Is 'vanity sizing' getting worse?

[LaburnumGrove]

Years ago I was a 10 and my wedding dress was a 10 (very fitted waist) and my waist was 24 inches.

We all know that has changed and some 10s now are 28 inch waist.

But what about tops too?

I've noticed that more and more tops (T shirts etc) are available in a size 6 which was very unusual before.

I'm usually an 8 now in many clothes but some tops I'm verging on needing a 6. I'm petite and 32D bust but size 6 hardly ever existed in most brands years ago.

I was a 10, sometimes even a 12 as a teen 25 years+ ago. I've always weighed the same since being about age 14/15, I was and still am fairly slim but not remotely thin, I'd say very similar in shape to 25 years ago despite having 3 children. I am now a size 6. I'm not a size 6 in reality I'd probably be a 10, 25 years ago. I wouldn't be able to get a pair of size 6 trousers from 25 years ago past my ankles!

I don't buy anything without trying on now and if I order online I often check the returns policy and order in 2 sizes. Variation in sizing between shops is mad too.

I agree that average sizes have changed. However this should just mean that shops who used to sell sizes 8-14 now sell sizes 10-16, or whatever. What they actually did was keep the same size names but change how big they are!

But you have to have a High Street!

My best shops are an hour away door to door, by train or car.

I started this thread because I'd noticed some mainstream brands now stocking a 6 which they never did, even a year ago. And also having ordered an 8 in some T shirts that were looser than I'm imagined.

Same here - lost a lot of weight in the last few years, but have a 30/31 inch waist and yet am a 10/s27 in Reiss and other brands. Always get a shock when I see photos and am reminded that I am NOT really that slim after all…

I’m petite but definitely a healthy weight! Years ago I was a size 8 or 10, depending on the fit or shop but these days I’ve almost given up on women’s clothes and I’m generally dressed head to toe in kids clothes!!
I'm 54 and have a label in everything to put my name on - it’s a bit weird 😂 I generally fit age 12 or 13 and there’s no way this would have been the case 20 years ago!
For context I’ve been the same weight my entire adult life, so the only thing that has changed is the clothes sizing!

It doesn't scream of that at all. Most people are saying there is no way they themselves are a smaller size, but the clothes they are fitting into are big with a small label. You're trying to create drama where there is none.

Size 6 has been around for decades, tops too. I'm a size 6, never been any different and old so should know.

I also dispute this is a new thing- it’s just you’re at the stage to notice it.

When I was a teen in the last century, I would wear a top shop size 8, but an M&S size 8 would drown me.

if I buy a dress now from Boden I’ll pick a size 6 dress and it’ll fit me fine. If I pick up a dress in New Look, I will want either a size 8 or 10 depending on how generous the cut.

If I’m ever brave enough to wander into shops aimed at teens, I know I’m going to be looking at size 10s.

This has been going on for years and it’s a problem imo. Firstly because people think they are slim when they can fit a 12 when they aren’t at all and secondly it’s nigh on impossible to order clothes online because you have to order 2 or 3 of each item to see what fits. Some retailers are now charging for returns when you send loads back!

I always used to buy size 10 tshirts 40 years ago, but now size 8 are too big for me and I am larger than was then though not by much.

I am only 5"1 so I can't carry it off and so find it very difficult to buy clothes.

@MynameisJune but I can’t find clothes that fit due to vanity sizing, that’s the frustration.

I shouldn’t have to take 4 sizes into the fitting room to find one item, it’s exhausting and frustrating. Not to mention a lot of places have a limit on items you can take in. If I’m looking for a couple of tops, a skirt and some trousers, I can only take 4 sizes of trousers in, and I then have to repeat the process with each top, each skirt etc. I don’t want to spend an hour plus trying endless things on, just to buy a couple of items.
Last summer I ordered some summer trousers from M&S. I had to return them and order down -the next size down were still too big! I returned and ordered down again, guess what?…..yep, still too big!
I seriously need some new clothes but I actually left a retail park last week and came home empty handed. It is so frustrating.

I don't mind it, the numbers have always been weird, they've never corresponded with any actual bodily measurement. A size 10, if this reflected a 10 inch waist then sure, but of course it doesn't.

Vanity sizing is definitely a thing but a 28" waist was a size 10 when I was a teenager and I'm now 45.

As someone who is also petite - M&S age 12-13 was always about the same as their women’s size 6 petite sizing. The problem was the children’s range didn’t allow for grown up curves (understand my) so only really worked for non-fitted clothes for me.

Yes. I'm 5'8" and when I was teens/20s I weighed 9 stone and took a size 14. Now I'm 10½ stone, size 12 bottoms are on the big side and tops are still 14 but I definitely have changed shape and am bigger on top. I think in old sizing I would be 16 or 18 on top, 14 bottom.

I don't think it's anything new. A size 12 in M&S in 1997 was not the same as one in Topshop. Inconsistency has always been around in women's clothing, but it is worse due to the volume of stuff getting produced and lack of quality control. Also the shift to S/M/L type sizing and doesn't help.

@YouDriveMeCrazyButICanDoThatMyself couldn't you take a tape measure and measure things before you try on, assuming you have already measured your own body measurements? Then it would be very easy to narrow the choice down to two sizes per item rather than needing to take a range of 4 sizes per item.

I buy expensive clothes and keep them.

I've lost 6+ stone and I'm wearing things from twenty years ago. They are 14-18.
I have no bum or hips but due to multiple operations I have a belly and thicker waist.
My friend asked me the other day if I was now a 14, I wish but I can see how this could be. My size 10 niece couldn't get on my 12 uniform skirt from 1990.
One of the television presenters was claiming to be a 14 when presenting a diet programme at 102kg! In vintage clothes she had to wear a 20.

I’ve noticed this. I’ve had to buy a size 6 in tops quite often and I am definitely not a size 6 compared to historical sizing. I was a size 6 when I was about 18 and I was definitely a lot thinner than I am now. I’d say I am more like what a size 10 would have been 20 years ago but the majority of my wardrobe now is 6-8.

Absolutely! I was a size 27 jeans 20yrs ago, and about 10lbs lighter, I tried on a couple of pairs in a 27 the other week and they were too big. There is no way in the world I’m a size 26, but that’s what I bought. I have jeans in the same brand bought only a few months ago in a 27 that fit, so they’ve got bigger again. I don’t know who they’re trying to kid.

Size 6 was available but not in so many places.
DD used to get a size 6 when she was aged 12/13 and wanted 'older clothes' but not big enough for women's clothes.

30 years ago, when you were 15, a size 10 was not a 28 inch waist.
My wedding wasn't that many years before then and a 10 was a 24 inch waist.

You’re not a size 6/8 if your back measurement is 32 inches.

I sell vintage clothes online and an 8 was a 24 inch waist in monsoon in the 90s. I'm an 8 now and it varies widely depending on style and fit. But as has been said, it doesn't matter what the label says so long as it fits. I buy exclusively online due to personal preference and it's not hard if you know your measurements