Clothes, Clothing, Clothing sizes, Dress size, Online shopping, Shopping

Clothing Sizes: WTF?

Apparently there are certain things that you should NEVER ask a lady:

• Her age
• Her weight / clothing size
• Whether she would dump her husband for Idris Elba (whilst in front of said husband)

You know, those kinds of things!

Well sorry (not sorry) as I’m about to delve into the murky underworld of women’s clothing sizes and try to figure out just wtf is going on.


Just like Martin Luther King, I have a dream… One where I can just go into a clothes shop, see something that catches my eye, think “that’s nice”, rummage on the rail for my size, find it, buy it, take it home and then… imagine!! …. wear it.
And I mean actually just buy it and wear it without first thinking “Shall I get this in a 10? Or maybe a 12? Actually it looks quite big… would I maybe get away with an 8? Oh balls to it, I’m going to have to try them all on”.

I have clothes in my wardrobe currently, all of which fit me and all of which I wear, which are sized between a 4 and a 14. I kid you not. How is that in any way, shape or form correct? All my life I’ve been pear-shaped so there’s been multiple occasions where I’ve had to size down on a top or size up on a skirt/jeans/trousers. But I think a 4 to 14 range is taking the mickey somewhat, no? And I definitely feel as if this is something which is becoming more inaccurate and more confusing as the years pass. WHERE IS THE COHESION?!?! (Some of my clothes pictured below).




Here are a few examples, but just a little disclaimer beforehand – I’m not slagging off any of these shops. In fact, these shops are pretty much where my entire wardrobe is from as I like their clothes and their value for money:

New Look: I have a size 14 hoodie which is in no way roomy. It fits as it probably should. By the same token, I recently bought a size 10 jumper, which fits well too. The same day I bought this jumper, I also bought a midi-skirt in a size 8, which is roomy around the waist. Yet I own 2 pairs of jeans from here in size 10, both of which are kinda tight on my waist, bum and thighs. But then the size 12 jeans I have from here are too big… go figure!

Primark: On the same shopping trip to Primark back in November; I bought a batwing jumper in a size 10 which is slightly snug around the waist, plus a jumper dress in a size 4/6 (XXS) which absolutely HANGS off of me. I genuinely thought it must have been tagged incorrectly, so held it up against some other sizes and nope. If I’d opted for any bigger then I could’ve fitted my two sisters in it with me! I bought a fair amount of items on this trip and they ranged from 4/6 up to 10/12.

F & F (Tesco): As I mentioned earlier, I’ve always been pear shaped. I can’t recall a time in my adult life when my backside fitted in a pair of size 8 jeans – well until I bought some from Tesco that is! I’ve bought a couple of pairs from there in the last year or so in that very size. All of which are TOO. BIG. I’m not bragging here by the way, I’m under no illusions that my generous derriere is a size 8 or under. But y’know, that’s what the labels say… I’ve also purchased a number of size 6 tops in Tesco too.

I could go on but I think you get the idea don’t you?

Just to point something out here, OF COURSE there are such clothing styles as ‘oversized’ and ‘boyfriend’, I totally get that. But the majority of sizing discrepancies across the board are nothing to do with this. It’s rare that I’m ever the same size from one shop to the other. Clothes shopping seriously gives me a headache. Then we have its evil twin… Online clothes shopping!


What a bloody nightmare this is. I usually always have to buy the same thing in 2 or 3 different sizes, try them all on and then return the ones which don’t fit properly. Bear in mind, you normally have to pay upfront for all of these items and then wait for the money to be credited back to you once you return them – ain’t nobody got time for that!

I do wonder if there are any particular reasons as to why sizing is SO inconsistent across the board. So, rather than just sit back and scratch my head about this, I decided to get in touch with the shops listed above and ask some questions. There’s no guarantees that I’ll receive any answers but, fingers crossed! If I DO get any responses I’ll definitely update this post and keep you all informed.

What about you – do you find yourself having the same issues as I do? Has clothes shopping become a nightmare for you too? And fellas – is this something that you also experience? I’d love to hear your thoughts and experiences on this subject, let me know in the comments!

30 thoughts on “Clothing Sizes: WTF?”

  1. It’s absolutely baffling in comparison to mens clothing. As far as gift-buying goes I generally steer clear of clothing too as I don’t want the hassle of having to return / exchange things later.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Yeah, buying clothes as gifts is a big no no for me too for this reason! It’s not even so much “will they like this” it’s more “will this fit?” Sounds as though you fellas don’t have it as tough, lucky you 😂

      Liked by 1 person

  2. I have a hard time finding the right size when I switch brands @__@. I know I may be a size 00 in some brands but a 4 in others. What’s up with that? Can we find something more universal? I never knew hoodies can have a numeric size as well. Online clothes shopping is a nightmare if there are no physical shops around you if you have to make a return. This is pretty much why I stick to a couple of brands and rarely venture out @__@.

    Nancy ♥

    Liked by 1 person

  3. I am the same, I have so many different clothes in different sizes! Primark is the worst. They have recently started doing the ‘XXS’ etc and it is so confusing because you’d think that it would be absolutely tiny but it isn’t sometimes!! The worst thing about online shopping is having to guess if it will fit or not, or what it would look like on your body type because the models have all been photoshopped anyway! It is so frustrating. Love the topic of this post! xx

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Yeah Primark sizes are SO out, it’s madness. The jumper dress I mentioned is an XXS and says 4/6 under that on the label. But it’s HUGE! Makes no sense at all. Thank you for reading 😊


  4. I could really relate to this post as my sizing varies from store to store and like you said, it’s a nightmare! I wish I could be one of those people who find the right size and be done with it but it’s never easy for me so I find clothes shopping so stressful! Glad to see I’m not the only one who is confused about the sizing, lets keep our fingers crossed that companies will sort this out one day soon!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Yeah I really hope something is done sooner rather than later, to tackle the issue and make sizing more universal! Thank you for reading 😊


  5. You touched on a sore subject! I love shopping online, have no patience or time for real life shops anymore, but the difference is sizes drives me nuts. F&F I always need to by one size down because they make it so big. With Next it depends on the brand, and I can get 2 different sizes in the same “shopping cart”. annoying!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I can fit into such small sizes at F&F! I could go in and buy a size 6 or 8 dress but would have to buy a dress in a 10 (or bigger sometimes) in a different shop. It all makes it so hard when you’re shopping for clothes as you never know which size to try first 🤦🏻‍♀️ Thank you for reading xx

      Liked by 1 person

    1. There’s no rhyme or reason for it is there? Really wish there were more streamlined sizes across the board. Thank you for reading 😊


  6. Finally someone who feels as strongly about this as I do!! Yes, it’s sooo annoying, especially as I don’t like trying on clothes in store and now I have to. Plus I don’t even bother to order stuff online as I can’t be bothered with the whole returning process!

    Great post! You should send it to clothing brands.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Yeah online shopping can be a nightmare if you have to make returns, as not all brands offer free returns. But if they sized things properly then maybe we all wouldn’t be returning so much stuff hey? Thank you for reading 😊


  7. Totally agree! Differences in sizes across different brands is something I find all the time. It actually makes me go for looser fitting clothes as a style to avoid the top tight too loose dilemma! I imagine a lot of people can relate to this! Great article.

    Liked by 1 person

  8. When adding filters on my Asos searches, the amount of different sizes I have to select because of how brand’s clothes fit!
    Ellyn Xx | Life Of A Beauty Nerd

    Liked by 1 person

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