Vanity sizing and clothing fit.

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Replies

  • stephaniek511
    stephaniek511 Posts: 86 Member
    Vune wrote: »
    All I wanted was a plain, crew neck t-shirt. No weird cuts, no pockets, no embellishments. At 5'6", 135lbs, even the extra small of the only plain t-shirts at Kohls were too big. I am not extra extra small. I don't even bother with pants because they're never cut for my shape.

    I'm in the same boat - 5'6", 135...I have clothes from size 2 to 10 in my closet (all fit) - it's completely annoying. And everything has to be hemmed because I don't wear 6 inch heels.
  • Lobsterboxtops
    Lobsterboxtops Posts: 92 Member
    gcminton wrote: »

    I don't want to be excited about going down a size if I didn't actually GO DOWN A SIZE. :|

    Amen...I’m now well and truly screwed since I’v been losing. My pants are all big on me so I’ve had to start buying new ones, and it’s such a crap shoot. I was a tight 10, now I seem to be anywhere from a 6 to an 8...I have not lost 4 sizes worth of fat. Luckily I had some old clothes boxed up and I can more than comfortably wear a size 8 pair jeans with no stretch (100% denim). So at least I have some reference points to let me know how I’m doing...measurements won’t help since I don’t know what my measurements were at my smaller sizes.

  • sammidelvecchio
    sammidelvecchio Posts: 791 Member
    I recently bought some clothes. 3 pair of jeans, all different sizes from the SAME STORE. Then, I got two dresses in a large and they are oversized (not supposed to be but I like them better that way) but then I had to buy a button down for work and an XL fits perfect. It's really....reallly....reallly.....reaalllllyyyyy frustrating.
  • sljohnson1207
    sljohnson1207 Posts: 818 Member
    @rdthoms the avatar doesn't look like me, but is closer looking than the measurements it guessed. The avatar somehow knows I'm pear shaped. We come in so many different shapes. Four measurements won't give you an accurate picture. I don't know if the hip measurement is high hip or low hip (clothing charts usually use low hip - widest fullest part of rump), but it's way off. If you could put in all the measurements and it make an accurate avatar that would be awesome, especially if you could line them up next to each other and visually see the changes.

    I put in 67" tall female 145 lbs 34 bust 26 waist and it guesses the following:
    BMI 22.7
    BF% 27.8% (way off according to hydrostatic weighing and bioimpedence)
    34 5/8 hip (mine is 39" low hip)
    15 1/4 neck (mine is 12.75)
    40 1/2 shoulder (pretty accurate)
    12 1/8 biceps (10.5 one arm, 11 the other)
    11 3/8 forearm (9 both arms)
    25 5/8 thigh (22 one thigh 21.5 other thigh)
    15 1/4 calf (13 1/2 both calves)

  • RUNucbar
    RUNucbar Posts: 160 Member
    edited November 2019
    I am not even the same size SHOE in all shops. Are we vanity sizing feet now? I have some that are a 4, some are a 6. Clothing is anywhere from an age 13 years to a ladies size 16. I'm short, so the age 13 thing makes some sense but I can also be a ladies size 16? (UK sizes!) The 16 came from a shop known to size crazy but still, that is mental as I also fit into age 13 stuff.

    But I can also be a small or a medium if the shop has given up on numbers altogether. Some shops have numbers of some lines, and the S/M/L thing on other lines. I have to grab a size to try on and work my way up or down from there but I now have no idea where to start.
  • strongwouldbenice
    strongwouldbenice Posts: 153 Member
    I have a pair of jeans that fit me SO perfectly, snug and shapely and never budge while I'm wearing them. They have rips in the knees though, so I decided to buy another pair without the rips.
    Same store, same brand, same colour, same size, completely different fit. Could barely get them over my thighs, they sit all wrong, fall down. How???
  • GummiMundi
    GummiMundi Posts: 396 Member
    I kid you not, currently my upper body sizes range from XS to XL. I have L sized jackets that I can't button up, and an XS shirt that could take in two of me (and I checked with the store, it's not mislabeled). It used to drive me crazy, but now I just laugh at this. :D
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    edited November 2019
    Danp wrote: »
    I honestly don't know how you do it. It would drive me absolutely insane. I get shirty with arbitrary S, M, L, XL, etc sizing in men's clothing but at least our pants come in inch/cm waist measurements and our shirts come in inch/cm collar measurements (which is actually a pretty reliable indicator of fit).

