What Size Am I?

Weight: scale continues not to work.  I swear I'm in withdrawal!

In celebration of fall and an attempt to try and stay warm, I have three new pairs of cords.  They're in three different sizes. 

• a dark brown pair - Old Navy, low rise size 14 ($18)
• a dusty lilac pair -  Old Navy, low rise size 12 ($18)
• a butterscotch pair - Calvin Klein, medium rise size 10 ($5 at Goodwill)

But the fun pastime of guessing my size doesn't end there.  You see, last week when I went shopping for the new cords at the Old Navy on Third Street, Paul went with me.  Not into the clothing store, of course, but was browsing at the Apple store while I was shopping. It was late, we'd had a long day and I wanted to get home.  So I whipped through the cords displays, discarding the racks of "ultra low rise" and homing in on the "low rise" (which is as high as they were going in the cords).  They were on sale, but the ones I really wanted because of a jacket I already own -- the dark browns -- were sold out in 12 so I grabbed a pair of 14s and then the 12 and 14 in dusty lilac. 

In the dressing room I tried the lilac 12s first.  They fit --a bit snug where Fred (pannus) and Ethel (hernia) were pushing out but that's true of everything these days.  I made a snap decision that I'd get them and the dark brown 14s (which were EXACTLY the same style, only differing in color) and get out of there. 

Yeah, that's right.  I didn't try the 14s on. 

We walked home.  I carefully and neatly cut off all the tags and security labels.  And then started trying stuff on.  You see where this is going right?  The lilac size 12s fit.  The dark brown 14s are... too small??!

Yup.  Too snug in the waist, too snug in the hips, too small. I'll need to lose at least another 10 pounds.  I'm still annoyed.  I know I could probably take them back, but damn it, I don't want to bother.  And yeah, I know it's just a number, but not having a 14 fit is depressing as hell.

So anyway, Monday I went to SM library to check out books for the week (I read on my bus ride).  There's a Goodwill across the street from it that has great stuff.  If I was a size 4 I could find as much A/X, Ann Taylor, J. Crew, 7 Jeans and god knows what else for next to nothing.  Even in size 12 - 14 there are plenty of great bargains.  It just takes a lot of time to sort through stuff as it's all arranged by color rather than size. 

I sorted through and grabbed 8 pairs of cords in sizes ranging from 2 (those would be Chicos) to 10 - 14 (everyone else).  Slipping pairs on and off, I found again that the variation in sizes between and within brands was huge.  14 in J Crew was too big.  12 in Ann Taylor was way too big.  Chicos 2s looked like clown pants on me.  But the size 10 in A/X didn't even fit over my thighs.  Same with the 12s from Express.  Size 31 in 7 Jeans hung too low on my butt and (worse yet) let Fred escape.  The pair that fit best?  A pair of size 10 Calvin Klines -- probably from a few seasons back before the rises had dropped to quite where they are now.

So what size am I?  I don't know.  I've got pants in everything from size 14 - 10 that fit with some of each that are too small.  This week I've worn shirts in everything from L to S that all fit perfectly.  It's crazy.  Eloise tells me that's why she's given up on women's pants (also, I suspect, because she's got very long legs and needs extra length) and only buys men's jeans.

I've just got to remember to try everything on from now on.  How does any woman buy stuff online??

Comments

[Sharon]

God this is so true - and the article of clothing I find this to most true - jeans. I will admit to having a likely unhealthy obsession with jeans right now. Today I bought another pair (sigh). What I have to admit is that if it's curvy, it's for me. Anything that is straight...well, I might as well go three sizes higher. The skin and butt wings just won't allow for anything else. But trying on? Required. Is it wrong for me to admit I got a pair that makes my ass look amazing? And be happy about it? :) Hugs and enjoy the new annoyances of your smaller self.

[Loretta]

The trick to buying online is to only buy from companies who have a awesome return policy and send the return label with the clothes or make them available to print online and they have to cover the return cost.... then you have no problem when they don't fit...shove back in the box tape and label and set it back outside to be taken back....zappos is pretty great with shoes. The trick to buying online is to only buy from companies who have a awesome return policy and send the return label with the clothes or make them available to print online and they have to cover the return cost.... then you have no problem when they don't fit...shove back in the box tape and label and set it back outside to be taken back....zappos is pretty great with shoes.

Just discovered you blog today...keep up the good work...oh and i totally agree with this entry...a standard measure in sizes would be greatly appreciated!

[harriet]

I buy almost all my clothes online because no one carries big size petites* in person. I can tell from the cut whether something will fit me or not, but pants are the hardest guess. If the waist is "at waist," forget it. Also, there's a better chance it will fit me if the sizing is S-M-L-XL than if it's numbers.
But if you have stores that carry your size(s), go for it! no need to shop online.

* can't we just say "short"? I'm obviously not petite. I haven't been petite in 30 years. There's no code word for "tall."

[Ezpy]

Sharon: Yeah, I realized looking back over my blog this inconsistancy has been driving me nuts for a while now. I suspect that as true as it is that this variance is for everyone, for those of us who've lost a significant amount of weight (and thus have odd rolls of skin that somehow need to be tucked away), it's even harder.

Loretta: Yes, you're right. Eloise uses a lot of mail order mostly because she lives in a rather small city (or is it a large town?) in Ohio and has relatively few shopping choices. I'm a big fan of Lands' End.

Harriet: At 5'4", I fall right between regular and petite sizes. Petite jackets almost always fit me better than regulars. With pants, sometimes petites are too short but then the regulars are going to need to be hemmed about 3 inches.

That is an improvement post -weight loss. It's not hard to find petite 12s, something that wasn't even an option at size 24 (let alone the 34W I was pre-surgery). It feels weird to be whining about too much choice, but learning to cope in a world of many stores isn't easy. Fun sometimes, but frustrating and exhausting others. Plus, it's hard not to feel panic when a size that I think will fit is suddenly too small.