I’m not petite - let’s just put that out there. At 5’9 flat footed, I’ve never been called small in my life. I’ve always been the girl that was taller than all the boys, that was chosen first for basketball but last for homecoming. And my yo-yoing weight over the years has not helped things much. I’ve been normal, big, slim and pretty much every variation in between. But I have never been a 2. And that has been just find by me.
But after losing some weight recently, I decided to go buy some new capri pants for this warmer weather. So off to the mall I headed yesterday. Now, let me preface this by saying that I tried on my “pre-baby” clothes before I left. And was fairly confident that I was going to be able to get into a 6 - woo hoo! So when I put on the size 6 and it fell down around my ankles, I was more than a little confused. Thinking that somehow I got a pair that was sized incorrectly, I headed back out into the store and picked up some 4’s. Giggling, I’m thinking to myself - WOW - I’m going to fit in a 4! And then they were too lose.
At this point I’m getting pretty confused. The thought has actually crossed my mind that the hubs is playing some mean version of “Pranked” on me and that someone is going to pop out of the dressing room next to me and yell “Hahahaha - made you think you could wear that!” So, I cautiously snuck back out and picked up a 2. At this point, I’m really just thinking OK, this is nuts. I AM NOT A 2! I know I am not a 2. I just left a pair of snug size 6’s on the floor of my closet!
But as I put them on and buttoned that button, I promise the clouds parted and I was basked in sunight as I stood there in all the glory of these size 2 jeans!
So of course I take off for the register. I mean, let’s be honest, these could have been the ugliest pair of pants in the world and they WOULD have been coming home with me because of that little 2 on the label. But then as I was standing in line it hit me. This is what clothing manufacturers want us to do! It’s all part of their master plan! They know that we are going to put on that grossly over sized tiny number and be so ecstatic that it fits on our not small sized rear end that we’re going to run right to the cash register and snap it up!
And, yes, this dummy did! But as I did, I really thought about it and I got kinda mad. I got mad at a society that makes women feel that smaller is better. That if you can squeeze into the smallest size possible, you will feel more attractive. You will be more attractive. When in truth, my brain knows that I’m really wearing a 6 with a 2 stamped onto it. And rationally, there is no denying that slapping a size 2 on a size 6 butt no more truly makes it a size 2 than slapping the word pig on a cow and then expecting it to oink!
I got mad at the stores (and trust me, just because this came from NY and Co, which happens to be like my favorite store ever, it’s not unique to their store - I tried on pants in 4 different stores yesterday to confirm that this is an epidemic) who play on the vulnerability of women like me who long to feel like we are what society deems beautiful. When in truth, society couldn’t care less about the size on a label. But through years of having “beauty” ingrained in our minds from TV and magazines, we have come to think that if we don’t meet some totally insane requirements, we just don’t measure up.
And I got worried. Because if this over-sizing continues, what are the normal people going to wear? Is a whole new size line going to be created using negative numbers so that a 2 becomes plus size? That’s the way it’s looking to me! I mean, if I’m not really that small and I can wear a 2, I’m sure a truly petite person could wrap a 0 around them quite a few times!
So stores listen up! Thank you for flattering us. We really appreciate it. But stop! Please give us back our normal sizing. Because as good as if felt for one fleeting moment, I don’t want to be a 2. I’d rather be completely excited to rock out a true fitting size 6! And honestly, that would be better for my body image than being propelled forward by imaginary sizes that I have no business being in.
Yes, I bought my 2’s. And I will wear them proudly. But I know it’s all an illusion. And while I’ll take that illusion for today, I’d love to be proud of my “real” size tomorrow!
Sadie says
Those are super cute! I am 6’2″ and even when I was TOO small in high school - people called me anorexic - I was a size 10. Now I’m double that and working my way back down, but I think a 14 will fit me just fine. I like the jeans I buy now, they say size 5. Makes you feel a bit better at least, you are right about that! 🙂
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I can understand where your coming from. But I know what size I am and I will stick to it. I wishI felt better about my self as I used to wear jeans and I Love them but I fell to self conscious in them so I stick to black streach paints and it is all I wear. Even though my husband has asked me to buy a pair of jeans.
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I’ve actually heard that this is true….because who wants to buy a double digit size? Right? Sigh…but it’s a bigger problem….It’s the media and everyone telling women what they should look like Sigh….Great post by the way….
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Donna P says
I did not know this tread was happening. I will have to go out and buy a new a pair of jeans. In the past, I had always found the opposite to be true. My jean size was always one size larger than my dress pant.
Love the jeans!
Take care,
Donna
I’m complete opposite, I’m just over 5′. The only people who consider me tall are under the age of 3. I’ve also found that clothing manufacturers are all over the place with their sizes. I wear everything from a 0 to a 6, depending on the manufacturer. I’m over being caught up on the number and now more focused on how I feel. But I will totally admit, I feel much better when the label says 0. 🙂
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That same thing happened to me! Last year I went to get new pants and they were a size five, now I fit in a skinny size one, but it feels just like some of my old and worn size four jeans.
