# how many lbs in a dress size?



## suburbanite (Jul 27, 2006)

Someone here said they lost 5 dress sizes and 30 lbs.

I weigh over 200 lbs and wear a size 18. When I got down to 205 lbs (a loss of about 20 lbs), I wore a size 16.

So for me, its 20 lbs for a dress size, and I'd have to lose 100 lbs to get down to an 8 (since dress sizes change by 2 units each). At my height, an 8 is as small as I could possibly go.

How many pounds does it take other folk to change dress sizes? Seems to me I go up and down 5 lbs just in daily water fluctuations; for some smaller folk it seems like 5 lbs represents a huge diet effort.

It seems strange to me because we judge ourselves based on weight or based on dress size, but the two do not seem to correlate well across individuals; I know other folk who wear size 18 and weigh a good 50 lbs less than I do. (or do they lie about their weight?)


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## Pink_Carnation (Apr 21, 2006)

I depends on how dense the weight is for the size change. Going from 125 to 175 meant a change from size 8-14 so I won't lose 5 dress sizes by losing 30lb. either. I have known someone who was far less compacted for her weight and maybe that would work for her...she was about twice as big around as her daughter but was only little bit heavier.


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## nomad7inwi (Nov 30, 2005)

Muscle weighs more than fat and people carry their weight differently. I almost never carry any weight in my face, it all settles in my behind. When I lose weight my shirt size will go down well before my pant size will. I do have a lot of muscle, and the few people I tell my weight to are shocked, I look like I weigh less. I honestly have no idea what I weigh right now, somewhere between 170 & 185, I am 5'6" and wear between 16/18,16's just fitting to snug, 18's way too big falling off even with a belt.


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## suburbanite (Jul 27, 2006)

Nomad, thats a good example. 18's are a bit loose on me too--but I weigh a good 50 lbs more than you do!

Its weird.


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## RachAnn in NW Okla (Aug 28, 2002)

between Easter and May15, I lost 11 pounds and didnt move a dress size....just the pants that I was wearing fit a bit better...I was close to needing to move down a size but didnt quite make it. I have since gained 4 of those pounds back....need to get stricter about the carbs!

I think I was wearing about a size 16 when I was weighing 200....so for me it is about 15 pounds per dress size

Rachel


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## Mid Tn Mama (May 11, 2002)

I don't think you should concern yourself with dress size at all. Wow--what a total gamut run in what is in my closet and not because of fluctuating weight. There is so much variation in what a "12" is. Also, if you are short or tall it may dictate the size you buy.


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## donsgal (May 2, 2005)

suburbanite said:


> Someone here said they lost 5 dress sizes and 30 lbs.
> 
> I weigh over 200 lbs and wear a size 18. When I got down to 205 lbs (a loss of about 20 lbs), I wore a size 16.
> 
> ...


Let's see. I gained 50 pounds and went from a 7 to a 16. But I think I could get into a 14 if I lost 15 - 20 pounds. A lot of it has to do with where you carry your weight, too. Some people gain it in their lower half, so you could possibly wear a smaller size dress than pants.

donsgal


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## Ruby (May 10, 2002)

Also clothing manufacturing companies don't all use the same size measurments. I've noticed the more expensive clothing run in smaller sizes. There fore if you say bought something from Wal Mart that is a size 18 and it fits. Then you may wear a size 16 from a clothing boutique that specializes in the higher end clothing.

I have lost a total of 24 lbs. since Feb. and have only went down about a half size. I'm still wearing the same clothing as before they are just not as snug.


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## mammabooh (Sep 1, 2004)

I am 5'7" tall, 158 pounds, and I wear a 14. My friend is the same height and weight and wears a 10. I am very curvaceous and she is pretty much straight through the hips but has plenty-o-chest.

To answer your question, I'd have to lose about 8 pounds to fit comfortably into a 12. If my friend lost 8 pounds, she'd probably wear a 6.


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## mammabooh (Sep 1, 2004)

Ruby said:


> Also clothing manufacturing companies don't all use the same size measurments. I've noticed the more expensive clothing run in smaller sizes. There fore if you say bought something from Wal Mart that is a size 18 and it fits. Then you may wear a size 16 from a clothing boutique that specializes in the higher end clothing.