    You all need to start a revolution. Flatly refuse to buy clothing that comes in dumb made up size numbers and only shop at stores that implement a standard universal system.

    My OH is able to walk into LL Bean and buy men's clothes that fit without trying them on.

    In 2012, I, on the other hand, saw a wide range of sizing amongst their jeans for women.
  • SCoil123
    SCoil123 Posts: 2,111 Member
    Lillymoo01 wrote: »
    flaminica wrote: »
    youngmomtaz wrote: »
    But it just makes me wonder what the truly smaller sized people are supposed to wear when I am buying up all the smalls and and an xs will fit someone who is a size 6-8??

    Two words: Children's section. A girl's 14 is a women's 8-10 depending on make. For teen section Junior's sizing just go up one. If you're short, kids and teens not only fit, but frequently fit better than women's petites.

    I can also find clothes in teen shops .... but a 40+ year old woman dressing in teenage fashion just doesn't work too well for most things.

    Vanity sizing may have helped some woman from being in denial with weight gain but for those of the petite size it has meant a huge issue with finding clothes that fit.

    Hmmm...I’m a 40yr old woman and still dress like a teen most days. Is that wrong? 😂
  • Lillymoo01
    Lillymoo01 Posts: 2,865 Member
    edited November 2019
    SCoil123 wrote: »
    Lillymoo01 wrote: »
    flaminica wrote: »
    youngmomtaz wrote: »
    But it just makes me wonder what the truly smaller sized people are supposed to wear when I am buying up all the smalls and and an xs will fit someone who is a size 6-8??

    Two words: Children's section. A girl's 14 is a women's 8-10 depending on make. For teen section Junior's sizing just go up one. If you're short, kids and teens not only fit, but frequently fit better than women's petites.

    I can also find clothes in teen shops .... but a 40+ year old woman dressing in teenage fashion just doesn't work too well for most things.

    Vanity sizing may have helped some woman from being in denial with weight gain but for those of the petite size it has meant a huge issue with finding clothes that fit.

    Hmmm...I’m a 40yr old woman and still dress like a teen most days. Is that wrong? 😂

    Not if it works for you. I personally prefer to stay away from really short skirts and shorts and skinny jeans or ripped jeans which seem to be the choice of bottoms in teen shops here in Australia.
  • ElizabethKalmbach
    ElizabethKalmbach Posts: 1,415 Member
    youcantflexcardio wrote: »
    I was so thankful when Levi's came out with the athletic fit jeans a few years back. I reccomend them to anyone who lifts, you get low rise jeans with a taper that actually fit the thighs and the waist off the rack.

    I love them, mostly because I can wear them from 125# to 175#, adjusting fit by carrying more or less in those wonderful, deep, pocketses.
  • riffraff2112
    riffraff2112 Posts: 1,756 Member
    Its a jungle out there. Sometimes I get overly hyped about being able to fit into a smaller size in one store only to have my dreams crushed when I can't fit into my regular size somewhere else. Styles being what they are, 'relaxed', 'straight' certainly do not have the same meaning and it makes it annoying as hell to shop
  • crooked_left_hook
    crooked_left_hook Posts: 364 Member
    I’m a fit technician and I spend my days fitting clothes and looking at body shapes. The issue is that not everyone’s body is shaped the same. We have to pick a standard as a starting point and that is usually a composite built from 1000’s of body scans and data points. There is no “one” correct body type and everyone will have fit issues based on thier spcific shape.

    OP- athletic fit clothes are purposely built with more room in them to accomodate for muscle, whuch is why you can size down. Same thing happenes to me when I buy a “curvy” vs “regular” fit; there is more room in the thigh so I can size down.

