Not sure what size you are? Welcome to the dilemma of the century. The so-called ‘vanity sizing’ has left all of us lost in the dust. We load up before entering the dressing room, usually with the thought that none of this is going to fit. Clearly women’s fashion has a fit problem and when we can’t find clothing that fits, it is infuriating.
We are left to fend for ourselves as clearly the fixing of this issue is not in the pipeline so we must take matters into our own hands.
One mistake that women make is hauling only one or two sizes of each item into the dressing room. Believe it or not, when I shop for or with my clients, you would think I was buying the store because I bring in three sizes per item. Yes, three sizes per item, just to increase the odds of hitting Bingo!
What the heck is vanity sizing? Vanity sizing is defined in Wikipedia as the practice of assigning smaller numbers to manufactured clothing in order to increase sales.
Seriously, why has this not happened in the men’s industry? I spent decades in the men’s apparel industry and one thing was for sure – a 40-regular was a 40-regular and it still is. And if a gentleman walks into Brooks Brothers today to buy a navy-blue blazer, he has approximately 62 sizes to choose from – from 36 short to 54 extra-long. We women have about 12.
The other mistake women make is not knowing their actual measurements – yes Mildred – height and weight are basically useless when it comes to finding the right size. You must know all the numbers! Height, weight, bust, waist, hips, inseam, outseam, front rise, back rise, torso length, preferred jacket length, sleeve length and more. Sound ridiculous? Trust me it will save you hours and dollars! Just note it once – put it in your phone under ‘me’ and tote your little tape measure along with you as you head to the mall.
Why again? If I asked two women who I knew were the same size, one might say she’s a size 10 at Ann Taylor and the other may say she’s a size 0 at Chico’s. So instead of dropping your pants twenty times in the dressing room, you can measure the waistband and the rise and get pretty darn close to bringing in the right size from the get-go. Knowing your preferred front rise is 9-inches will save you from the dreaded muffin-top look, which even at a quick peek, can be a devastating moment.
Here’s a bit of proof-in-the-pudding for you on how you can navigate by size before getting naked in the dressing room or even better, before entering the mall! I am a big fan of pre-shopping online as I need to be very efficient with both my time and my clients time.
So, follow along just for chuckles:
Okay, let’s pretend you are looking for a great fitting pair of jeans. Let’s just use Not Your Daughters Jeans for this tutorial.
Head here – http://www.nydj.com/
Scroll to NYDJ Denim Fit – http://www.nydj.com/nydj-fit
Click on Size Chart
For starters, they will note the natural waist, rise, hip, and inseam measurements by size. Perfect! Just whip out your tape measure and match up your numbers.
Then don’t forget to go through the Denim Style Guide to pick your leg shape, your denim wash, your sizing – petite, regular, tall or plus.
Do we have Bingo? Now you are in control of your own destiny.
Destiny #1 – You can purchase online – be sure to activate any discount you get as a first-time customer and then be extra sure to activate Ebates – the best money-back program out there for shopping online. Link here to sign up for Ebates and then they will mail you a check for shopping – easy as pie!
Destiny #2 – Note all the pertinent info (style number or name too) in the perfect pair of jeans that you just discovered and put that into the Google search bar so you can see if it is available at your favorite store. Once on that store’s website, use the online chat window to see if they have the jeans available at your local store, in your size, so you can try them on. You can even have them hold it for you or charge it and have it at pickup. (PS – still try or buy two sizes – I love fine tuning a fit.)
Easy as pie again!
Still need help? Let’s shop together or you can use my Virtual Styling Services and I’ll do the hunting and gathering for you!
Happy shopping! Stay in touch!
Vanity Sizing Fits No One!
We are left to fend for ourselves as clearly the fixing of this issue is not in the pipeline so we must take matters into our own hands.
One mistake that women make is hauling only one or two sizes of each item into the dressing room. Believe it or not, when I shop for or with my clients, you would think I was buying the store because I bring in three sizes per item. Yes, three sizes per item, just to increase the odds of hitting Bingo!
What the heck is vanity sizing? Vanity sizing is defined in Wikipedia as the practice of assigning smaller numbers to manufactured clothing in order to increase sales.
Seriously, why has this not happened in the men’s industry? I spent decades in the men’s apparel industry and one thing was for sure – a 40-regular was a 40-regular and it still is. And if a gentleman walks into Brooks Brothers today to buy a navy-blue blazer, he has approximately 62 sizes to choose from – from 36 short to 54 extra-long. We women have about 12.
The other mistake women make is not knowing their actual measurements – yes Mildred – height and weight are basically useless when it comes to finding the right size. You must know all the numbers! Height, weight, bust, waist, hips, inseam, outseam, front rise, back rise, torso length, preferred jacket length, sleeve length and more. Sound ridiculous? Trust me it will save you hours and dollars! Just note it once – put it in your phone under ‘me’ and tote your little tape measure along with you as you head to the mall.
Why again? If I asked two women who I knew were the same size, one might say she’s a size 10 at Ann Taylor and the other may say she’s a size 0 at Chico’s. So instead of dropping your pants twenty times in the dressing room, you can measure the waistband and the rise and get pretty darn close to bringing in the right size from the get-go. Knowing your preferred front rise is 9-inches will save you from the dreaded muffin-top look, which even at a quick peek, can be a devastating moment.
Here’s a bit of proof-in-the-pudding for you on how you can navigate by size before getting naked in the dressing room or even better, before entering the mall! I am a big fan of pre-shopping online as I need to be very efficient with both my time and my clients time.
So, follow along just for chuckles:
Okay, let’s pretend you are looking for a great fitting pair of jeans. Let’s just use Not Your Daughters Jeans for this tutorial.
Head here – http://www.nydj.com/
Scroll to NYDJ Denim Fit – http://www.nydj.com/nydj-fit
Click on Size Chart
For starters, they will note the natural waist, rise, hip, and inseam measurements by size. Perfect! Just whip out your tape measure and match up your numbers.
Then don’t forget to go through the Denim Style Guide to pick your leg shape, your denim wash, your sizing – petite, regular, tall or plus.
Do we have Bingo? Now you are in control of your own destiny.
Destiny #1 – You can purchase online – be sure to activate any discount you get as a first-time customer and then be extra sure to activate Ebates – the best money-back program out there for shopping online. Link here to sign up for Ebates and then they will mail you a check for shopping – easy as pie!
Destiny #2 – Note all the pertinent info (style number or name too) in the perfect pair of jeans that you just discovered and put that into the Google search bar so you can see if it is available at your favorite store. Once on that store’s website, use the online chat window to see if they have the jeans available at your local store, in your size, so you can try them on. You can even have them hold it for you or charge it and have it at pickup. (PS – still try or buy two sizes – I love fine tuning a fit.)
Easy as pie again!
Still need help? Let’s shop together or you can use my Virtual Styling Services and I’ll do the hunting and gathering for you!
Happy shopping! Stay in touch!