I actually wrote a college paper on that very subject a few years ago. The more expensive the clothing...the bigger the sizes were. Some ladies will pay a lot to say they wear a smaller size.

I remember a few years ago when JC Penney revamped their sizes. They said they were re-sizing so you didn't have to change your size as you "aged" or some silly thing like that!


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## Steely (Sep 13, 2007)

I am round and firm and fully packed.It takes alot of weight for me to lose a size.I have recently lost some weight but my clothes still fit,just a little loose.


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## suburbanite (Jul 27, 2006)

Mostly I wear Coldwater Creek, which isn't expensive since there's an outlet within reach. The clothing line is rather generously sized but is middle of the road in price, at least at the outlet.

I typically wait for outlet sales and get $60 original-price jeans for $15-$20. Sometimes I luck out on clearance and get something for $10-$12.


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## bjba (Feb 18, 2003)

Steely:

I'll bet your husband thinks you are a lucky strike.


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## Meg Z (Jun 8, 2004)

That was me that did 30 pounds and 5 sizes...but it was jeans. I guess dresses I went four sizes. I counted the jeans because I always buy the same brand, so I can tell more there. Dresses I buy all kinds.

I carry in my butt, but I lose that weight first, too, so I guess I shouldn't complain. I went from C cup to B cup in bras. Coulda been worse! 

Meg


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## Sharon in NY (May 11, 2002)

The other factor is height to weight - that is, average sizing tends to cut longer in order to compensate for wider. I'm 6'0 and when I lost a ton of weight in grad school, I could wear size 8 pants, but they were far too short for me in any place that didn't have a tall. A belted 10 or 12 fit much better. I have the same problem with tops - even if I fit comfortably into a 10, the arms will likely be too short, and the place where the bust darts are, if any, will be below my boobs. 

Tall clothes, or mens, are much clearer - I think about 10lbs to the size for me.

Sharon


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## Mel- (Mar 30, 2004)

if I exercise, I can go down a size losing 5 pounds. if I don't exercise then it takes 10-12 pounds per size.

I read a fashion article a few years back. said the average weight for women was 25 pounds more than it was 25 years ago. because of this, the clothing industry has made sizes larger. for instance, I wore a size 5 in high school. that exact same size measurements wise would be a size 1 today. (so what would have been an 12 then is only a 8 today!)its all to sell clothes. and that we women don't want to accept the fact that we are fat(ter) !

it also said that the average woman in america is a size 14. and the fashion industry considers a size 8 a plus size!


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## GrannyCarol (Mar 23, 2005)

I'm a large woman. I lost about 30 lbs in the last year or so and I am down one size in tops and possible two sizes in bottoms. However... sizes vary hugely even within a brand, so it's hard to tell. I just notice that my old pants, bought after i'd lost some of the weight, are baggy on me instead of tight and I enjoy that. Also, I can now buy the size I have been buying in the Plus shops at Walmart and it fits - that wasn't the case a few months ago!


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## Cornhusker (Mar 20, 2003)

I'm so confused. :shrug:


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## donsgal (May 2, 2005)

mammabooh said:


> I actually wrote a college paper on that very subject a few years ago. The more expensive the clothing...the bigger the sizes were. Some ladies will pay a lot to say they wear a smaller size.
> 
> I remember a few years ago when JC Penney revamped their sizes. They said they were re-sizing so you didn't have to change your size as you "aged" or some silly thing like that!


If you look at sewing patterns from the 1940s and 1950s a size 14 had like a 32 bust! 

If you remember the old Lucy show, she was trying out to be a "show girl" in Ricky's now "Babalu" production and they required that the girls be a perfect size 12! But size 12 was like a size 6 now.

Point being, they are always dinking around with sizes. I have a few size 16 pants that are too small and a couple of 14s that "almost" fit (fit snug, just too snug for me to be comfortable). You have to try everything on these days to see if it fits.

donsgal


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## Shygal (May 26, 2003)

Cornhusker said:


> I'm so confused. :shrug:



Thats what you get for listening in on women's conversations :nono:


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## Jenn (Nov 9, 2004)

Guess my last 20 # gained are all fat and pretty spacious because I go from size 8 to size 14 jeans both LLBean when I went from 135 to 150/155 (5'4"). Yet I bet to drop from 8 to 6 or 4 would be another 30 # (bone and muscle!). However have always been size 14 tops or in the shirts I buy nowadays M to L, S in the sexy clingy sweater department in the past but now M will work better. Broad shouldered boy hipped until I got on steroids for half a year recently.

