Its Just a Number

Ok, now I am not talking about the number on a scale for once. I am talking about pants size. The other day I bought a pair of sleek black corduroy jeans size 6 without even trying them on. Got them home and they fit like they were custom tailored but not a smidge of room to spare. Looked great and I was proud I could get into them but I could tell I would end up not wearing them much because I just don't like snug clothes and hate feeling squished when I sit down which happens with the inner thigh skin I have.

So today those pants are going back to exchange for size 8. Had my moment in a 6. Obsessing about pants size is the same as obsessing about the number on the scale and its more important to have pants I am comfortable with. The same is true about our weight numbers. I am comfortable with my weight and gotta be comfortable with the pants size that feels right to me.

Diane

You are so right Diane!  I can actually wear a size 8, but a 10 feels better, so I buy size 10.  However, I found my new favorite jeans, and I wear them in size 12.  Do I care about the number?  Heck no!  I love the jeans and will wear them in size 12, no shame.  They are Levi's 525 perfect waist Levi's.  I found my first pair at the Goodwill store, then ordered another pair from the Levi's website.  I was pleasantly surprised when they turned out to be $31.50 after I put them in my cart.  They were listed at $50.  They are worth every penny by the way.  There is nothing wrong with wearing a good fitting jean one size up for comfort. 

You guys are so right.  I've been inheriting my granddaughter jeans.  Mostly size 9's.  I own a lot of size 6 and 8 bottoms, which were great for the summer, but I don't mind the size 9's.  I think that Jr.'s are cut lower waisted and smaller hipped, so the 9 works OK.

 It's just a number.  Went clothes shopping today and the sizes were all over the place.  It really depends on the maker.  Don't forget that corduroy is thinker so usually  you have to go up a size.  How about when buying pants with some stretch?  I usually go down a size. 
Enjoy the new clothes.
K

Amazing the impact those numbers can have!  I just made a facebook post about this last night and got several replies.

I really wish sizes could be standardized!  I bought 3 pairs of jeans last night- a 6, an 8, and a 10.  It would save lots of time.  I have everything in my closet from a 4?!?! to a 13 and they all fit...Go figure.  I even have different sizes in the same brand.

I learned when I was heavy to disregard the size- things look much better in reality if I buy them to fit than if I buy the size to fit what I want my reality to be.

Frustrating!!!

I'll have to come back and read this post again and again.
It's not about the numbers... It's not about the numbers... (well sometimes it still is because I can't find enough clothes at my size)

I cut my tags out! Ha ha.. Partly for comfort (I hate itchy tags) and partly for this reason. My clothes are spread across every size from a 3 to a 10- who gives a **** I look the same size in all of em!

Hey I used to always cut the tags out when I was fat because I couldn't deal with the reality of the size I was. Very ostrich-like behavior. Now i wish the size was on the outside and in inch tall letters. Ok , its just a number......    Diane

I realized that once I stopped buying my clothes at the same one or two stores (Avenues and Catherines) that with so many different choices out there that what fits is what counts; and not what size it is.... I recently had on pants from a size 16 to a size 12 -- and they all fit. I so wanted to buy the size 12 just because....but really liked the way the 16 petites fit my body better...so went with those !

I think for me, I was so used to having just ONE type of pant that actually fit - that I forgot over the last 30 years that there are so many different styles and cuts of clothing out there; and not to get hung up on a size; but that now I have to figure out what works for my body NOW...

Size is just a number, but if you look at size charts smaller sizes (even within petites) are better proportioned for us little folks than bigger.  They fit better because the hips and bust hit in the right places.  In many cases, as I've discovered lately, smaller sizes are actually more comfortable than bigger because the waistline on the dres****s at the waist not the hip, for example.. 

One thing I've had to recalibrate in my head is 'fit.' When I was size 20+, I didn't like anything close to the body because I didn't want to show the bumps and bulges. I got accustomed to not feeling my clothes.   As I've gone down in sizes, I've come to see how much more flattering  'close' fit if not tight clothing is on my shape than bigger and looser. 

Are they as comfortable?  If fit properly, yes, but I do 'feel' my clothes more than I did in the past. I've gotten accustomed to it.