Sizing Me Up

[valancy_s]

I've been looking over old clothes, some that have been sitting in my bedroom in my parents' house since I was in high school, some that my aunt sent to us in boxes, some that other people have given to me. And I've discovered something that I find absolutely baffling. I've tried on about fifteen pairs of pants, conditions varying from tags-still-

Comments

[ticktockman]

The term is "vanity sizing". It hits men's clothing too. http://racked.com/archives/2010/09/08/vanity-sizing-mens-36-pants-at-old-navy-actually-have-a-41-waist.php

*daha*

[elspethsheir]

I went to grad school with a woman who'd been a seamstress in the 80s. In the late 90s, she went back into clothing, and she'd found that a size 8 from the 80s had suddenly become a size 4, and I imagine it's a 2 now. She carried a measuring tape around all the time when she tried on clothes, to gauge sizes that way. Frustrating!

[mo_shmoe]

Or is sizing totally, completely arbitrary?

Yep. As far as I know there has never been a universal sizing policy. Every brand and style is different, and pretty much every online store I've ever visited has a unique size chart. It also has a lot do with how things are supposed to be worn -- form-fitting or oversized. I currently wear clothes in three different sizes, despite having an "official" size.

(I'm only knowledgeable about this because I've recently overhauled my entire wardrobe, haha).

[breathingbooks]

I think on average clothes have lost at least a magical 4 digits. I hadn't thought of it easing the pressure on girls, which is a good thing, but from the point of view of someone who can't estimate pants visually, it is a royal pain.

[epea_pteroenta]

Sizes are definitely getting bigger. I've put on some weight in the last couple of years but not only have I remained in the same size, but in some shops I've gone down a size.