SHOPPING for clothes is never an easy task, it seems all shops have their own sizing systems to work with meaning you can be a size 6 in one, a 12 in another.
One slim woman has become so fed up with the process that she’s petitioning stores to bring back noughties sizing.
Sofie Lynn took to social media frustrating for not being able to find clothes that fit her slender frame.
In the clip, she wore a black zip-up jacket as she explained the issue with clothes sizing.
She wrote: “Petition for clothing brands to bring back noughties sizing.
“Like I’m a medium but XS is baggy, stop it it’s so frustrating shopping in malls when nothing fits anymore.”
And it seems like Sofia is not the only one to spot the problem as the issue has been coined ‘vanity sizing’ online.
The term ‘Vanity Sizing’ is a common fashion industry practice used today that involves labelling clothes with smaller sizes than their actual measurements size.
It’s believed to be done to make consumers feel better about buying from that brand, and in turn, boost sales for them.
But many women have taken online to discuss the phenomenon and why it isn’t something they are after.
One woman took to Mumsnet to describe how sizing has changed after buying a pair of vintage shorts that were a far bigger size than what she buys in stores today.
She wrote: “I bought some vintage St. Michael shorts this weekend in a size 12 which fitted me perfectly. In current sizes I’m an 8 or sometimes – incredibly – a 6.”
“As flattering as it is to think of myself as a size 8, it’s simply not the truth or a reflection of reality. A small size 12 does seem about right, as that was my size as a slim-ish teenager in the 90s,” she continued.
“Who is this vanity sizing really helping?” she asked as she revealed she wished shops would roll back to how they were in the noughties too.
Many have complained that they are now being ‘sized out’ of their favourite stores as even the smallest sizes are coming up to big.
One person wrote: “I’ve been a size 8 my whole adult life, including when measured for my wedding dress, which I presume was based on proper sizing measurements. Even 20 years ago I couldn’t shop in M&S as their size 8 stuff was far too big.”
Vanity sizing, also known as size inflation, is the phenomenon of ready-to-wear clothing, mainly form high street stores, becoming bigger over time.
Vanity sizing dates back to 1983 when the North American women’s measurement guide was abandoned for vanity sizing.
Now it is mainly seen across the UK and USA, with one 2003 study measuring over 1,000 pairs of women’s pants.
They found that pants from more expensive brands tended to be smaller than those from cheaper brands with the same nominal size.
Another commented: “The problem comes when a size 6 or 8 is so much bigger than it was, and that means that actually those of us that were a size 6 or 8 can’t actually buy regular clothes anymore.”
“Life is so rough when you’re a teeny tiny.,” one replied to the comment.
Meanwhile a fourth said: “Totally agree for the purely selfish reason that most shops don’t go below a 6 and with the vanity sizings 6 is far too large. Not being a competitive teeny tiny, I just have a very small frame due to my ethnicity!”
“Completely winds me up, as I end up ordering multiple sizes online and returning loads,” claimed a fifth.
Someone else added: “Pulled on some Mango jeans the other day, and they are enormous. The label said size 10. They would probably be loose on a 12.”
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