Size 34!!! Does anyone remember "Pretty Plus" or "Extra Special Sizes"? My mother would order my clothes from JcPenney and I'd have a whole array of bellbottom cords and matching shirts (with one stripped shirt that had all the colors). I remember asking why it said, "Pretty Plus" and she just laughed and said, "I think it's to make moms feel better about having chubby kids." Even at age seven I think I understood what she meant. I looked cute in my Pretty Plus 7s and that was all that mattered.

Has anyone observed that only certain sizes are vanitied. Like 6, 10, 12 and 16? I swear a 12 today has so much range!

Geeze, Sharkysmachine, she should have said something like, "Because you're SO pretty that they have to say so. Only really pretty girls get to wear Pretty Plus."

6, 10, and 12 have tons of range. I'm not sure about 16, though I don't doubt it. I can say that I bought one pair of size 16 pants at my highest weight and they fit. Any other pair of size 16's would be very loose (I was about a 12-14 at that point) but those fit just like 12's from other places. I can fit some 6's right now, like A&F, Gap, and Old Navy, though other 6's like American Eagle still have me struggling to breathe. It all depends on the designer. And yeah yeah, I shop at some preppy places considering I have this badass punk image... what a contradiction.

I remember when size 12 was a "normal" size. I was overseas for 6 years and I came back and was surprised that I was a plus size. Recently I lost ten lbs and went on a trip and forgotten my swimsuit, so I went to find one. I saw one size 14, it looked big so I tried it on. I was a wearing size 20, but come one a size 14, it fit. My husband said it was because I lost the weight. lol. Oh, please, give me a break, it was big. I bought because I needed one not because it was a size 14.

My pants range from size 12-16

My mother loathed the whole idea of "pretty plus" mostly because she didn't care what the tag said in our clothes as long as they were durable. She just found it amusing that it clearly wasn't for the children but the parents.

Even though I'm hardly preppy, I love American Eagle stuff in the summer. I love all their cute little mini skirts and tight citrus colored tees.

Its crazy how every store has gotten like this.... I went in and was getting a pair of size 7 pants and they fit PERFECTLY. When I got to the checkout, they didnt have a price tag so I went back and got the EXACT same Size, style, and brand. Well she put the one with the tag in the bag in case i needed to return it. When I got home, the IDENTICAL pair didnt fit... they were baggy in all the wrong places and I had to drive a half an hour back for the EXACT same pants I bought!!! Talk about ridiculous!

I don't know if we're allowed to post links.. But this shows a size 0 or 0/0 compared to an 18.. I wouldn't want to be a 0 or 0/0, but God knows I wouldn't mind being a 2!

http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/pages/...n_page_id=1879

That's pretty extreme! Sasha (the thinner woman) actually looks normal-- the thing that's making the picture look so "scary thin" is the fact that her ribcage is protruding so far out from her stomach... But I think (and hope!) that's all illusion: Where she took a deep breath in, hunched up her shoulders, and sucked in her tummy when they took that picture..

I also agree with what a lot of you have said about body structure: My dad's ENTIRE side of the family is built like birds-- they're all super thin, the women are all under 5'5", the men are all super tall and lanky.
My mom's entire family is larger boned, and are prone to being larger people.
My two brothers each take after one side and (lucky me) I got the "best" of both worlds: I got the height from my dad's side and the body-type from my mom's side!!

And lastly: I would friggen LOVE it Ladie's sizing was completely inches/measurement based!!! Or... we could level the playing field and do the same thing to men.
Pregnancy, Paps, and Pants.... Women put up with so much!!!

~Kat

GOAL:
185.2/172.6/135(ish)
Mini GOAL:
185.2/172.6/166.6
10% by St. Patrick's Day! I want to fit into my Dress!! Aiee!!!

The size Double Zero has been around for over 20 years. My step-mom wore a size Double Zero from the time she was 16 up until a couple of years ago. there is a difference in Zero and Double Zero. It's not much, but there is a double zero. As for being over weight, they say anything over a size 8 and you are "overweight," but for a lot of women, they have wide hips and can't fit into anything below a 10. I know that at my thinnest, and I only had a little fat on my hips, I wore an 11. You just need to get to a weight that looks good for your heighth and build and don't worry about being a size 1 or a size 2. I just hope to get to a size 9. Right now I am teetering between a 16 and an 18.

I read about studies they did on vanity sizing though, and women buy more of the clothes of the same size if the tag says they are smaller. So it all comes down to money. If the label has a smaller number, the store makes more money, because the customers feel better about themselves shopping there than at the next store. No one really cares if it makes sense at all, apparently.

Um, I work for a clothing design company (we call ourselves a manufacturer but the actual sewing is done overseas). Our specs for measurements change almost every single season. Sometimes it's because the "trend" is predicted to be either a looser fit or more form fitting but most often it's because the owner of the company wears a size 10. Period. If she's been on a cruise for a month she still wears a size 10 when she comes back

I have a suspicion that most lines are designed that way - someone in the design department likes the way a certain fit model looks so what ever measurements that model has becomes the size 10 (which, by the way, is NOT a plus size - at least for the sportswear industry).

As for the frustration with different sizes in the same store - Companies like Gap, Coldwater Creek, Talbot's, etc. actually don't manufacture a lot (if not most) of their own stuff. They contract with companies like the one I work for so they can save on design costs. Their buyers may decide they like the styles from 5 or 6 different manufactureres. Some of the companies may be European and using a different standard than a US company or some may have an owner that's been on a cruise Paying someone in their company to sit down and block and grade a size chart then insist that their contractors tailor their designs to fit that chart would result in increased costs. There is a genius somewhere (probably a man) who said it is more cost effective to risk the loss of a sale than to spend the money to insure continuity in sizing.

I'm sure it doesn't make anyone feel any better so by all means continue to vent but I hope that makes the whole thing less of a mystery.

I actually appreciate the small sizing (when its actually small) because I have a very tiny frame. At my healthiest and slimmest ( I was running marathons, biking, etc.) I had a 20 inch waist and a 35 inch inseam, and finding clothing was MISERABLE.

I just wish they'd sell women's clothing like men's -- by physical dimension (inches). You get a 26 inch waist, 30 inch inseam, whatever. Or a 36 inch top. I know that fit would still vary widely because of differing body shapes, but dang it, at least we'd know where to start. The variation in clothing size from one vendor to another drives me nuts and wastes my time trying on a bunch of things just to find SOMETHING to fit right.

Of course, that ain't never gonna happen, because people like to be deluded into thinking that they are smaller than they really are.

some people are just naturally that small. i can't even imagine myself smaller than an 8 right now because my hip bones are naturally really wide. but i'm perfectly fine with it! i love my body shape! i just can't wait to get it looking better.

My DD just "out-grew" her size double zeros...she was so disappointed! She is now a single zero (Pity, pity) But then is only 14! She prides herself on being smaller than her friends----this worries me alot, since dieting is a huge part of what I am always thinking about.....