    While I understand everyone’s frustration with fit, I live it daily both personally and professionally, this will never change. The best thing you can do it buy a good quality item you will want to wear for a long time and invest a cew bucks to have it tailored to your specific shape.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,204 Member
    crooked_left_hook wrote: »
    I’m a fit technician and I spend my days fitting clothes and looking at body shapes. The issue is that not everyone’s body is shaped the same. We have to pick a standard as a starting point and that is usually a composite built from 1000’s of body scans and data points. There is no “one” correct body type and everyone will have fit issues based on thier spcific shape.

    OP- athletic fit clothes are purposely built with more room in them to accomodate for muscle, whuch is why you can size down. Same thing happenes to me when I buy a “curvy” vs “regular” fit; there is more room in the thigh so I can size down.

    While I understand everyone’s frustration with fit, I live it daily both personally and professionally, this will never change. The best thing you can do it buy a good quality item you will want to wear for a long time and invest a cew bucks to have it tailored to your specific shape.

    Or learn to sew. :lol::lol::lol: But pretty much nobody sews anymore. Yeah, I know patterns have equally whacky sizes, though they do tend to be more consistent to the body measurements (which are generally provided on each pattern). You get a sloper (fit) pattern, make it up in affordable fabric (muslin is customary), adjust, and use it as a guide to make other stuff.

    It's kind of like cooking for yourself, only much more time-consuming. Much. ;)
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,968 Member
    Dead bird stuff tends to fit me well. It looks great, lasts forever, and works really well. Only thing not to like is the price tag. Sales help some.
  • mbaker566
    mbaker566 Posts: 11,233 Member
    crooked_left_hook wrote: »
    I’m a fit technician and I spend my days fitting clothes and looking at body shapes. The issue is that not everyone’s body is shaped the same. We have to pick a standard as a starting point and that is usually a composite built from 1000’s of body scans and data points. There is no “one” correct body type and everyone will have fit issues based on thier spcific shape.

    OP- athletic fit clothes are purposely built with more room in them to accomodate for muscle, whuch is why you can size down. Same thing happenes to me when I buy a “curvy” vs “regular” fit; there is more room in the thigh so I can size down.

    While I understand everyone’s frustration with fit, I live it daily both personally and professionally, this will never change. The best thing you can do it buy a good quality item you will want to wear for a long time and invest a cew bucks to have it tailored to your specific shape.

    i have more of an issue fitting into athletic clothes than regular clothes.
  • MelanieCN77
    MelanieCN77 Posts: 4,047 Member
    I was looking for "boyfriend jeans" late last year and fit high street sizes from an 8 to a 00 - ridiculous. I hit up Gap last thinking they'd have their *kitten* together but that was the 00. I know that's a loose fit style but the waist needs to be of a size to stay up one would, perhaps stupidly, assume.
  • FireyChimera
    FireyChimera Posts: 155 Member
    I have struggled a lot with finding pants especially. My thighs are wider at the top than my waist, and I have large hips and thick thighs, but my upper body is smaller. I often get stretchy pants to help with this lol.
  • vanityy99
    vanityy99 Posts: 2,583 Member
    cuteangelkitten wrote: »
    I have struggled a lot with finding pants especially. My thighs are wider at the top than my waist, and I have large hips and thick thighs, but my upper body is smaller. I often get stretchy pants to help with this lol.

    Have you not discovered fashionnova.com
    There pants are made for girls with that issue.
  • zoink66
    zoink66 Posts: 116 Member
    I mean, people come in all shapes and sizes. If there was a "standard" size 8, there would still be variations of 8s who are pear shaped or have skinny legs or have big boobs or broad shoulders. Even without vaniety sizing, you would still have to try things on. Clothes worldwide come from a zillion different manufacturers, designers, and producers and are varied and plentiful and cheap.

    Vaniety sizing exists because people like it and it makes us buy more clothes. There are more Size 16s today than there are Size Zeros, but we've spent so much time as a society telling people they should be ashamed to be a Size 16, that - low and behold - people didn't want to buy stuff that reminded them of that fact. But slap an 8 on that label and they feel "normal" again (even though everyone has always been normal, always) and buy more. Maybe it's annoying, but it's also brilliant,.

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