Is size 12 seen as "big" generally?

[piperoo1095]

Hi all,

Not trying to cause controversy here as I am genuinely interested. But do most people consider a UK size 12 to be "big"? I only ask because I see a lot of posts online at people "horrified" that they reached a size 12 and to me it's never seemed bad at all. Perhaps I've been living under my nice little rock of ignorance. Of course I'm sure height and build plays a massive role too!

ETA I'd tried to quote the poster asking for a Size 8 at Reiss in LA! Don't know where the quote went!

In my 20s, I remember spotting a dress in DKNY near LA and lifting it to look at it, and the nasty shop assistant walked up to me and said "I don't think you'll find anything that fits you here. We have nothing bigger than an 8, my love."

I was a UK size 8...an American 4. She was very overweight, maybe a UK 18.

I just smiled and didn't respond. As it happened, I decided to try the dress on and went to the fitting room which was manned by other staff members.

She came flying after me...

"That dress is NOT going to fit you. It is TINY."

My Mum was luckily there to step in and said, "if it doesn't fit, it's no big deal is it? My daughter likes the dress and wants to try it. Let her try it."

It fit perfectly, in a size 4. I've never walked out to the main mirror more proudly to "check how it looked".

She was literally apoplectic with rage,
the weirdo... "OH?! It FIT?! What size is that? An 8?!"

She was an utter 🐄. I just said, "Ummm no,
it's a 4. I'm buying it, thanks." Then I asked for the fitting room assistant's name in front of her, "So I can thank the Manager for you helping me today when I pass on my feedback 😂"

Anyway, back to the question...

I've been a 12 at times, I'm 5"5 and it feels just a little bit bigger than I'm happy with but I'd still call it medium. I'd agree 30 years ago it was a slimmer build.

I've got friends who would describe a 12 as fat but they are size 6s and have issues with body image and food. I've heard people infer a size 12 is "too small" but again, they have body image and food issues at the other end of the scale.

I'd say it's a medium sort of size. Slim on some frames, chubby on others but in no way "fat" or "skinny".

I quick Google brings up:

In the UK, 31% of women buy size 12 clothing, making it the most popular size.

However, nearly 40% of women in the UK wear clothes that are size 16 and up

For me a UK size 12 is ideal.
My chest is too flat any lower and it is the middle of my BMI for my height.

As a 5ft size 12 woman I can tell you my BMI is 24, so actually it’s more at the top end of healthy weight. You can be short with a wide frame. Everyone seems to assume all short people are like Kylie Minogue. We are not!

I think it all depends on what people are used to, I was a size 8 until I hit my 30s then shot up to a 12 just before and after my pregnancy.
For my frame it was very noticeable and I wasn’t comfortable with it, I hit 69kg and my bmi meant I was classed as over weight
I’ve dropped back down now but apparently the uk average dress size last year was a 16 so

Surely it depends on height
A 5ft 10 size 12 would look fairly slim
A 5ft size 12 would look quite stout

I'm tall and slim - I would not be overweight as a 12, but it would not be my ideal weight (the one I've been all my adult life).
I would say an average height woman probably sits in the healthy weight range.

12 is a medium surely. I don't like it when I go into 12, not because it's big in general, but it's big for me, and tbh, it is that engrained aspiration of wanting to be small, not medium.

Also BMI is bullshit

I've got a pair of size 14 jeans from 30 years ago when i was 15(😩). I've apparently been a size 12 since my late 20s, and yet the size 14s fit perfectly. I'm 5'9 and in old photos, I'm all bones and boobs. But proportionally bigger than the other girls. Hips always 39 inches, even without any fat on them.
I always see 12 in my head as slim, but maybe not so much if you're shorter. However, I'm aware the 80s and 90s imprinted themselves on me.

No, it's a blunt tool which gives you one reference point in your overall health.

It is unlikely that someone with a healthy BMI has weight-related health issues.
There are outliers, but not many and health professionals need to be aware of its limitations. It's not bullshit though.