Sub you must be pretty tall to carry 50# more than me at about the same size (I do wear petite when available)- some days I bet size 16 would do me better! But my stomach (and its comfort) is my g*d- rather have my trousers on my hips than my waistline.


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## suburbanite (Jul 27, 2006)

Heh! Outlet sale today. For $58 I got 1 pair of jeans, 1 pair of linen pants, and 4 tank tops (it won't be cold here for another 2 months).


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## DenverGirlie (Dec 22, 2005)

The smallest size I have ever worn was a size 10.... but I weighed 130 at that time and am only 5'3.... by conventional standards I "should" have worn a size 6.

I don't try to figure it out any longer


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## Selena (Jun 25, 2005)

Meaningless in today's no standard size world. I've noticed that sizes are getting bigger. I have been buying smaller sizes even though I have not lost any weight. It is a marketing gimmick to get women to buy more. "Gee, I'm a size 4" when no, really a size 6 (or 8) but they've resized. I doubt if I could fit into a 1930's size 4 designer dress but would have no problem today.


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## MarleneS (Aug 21, 2003)

Sub - when I read that thread (I think it was the same thread anyway) I remember thinking, that it wasn't really 5 sizes - it was more like 2 and 1/2 sizes. Not that I wouldn't enjoy thinking 5 sizes myself if I went from a 16 to an 11.

With that in mind - for me to go from a size 12 to a size 10 requires a 10# weight loss. But I consider it one size not 2 

However, in the clothing world even number sizes are for more mature figures. Where as the odd size are cut from the younger figure. That's why teenage clothing is sized 1/2 thru 11/12. That's also why you do not have sizes 17, 19, 21 

Then you have other considerations - Petites are sized for people under 5'3" tall. With shorter waist, and legs. Talls are for women over 5'6" -- average being 5'5" for women. Then there is sizes followed by either a "w" or "m" which is cut fuller in the waist for older women.

And as just about everyone has pointed out....different brands are cut different, and sized different - and sizing has been adjusted - donsgal is right the size 12 of the late 1950's is a size 5 today. Doesn't that just make your day to learn that your size 16 today would have been 22-24 then? yipes! It was great fun when Liz Clairborn started making clothing that was undersized and cut looser -- she didn't fool anyone but it sure was nice to buy the "smaller" size 

I guess the point is -- if you are wishing to loose weight and you can purchase smaller size in the process it's a good thing 

Hugs,
Marlene


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## turtlehead (Jul 22, 2005)

It might also be a percentage thing, rather than a pounds thing.

For example, if a 100 pound twiggy gains 20 pounds, she's a LOT bigger than when she started out. She'll go from a size 1 to a 6 or 8.

But if a 210 pound woman gains to 230, well, it's not going to be such a severe change. One size maybe?


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## Oggie (May 29, 2003)

While walking around the state fair this weekend, I saw a lot of size-14 women squeezed into size-8 clothes.

Some of the guys made even me begin to feel a little skinny.

I decided to pass on the deep-fried turkey leg / funnel cake with curly fries on a stick.


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## MelissaW (Jun 18, 2003)

mammabooh said:


> I actually wrote a college paper on that very subject a few years ago. The more expensive the clothing...the bigger the sizes were. Some ladies will pay a lot to say they wear a smaller size.
> 
> I remember a few years ago when JC Penney revamped their sizes. They said they were re-sizing so you didn't have to change your size as you "aged" or some silly thing like that!



It's so true about the more expensive brands! At the moment I'm a bit fluffier than usual (sounds better than chunky, lol!), and I wear an 8 on a skinny day, and a 10 on a puffy day. If I'm lucky enough to find J. Crew pants at Goodwill, however, I can wear a 6. I'm tellin' you, I don't care if they are purple with big green kittens printed on them, I'll buy them just for the satisfaction of that number!


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## Selena (Jun 25, 2005)

On a good (skinny) day, I weigh less than when I got my drivers license, on a bad (puffy) day I weigh the same as my license. However, the weight is not in the same place as it was 30 years ago. There'll come a day when a 300 lb person will wear a size 2 and the sizes will be 0, 00, 000 etc.


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