General Chat

If a garment is cut from a true size 12 block for average height it will fit average height size 12 women.

The problem is that manufacturers no longer conform to standard size blocks.

I have tried on the same style trousers of the same size in two different branches of M&S, one pair was fine the other must have been at least one size smaller.

Island, I quite agree. The size block wants reforming to true size. The legs on trousers, are far too big for the garment size.

Julia in Derbyshire

you women will have to join the american culture and adjust your size to fit the garment......

dons tin 'at and hides in cubboard

bob

Morning Bobtatian, Good job I was not on here when you posted. Now I am not quite awake, so you are safe.
But, I would have to have thighs and b*m, like a Sumo Wrestler, to fill all the fabric in that area of the said garment.

Julia in Derbyshire

Sue/island
Re : "standing like tripe"..don't know where that came from......but I have just checked with my delapidated Oxford English and it says that tripe is slang for' worthless or trashy thing'..... doesn't sound the same when saying someone was standing looking worthless and I am usually extra annoyed when it happens....or could this be a northern expression as I believe they ate a lot of tripe here once upon a time-jl

TBH I do have larger thighs...not huge thighs, they are in proportion, but I do struggle to fit jeans from some shops while others are fine. It's just a case of shopping around. As ChAoTic said, women don't come in standard sizes, so how are clothes sizes meant to be standardised? Also it is a fact that the shape of women is constantly changing, not because of weight, but that we are still evolving. This presents enormous problems for clothing manufacturers.

Boots are my problem, again because my calf width is slightly larger, it's rare I can get boots to fit other than from Evans (thank goodness), as they are all made for twigs to fit in them. Honestly, some of them are barely wider than the heel on the bottom!

Teresa, clothes have been made to standard sizes for a long time.
Manufactures have to cut their patterns from something.
Detailed surveys of measurements are carried out from time to time to reflect changing shapes e.g. womens waists being larger now in relation to bust and hips.
A lot of women are measured to achieve average (standard) sizes.
Manufacturers can't produce patterns to suit every individuals variation such as large bust/narrow back or vice versa so they have to use average/standard sizes for mass production.

However, a lot of manufacturers these days scrimp on fabric and don't attach the correct size label.
If my waist and hips are size 12 I expect a pair of size 12 trousers to fit but I've found some 12s to be too big and some 14s too small. This is why I say standard sizes should be adhered to again.

Yes but as with shoes, they are the manufacturers own standard sizes based on their own research, so standard sizes can and are still sometimes very different.

Shoes are not made to a fixed standard size, but to the manufacturers own lasts. There was an inquiry some 20 years ago as to whether internationally standard lasts should be used, but it was agreed it would be far too costly to replace the very expensive lasts used to build the shoes on, so the idea was dropped. Hence that is a 5 D childs shoe in Clarks would not be the same as a 5D in Startrite shoes.

It's the same for the clothing industry, there is not an international standard size to work from. Size 12 is pretty much size 12 everywhere, but length, shape, bust size shoulder width is very variable.

I suppose there is a use for Burkas after all (One size fits all and covers all). :-D :-D :-D :-D

Only if it's the right head size and body length. :-P

Based on average measurements and height Teresa.

I know what size 'should' fit me according to my measurements based on my experience as a pattern cutter but because sizes aren't standardised I can't rely on that. Same goes for shoes - what happened to the four and a half?

Excellent idea Merlin, would save us all from having a fright ;-) :-D

Save a lot of trouble, :-D,just think, you could go out in your jimjams underneath and no one would know. :-D :-D

Well I am back now. Had to trawps all the way into Derby to get them changed. Then all the palaver of having to go up another floor to Customer Exchange. Got my money returned, then had to go down a floor and find them to pick new pairs in a smaller size, but they do still seem baggy in the top of the legs and b*m area.
Still, made the most of the day, and got some plants I was after, and some wool for me crochet. So all was not lost.
Hope it's another ten years before I want any new jeans. Can't stand the pace. LOLOL

Julia in Derbyshire

After spending almost all morning taking out the creases accrued during manufacture and transit, I now have perfect centre Navy style creases down the front of the trousers.
However, when I went to exchange the trousers, I made a point of going down to the men's department, and having a look at how their trousers are presented. Every pair were hung correctly on the hangers, not a manufacturing crease was in site, and all pairs had central creases on them.
So, why are not womens trousers presented like this. I think I feel and e-mail to M & S coming on.

Julia in Derbyshire

now if womens trousers was hung on the hanger like mens
what is the first thing you are going to do.

you are going to take them off the hanger and hold them up to your self to see how thay look in the neast mirror and see how long thay are on you
and if the colour will sute you

so all the shops have dont is made this easier for us by hanging them the way thay do

so all we have to do is take off the rack put itam up to the wast and put back if we dont like

see now folding is needed lol

Julia, I think womens trousers are displayed that way because we are looking at the style but men just want a pair of trahzizz so look at the waist/inleg numbers on the hanger LOL

Julia, now you,ve got the centre crease,turn them inside out,rub dry soap down the crease re iron and the crease will be permenent, :-D

There's a good tip Merlin, I'll have to try that on my trousers. :-D

I know all about getting that centre front crease exact. Daddy was in the Navy. Well, there was a war on you know. LOLOL

Julia in Derbyshire