What size am I?

No, this is not going to be a post about weight.

We all know that sizing between brands are inconsistent. But by how much?

Apparently it can be quite a bit. A clever lady from the UK, Anna Powell-Smith, collated clothing size information from a number of UK and US retailers and built an interesting app called "what size am I?" that helps you find the brand and size that best suit your body measurements.

I found the article on The Guardian and it listed the bust, waist and hips measurement of UK brands included in the app. Below are the measurements for 5 brands in size 12 (in centimeters).

FCUK	Zara	Topshop	ASOS	Dorothy Perkins
90	94	92	91	92
74	74	74.2	73	73
99	102	96.5	98.5	96.5

As you can see, the sizes vary by a lot. For instance there is a 5.5cm/almost 2 inch difference between hips measurements for Zara and Topshop/Dorothy Perkins.

I was also interested in comparing the standard measurements published by the brands and actual measurements from items that I own.

First, this dress from ASOS.

ASOS's published measurements for size 12 are 91-73-98.5. The measurements of my dress are 89-79-97.

Next up in this Dorothy Perkins dress.

Dorothy Perkins' published measurements for size 12 are 92-73-96.5. The measurements of the dress are 93-77-[I didn't measure the hips as it is an a-line dress].

So it appears that actual sizes are not that consistent with published sizes. Nonetheless I think this is a handy tool to see how different sizings between stores are. If you want to have a play yourself, the app is here and the Guardian article written by the creator of the app is here.

Are you frustrated by the lack of consistency in size between brands? Do you find this app useful?

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A grand day out

Yesterday was my day off (I work 4 days a week). took TLP into the city and we had a fantastic time. Before I go on-topic (yes I came home with a few bags of goodies) I thought I'd share a few photos from the day.

We went to the Wildlife Sydney in the morning and TLP had a ball seeing all the animals, including the mighty croc Rex.

Lunch was at Sky Phoenix. Thumbs up to the waitstaff - the service was excellent.

 

In the afternoon we went to the Sydney Tower Eye. It was a beautiful day.

After lunch TLP dutifully fell asleep in the stroller so I had a chance to shop more support the Australian economy ;-)

I'm quite convinced I've lost my sunglasses again so that was my main shopping goal. Luckily I found a pair quickly.

You can tell by the O on the side that they're from Oroton. At half price ($115) it was easy to say yes.

What do you think?

I also picked up these beauties at Oroton.

I love earrings and I love Art Deco designs so the Ornee drop earrings (on sale at $45) are perfect.

With the right outfit I should be able to wear them to work. Or I have to nag The Duke to take me somewhere nice for a date.

My next purchase was from FCUK. I don't visit their stores often but one of the dresses on display caught my eye.

The Pina Colada is a lightweight, 100% cotton dress with a vibrant print. Great for a day at the beach (we just need some beach weather in Sydney!). The price was marked down from $99.95 to $49.95, I must have missed the "further reductions" sign because I only paid $39.96. Always a nice feeling when you pay less than expected.

Then we went to SA Hair to pick up a hair brush for blowdrying my new, shorter do. The SA was so friendly and informative I ended up buying a few extra items. Memo to retailers: good salespeople = more sales.

The other item on my list of things to buy was a hat for TLP. I liked the look of the Honolulu hat ($29.95) at Country Road but TLP was asleep when I saw it so I couldn't check for size.

I went to the kids' section at Zara after TLP woke up but they didn't have any hats. I bought this fun long-sleeve tee for him instead (on sale for $7.95). It was my maiden Zara purchase in Australia!

Next up was Myer so TLP could play in the toy section for a while. No hats but I went through the "extra 25% off discounted prices" racks and bought these in the next size for summer 12/13.

Five tees and a pair of shorts for $70 ($70/6 = average $11.67) is great value, but by comparison the Zara tee has a RRP of $12.95. It goes to show that Zara's pricing is a big threat to other retailers.

A few observations:

• The SA at Veronika Maine told me her name and asked for mine before I went into the change room. It was so much nicer to address each other by name rather than "hey you".
• Postage for FCUK is $14.95 (for registered post) - a bit steep? One day I may do a tally of postage cost by major fashion etailers.
• The Oroton website plays music. One word = NO.
• I cannot provide the link to the sunnies from Oroton's website because the women's sunglasses page came up blank. I don't know if it was deliberate or if it was an error. If it's the latter they need to have a stern word with the webmaster.
• The Oroton earrings were $45 at the store however the website has them at full price ($95). The SA mentioned that the sale ends yesterday, however I wondered if they deliberately left them at full price on the website. Inconsistent pricing between stores and online is definitely a Etailer Don't in my book. 
• This is no surprise but Myer is chronically short-staffed. How can they expect to increase sales when their level of service is so low?

I think this blog is making me shop more! I still have to write about my second Shopbop order this year(!) and an ASOS order. Maybe it's time for a mini-shopping ban...

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