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They are so over the place with sizes now, and I have noticed that the sizes have gotten bigger with smaller numbers lately… I have been a 4 since high school, but over the years I gained weight so I knew there was something off with the size! Luckily, I recently lost weight also, so now I will probably be a 2 oddly enough!! I think the best indicator of our size is how we look to ourselves and how we feel… Which by the way, you look great on the photo , whether it’s a size 2 or 6! You look just fine.
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linda r says
I agree with you absolutely! I needed some new jeans also and picked up a few different pair in my size 10. Yup too big, got a 6 and same thing. I was so mad that I left the store. I know what size I wore in and don’t love trying on anyway so this was like torture. No way was I going to keep trying until I found something that fit. This is not a game and the numbers aren’t magical, so please stop the craziness.
I love this post! It is so true that the size of clothes has gotten very crazy. I have never been a size 2 nor would I care to be. I wear from a size 6 to 10 depending on where I shop. What I care most about is knowing I am being active and making healthy choices.
P.S. Love the jeans!
It is so weird how clothes are different sizes now. Something one size in one store in a certain size will fit me, and the next it is way to small. I wish there was a standard size and they stuck with it.
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Wow.
Just wow…..
It must speak to what motivates us as women and that is a darn shame.
This is why I absolutely detest shopping for pants or jeans. When I found the American Eagle Artist Jeans I fell in love, not because I miraculously fit in a size 6, but rather because they have been around for years, they are ALWAYS consistent (noting that the same size in the Stretch versions will always feel a bit more snug), they last a long time and they look great on all different shapes. We actually had 4 of 4 women in my department wearing them and rotating their multiple pairs!!
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I am always jealous of men when it comes to clothing sizes because they always get to wear their true size! I have to try to remember what size I am in each store :/
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Melissa P. says
You look amazing! 🙂
And yeah, totally agree about clothing stores playing tricks on the size of women’s pants (and shirts, too). I’ve been blessed with fairly good genes, so I never really worry about what exact size I am. In fact, for some types of clothing, I’m worried that I’m too small for their smallest size! (Which is a terrible feeling, especially when that item is a sports bra, and I’m unable to get a good-fitting one. *goes on a rant about how A-B cups also need support for their girls…*) Anyways, my size in jeans varies from a 0 (or even 00, since the 0 in American Eagle became HUGE after a wear or two) to a 3. In my mind, I’m wondering if some ladies just shop at some stores where their “size” is “smaller”. I find it incredibly sad that society puts so much pressure on women to become skinnier, yet have bigger boobs…
Naina John says
I agree, its a problem these days.I don’t care what size it is. I always go,try and buy stuff which fits. Whatever be the number 🙂
Edith says
The whole size thing is annoying. I’m a 5’9 girl here too and I can wear anywhere from a size 2 to a size 6 depending on who makes the clothes.
I completely agree. I have been into certain stores and i’ve noticed that the sizes are so completely wrong and I had the save epiphany that you did. I also noticed that it only seems to happen in the more expensive stores. I guess they have to over compensate for the crazy prices! But what I REALLY hate are the “skinny mirrors” in dressing rooms! Yes, I love the way I look in them but I want to know what it really looks like!
I have actually gone to stores ,knowing iam a size 10 LOL (i wish) and actually in that store i wear a 14. I hate it too .Media is so full of it making us think women who are itty bitty is the best way. But I have found it varies though because i have came across some men whom just for example might see paris hilton,nicole richie .Iam just mentioning them because i know they are too skinny and perfer someone like jessica simpson as she is now. so thank god some people see through all of that skinness.
i fight the battle of weight often
I used to wear a 0 or 2. I’m 5’3. I had to have a steriod injection in my neck. I still remember the ouch! Anyway I put on twenty pounds almost immediately. It’s been almost 2 years. I can’t get rid of it. May be I should give nutrisystem a try.
I am plus sized…so, I have a very hard time finding clothes as it is, and if I don’t want them to look like a table cloth or the curtains at my Grandma’s house, I have to spend a lot of money. So, when I find a pair of jeans that are “smaller” than I thought my size is, and they fit…I buy them! The false advertising works on me!
Elise Haase says
Ugh I feel the same. I’m a 16, an inch bigger on all my measurements then my sister and somehow she is a size 6… I don’t get it. I’m sorting here thinking I know I don’t look way larger then her so why are my jeans way lager? I hate shopping for clothes. I often make my hubby get me some new jeans and shirts. Foote thing he had good taste
I hate when sizes get so out of whack like that. Apparently, darker denim also runs smaller than regular wash. I went to shop for skinny jeans and in the light/regular washes I was a 1, my normal, but in the darker denim I was as large as a size 5. I wish there was a set standard for sizing. Online ordering would be much easier too!