she had to have age 12 to get a good fit. She is 8.7 and very slight. The battle for clothes will begin again on Friday when we try to get her a ski suit

[Longtinsellyjosie]

What I think is sad is that children are associating larger age size with fat, as the OP's and Katnkittens' DDs have done.

When I was in bigger clothes than my age growing up, I just thought I was grown-up.

[JingleAllTheWay]

Our DD is 12 and the same height as me, and we are having real problems buying her stuff, because while her body is certainly changing she is not yet the shape of a woman. She needed new jeans, and any adult size were the wrong shape. Fortunately H&M do an age 12 - 13, 13 - 14, and even an age 14+ which were just right.

Have you tried H&M ?

[mistletoekisses]

OP - you have my sympathies, but YABU.

As others have pointed out; the manufacturers have to start somewhere. DS who is 2.3 is still in 18-24 month clothes and the trousers need to have a tie at the waist otherwise they are still too loose!

My advice would be to find some shops/ ranges that you know fit your DD's shape and buy the appropriate sized ranges from them.

If I buy from Gap, I tend to think the sizes are spot on for DS, so buy the right age group. Asda/ Tesco - buy one age range down.

[BlauerWeihnachtsengel]

I agree Mr Fibble. I've never understood why sizing is according to age in the UK. My dcs have NEVER in 11 years been in the 'right' age size - always too large or too small according to whether they've just had a growth spurt. In continental Europe it goes purely by size in centimetres, which is a bit more reliable. Doesn't H+M clothing have the centimetre size on as well?

But then you still have the problem of big-boned versus delicately built children of the same height. It's a pity you don't have C+A in the UK any more. They have a nice range of trousers/jeans for girls with a larger build (made wider around the waist and hips than standard clothing).

We have the opposite problem (dd2 has been under the 10th percentile since birth, and is clearly meant to be that way), and the solution is a large belt collection.

[newpup]

I agree with Bruffin, although I do sympathise with you macdoodle. The manufacturers have to start somewhere and so the fit is for an average child in each age range.

Of course many children are not average and so you need to shop for bigger or smaller clothes. I can not see what the clothes shops can do about that.

Having said that my DDs are easy to shop for, one is average height and build and one is tall and very slim so not too much of a problem. I am sure I would find it frustrating to have to work harder to find clothes for them!

By the way, your Dd is lovely!