clothing sizes

I'm still unemployed but I have an interview on Wednesday.  My last interview was over a month ago but I naively thought I'd wear the same outfit.  WRONG!  So I went shopping Saturday.  I've been buying a pair of capris cheap from Cato for every size I go down.  But it seems that Cato's sizes are way big.  I'm sitting here in a pair of 18's from Cato but I've got old 24's from Lane Bryant that I still can't zip!  Because of the town I was in Saturday, I went to a Lane Bryant to look for clothes.  I figured I could get away with my too big shirts but I needed a pair of black dress pants badly.  I took 20's and 22's into the dressing room.  Didn't work.  I ended up in a pair of 18 petites.  How weird is that??  I also got a nice button up 3/4 length sleeve shirt in black.  I looked damn good and thin in it if I do say so myself! 

Have you all found this huge variance in clothes sizes?  I wonder if the sizes haven't gotten bigger over the years.  Those old Lane Bryant 24's are probably 10 years old. 

 I wonder if "vanity sizing" is in effect? It seems that different brands have wide variances across the same size. And I'll bet 10 years ago there may have been more consistancy in sizing than today. Or if you don't wash the clothes as directed they may shrink - e.g. if it says dry clean only and you accidentally throw it in the wash, you magically get the same item 5 sizes smaller....

  You might be right about the jeans shrinking!  They were not dry clean only though, lol. 

Yeah, I have shrunk some of my lane bryant clothes to make them last longer for me.  I have found a difference in sizing from store to store.  Your LB pants have probably been washed over and so longer really a size 24.  One thing that has really worked for me is thrift stores.  I really thought I would have to buy capris, etc, cheaply at Target for each size.  But by diligently hunting at Goodwill, salvation army, and a few consignment stores I actually have had a semi-cute wardrobe through the changes.  I know you may be limited by living in a small town but hit some thrift stores.....if you are in 18s now you will find some stuff.

Good luck at the interview!!

~~Jennifer  

clothing sizes are a joke.

I have everything from a size 6 to a size 12 in my closet.  store to store, brand to brand, nothing is the same.  Adding time to the equation definitely changes things.  My size 18 prom dress (18 years ago) is now about a 12 or 14. 

10 year old Lane Bryant jeans could be any size right about now.  definitely don't buy or order by sizes, use measurement.  and DEFINITELY check out thrift stores - my favorite place!!

Oh yes!  Clothing sizes have definitely changed in the past 10 years. 

The clothes in my closet currently range from a Chico's 00 to Levis 4, juniors 5.  And, I'm far from the tiny pre-teen that needs a 00.  There is a downside to the new vanity sizing -- what to do when the smallest is too big.  Never ever thought I'd have that problem!

I have noticed a huge variance in sizes brand wise and by store. Seems to me the 'cheaper' the clothes the smaller they fit - but that doesn't make sense on the Lane Bryant theory for you! I bet the sizes WERE different years ago.

I bought a pair of size 12 jeans in a Vera Wang brand from Kohl's and they fit great, and a pair of black capris in a Chaps brand, size 12. But I picked up a $15 pair of jeans at Cato and they were size 14. I am doing better with dresses and skirts for work right now - they seem to fit better longer and I'll get more out of them.

The next time I need to replenish I am definitely going the Goodwill route, at least for pants/bottoms. I can go get size Large tops anywhere relatively cheap but the pants are different story.

I don't know what the job situation is like for you but hopefully you can get by until you are in a size for awhile. Its expensive to keep replenishing a work wardrobe!! Right now I am hoping I can wear what I have for work for at least the rest of the summer and not have to buy anything until winter time.

I saw a discussion on cable that said due to the ever increasing size in the American population, many clothing manufactures have increased the size of our clothing.  They said a 14 today versus a 14 years ago are clearly not the same item, and in Europe sizes run smaller and more like ours did years ago.  All my new clothes are size 4, but yesterday I wore a pair of white shorts that were size 12, and I have another pair of jeans, size 9 junior, that I can wear only if my weight stays where it is now.  I find clothing sizes are all over the place.

 So true! I was a 22 pre-op and I've lost 44 pounds, so when I found an old pair of Sonoma size 20 shorts in the bottom of a drawer, I thought for sure they would fit now. Nope. Too tight. I was so disappointed. 

But my 22's are all too big, so I was confused. So I went shopping to WalMart (not my regular source for clothes, but I needed a few things on the cheap to get by) and picked up a few shorts and capris in a size 18 that fit! Go figure.

Ditto on the thrift shops. I was skeeved at the thought of wearing some strangers pants, but at a friend's suggestion I checked one out and now I know i'm going to be hooked on thrift shops while I am dropping sizes! It takes a lot of hunting, but I picked up nine bottoms for $32!  And that included a brand new pair of Cato shorts (with tags), Talbots dress slacks and Banana Republic pants!

Good luck on your interview!!

I've found huge differences in sizing depending on the brand of clothing.  My swimsuit (Catalina) is a size 16, some of my pants and shorts are 18, and tops range from 18 to 24.  Very weird, but I'm trying really hard not to focus on the number on the tag.  It means I have to actually try everything ON and can't buy something just by looking at it, but thankfully I'm not doing a lot of shopping right now.  Fortunately, I got a lot of hand-me-downs from my sister to tide me over a bit longer.