I'm 5ft 8 and a size 12. I weigh just over 10 stone, and my BMI is 22. So size 12 can be a healthy weight, sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't. It depends on height, build etc.

I was size 12 in 1969/70, and I don't know what weight I was, but my measurements were 34” bust, 25” waist and 34” hips., and I was around 5’ 4”.

What size would that be nowadays? (Not that I'm anything like that size now!)

It all depends on your height and body shape. However, in general terms, yes due to vanity sizing.

I have a skirt from top shop from twenty years ago and it’s a size 12. I can still get into it, however, I am most definitely not a 12 now, usually I’m a 10, sometimes an 8, never a 12.

It’s a difficult pill to swallow but we do really need to get real about understanding our body shape, type and stop quoting that the average is something like a size 18 as if that makes it ok.

I’m 5ft 4in and would be very unhappy if I was a size 12.

I'm 5 ft 6 size 12

I am happy with my size I have curves in the right places and when I was smaller I didn't feel ok in myself ☺️

I'm a size 12 at 5'2 and I feel huge, I'm heading back to a small 10, slowly.

It so much depends on height and build, I'm muscular and short, so can see even a 2kg difference in the mirror.

I'd say on my height 12 can look big.

I think this thread highlights the skewed view of many women about size and weight.

Depends completely on your height and age.
A size 12 for me at my age and height would be slim.
When I was younger I was a size 8 but there's no way I could achieve that as an adult woman who's birthed 3 children!!
Everyone puts on a bit of weight as they age. I think if you are over 30 and over 5ft 5 then a size 12 is a healthy slim size to be generally.

It depends on height.

20+ yrs ago, I remember a size 10 being M and 12 being L in some places (size 12 myself at the time).

However, I think there's a shift going back to glamorising being unhealthily skinny again atm (think the time of kate moss, Paris hilton, early 2000s).

And age as other PP have mentioned.

Dress sizes vary between retailer and it should be used as a rough guide. I'm currently a size 16/18, but have some clothes that fit well that are size 14. I know I'm definitely not a 14.

Being slim/skinny/certain weight or dress size is dependant on so many factors and isn't always a good thing.

My MIL is of the era that all fat is bad, diets on/off throughout the year, didn't/doesn't do any activity that involves exertion as it's not ladylike. She's gone a bit too far this last diet, she's probably a size 8 now, which would've been fine if she was in her 30s/40s and had more muscle mass but she's in her 70s now. She has a condition that puts her at higher risk of it anyway, so factored in with her low weight and lack of weight bearing exercise/movement, it's not a great outlook.

That's a size 8 in M&S now

I haven’t been a size 12 since I was 15. Frankly, I would look ridiculous at size 12. I’m a comfortable size 16.

Yes to the height, I'm obese at a size 12.

I'm a 10 bottom and 8 top and have a 26 bmi, so still overweight. You can see where the weight is left to go, but I don't look overweight.

I think 12 is perfectly normal, if your bmi is technically in the overweight range you may still be perfectly healthy if you have good muscle mass and a small waist.

This thread feels a bit messed up, I do understand if you are used to being very slim and then gain a few sizes it may feel heavy for you but size 12 doesn’t necessarily mean overweight in short people either. Depends on muscle, waist circumference etc. my trouser size has always been a size or 2 bigger than my top. So a size 12 for me in trousers would be perfectly healthy bmi wise. I just have wide hips.

I’m always surprised when I read these threads and see people going on about what it would be 60 or 70 years ago. I fail to see the relevance. The population has got bigger, taller, we know this.

a 16 in the uk is the average size. A size 12 is two sizes smaller than the average dress size, As most are saying is slim for some, overweight for others.

and it depends on height, muscle mass, build etc.

bmi is a much better indicator, unless you’re an extreme athlete carrying lots of muscle. For the average person bmi is the best indicator