Size creep?

[Martina Hall]

Has anyone else noticed manufacturers cutting clothes and shoes larger than 2 or 3 decades ago? Back in the late seventies, I wore size 8 1/2 shoes, mens, and 10 Womens. Now, it's 10 mens and 9D womens. I even found a pair of sandals that are labeled 8 1/2 M and they fit me, which makes no sense at all. I know damn well these feet have not gotten smaller.
The same thing seems to have happened with dresses, pants, skirts, and bras. A size 12 dress is now bigger than a size 14 from 20 years ago.
Any comments?

[Carol Ann]

tell me something I don't know, that is the reason I go the the changeing room with my size and one size bigger.

Depending who made the item a 12 all are different in their sizeing.

[Hope]

Are you all kidding! Honestly, I have been shopping numerous times with my dear wife and understand now, the absurd nature of sizing! She once was buying two pair of slacks (I know....I'd have rather been buying skirts but....) Now, after she tried on the first pair (which was labeled two sizes larger than her normal size, she picked up another pair. The clerk (bless her heart!) told my wife she better try them on as well. We both looked puzzled, but she did try them on and....they didn't fit! Way BIG! So....

Depending on the store, the price, and the label, we have found women's clothes tend to be larger than the listed size in the more reasonably priced options, and slightly to a lot smaller in the expensive brands and stores. It used to be the other way around!

Shoes...don't even get me started.

Honestly, I don't know why women don't organize and rise up against the shoddy manufacturing and designers for what they are doing!

As a man, I have always just walked into any store, picked up jeans, slacks, or shirts in the number size I know fits me, and walk out. No trying anything on usually, and...it fits! If it didn't I would simply take it all back to the store, explain it to them, and never shop there again! That's what I did with Columbia Sportswear years ago, and to this day refuse to do business there because I can't trust their sizes!

But...I'm stupid that way. Sorry.....

Sigh.

[Davita]

Girls -- the problem is very simple. An inch has been morphed by every country in the world that makes clothing for the rest of the world. Companies are not so worried any more about holding their manufacturers to quality, but rather to quantity.

I have noticed though if you shop too much you do figure out your sizes for the most part for each store you shop and the brands.

[Kelly]

I'm new to the women's sizing game, so can't comment on how things have changed. However; I'm now wondering about men's sizes.

I recently have been making a concerted effort to slim down. Recently my 38" jeans would no longer stay up and I had to gleefully move to 36". (my goal is to get to a 34, with 32 as a 'stretch' goal). Feeling pretty good about progress.

Well, not so fast, my big purchase of the week is a $1.89 soft tape measure, mainly to use for sizing shoulders on tops. I, of course, measured the narrowest part of my waist. It was 41".

What a bummer. I you can't trust levi's who can you trust.

Kelly.

[Eileen (SO)]

Women love to shop, is the stereotype, but not only for the shopping itself, (which is fun) but to try things on. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to sizes now days. I only mail order from places I know and have experience with their size variations.

Eileen

[Sarah Beth]

My wife and my mom were sitting at the table after dinner this evening looking at catalogs for clothes for my grand daughter for Christmas. The were laymenting how they have changes the sizes for everything and how each different place uses different measurements for the same size. It's no wonder it's so hard to shop anymore. Besides that the "standard" sizes the use don't seem to make any sense to me.

[Ralitsa]

It's all Einsteins fault. His general theory of relativity states that dimensions are skewed by both velocity and also gravity. So if you are in a really big hurry and just rush into the store and buy something it will be way too small. On the other hand an unexpected gravitational influence will make th all way too big. Consequently you have to stop and try everything on to bring your velocity to zero and to cancel out competing gravitational fields, preferably by having a shopping buddy with you.
We never used to have this problem. Before Einstein was born I never once bought the clothes that didn't fit correctly.
There just isn't anything to do about it but to go shopping a lot. You can't get around the laws of physics.

[Eileen (SO)]

Ralitsa,

You must have been shopping for women's clothing for quite some time, given that Einstein's general theory of relativity was published in 1916. There is a converse theory that clothing left in a closet tend to shrink in size.
Combining theories, we should shop for clothing at a pace equal to the credit card interest rate, plus or minus the shopping buddy's ability to carry packages, then frequently wear such bought items in daylight till a black hole consumes all humanity.

I'm good with that.

Eileen

[Ralitsa]

I'm good with that theory too Eileen!