Topic · 8 entries
Sizing
Why a listed size label is not a measurement, and how to compare two charts that disagree.
Every entry, answer first
Open an entry to see the basis it rests on, the moves it implies, and the way people usually misread it. Every entry names the stage it bites at.
Why does the tag say L while the chart number sits between M and L?A size letter is a name a maker chose; the chart number is a measurement, and only the measurement compares across makers.
Worked example Charts work in steps, and a step is the gap between two adjacent sizes. If a chart gives 104 cm for L and 108 cm for XL, the step is 4 cm, and a chest of 106 cm falls between two rows that both exist. The letter on the tag was assigned by the maker to one of those rows; it was never a promise about your body. Put your own measurement beside the rows and let the arithmetic pick, then accept that a 2 cm seam tolerance can leave two rows viable.
What to do
- Write your own chest, shoulder and length down in centimetres first.
- Find which row each of your figures falls into, rather than which letter.
- Choose by the fit you want when two rows both fit.
The misread is assuming a size letter means the same measurement in every store.
Bites at: stage 2 — Hand the link over
Is measured flat the same as measured around the body?No: a flat measurement is half the circumference, so the two figures differ by a factor of two on the same garment.
Worked example A garment laid flat and measured across the chest at the seams gives half of the all-round figure. A flat chest of 50 cm corresponds to a 100 cm circumference, so a chart reading 50 and a body tape reading 100 can be describing exactly the same jacket. The error appears when the two are compared directly: 50 against 100 looks like a garment half your size, and ordering on that reading is what produces the wrong parcel.
What to do
- Read the chart header to see which convention it uses before you look at any figure.
- Double the flat figure, or halve your body figure, so both sides are the same kind of number.
- Ask the agent which convention the seller uses when the header is silent.
The misread is comparing a flat figure with a body figure and concluding the garment is far too small.
Bites at: stage 2 — Hand the link over
How do I get a comparable number from a garment I already own that fits?Measure the garment rather than yourself, and measure it the way the chart does: flat, closed, in centimetres.
Worked example Take a garment that fits, lay it flat, and measure the same three points the chart lists. Conversion is where the precision goes: an inch is 2.54 cm exactly, so a 20 inch chest reads 50.8 cm, and rounding that to 50 or to 51 can move you into a different row when the chart step is 4 cm. Write the unrounded figure first, then round only at the last step, when you choose the row.
What to do
- Lay the fitting garment flat and measure chest, shoulder and length.
- Convert inches by multiplying by 2.54 and keep one decimal place.
- Round only when you pick the row, and write down which way you rounded.
The misread is measuring your own body and comparing it with a garment measurement.
Bites at: stage 1 — Pick an agent
If two charts disagree by two centimetres, which one do I follow?Pick a tolerance before you compare, then see whether any single size fits both charts inside it.
Worked example Set the tolerance first, or you will move it to suit the size you wanted. Say your tolerance is 2 cm: 104 cm and 106 cm both sit inside a 4 cm band, so a size offered as 104 on one chart and 106 on the other is the same decision rather than a conflict. If no size lands within 2 cm on both charts, the two sellers are cutting to different blocks, and the disagreement belongs to the charts rather than to your measurement.
What to do
- Write your tolerance down as a number of centimetres before opening either chart.
- Check every candidate size against both charts, not just the first one.
- Treat it as a shape mismatch and drop that listing when nothing fits the tolerance.
The misread is averaging two charts instead of testing both against a tolerance.
Bites at: stage 2 — Hand the link over
What use is the model height and size printed in the listing?It tells you how the sample fitted one person, which is a starting point rather than a measurement of your size.
Worked example A listing that says the model is 180 cm and wears M gives you one data point: that M was worn by somebody of that height. It says nothing about chest or shoulder width, and nothing about how the same garment behaves on a shorter or broader frame, because the photo is a pose rather than a measurement. Compare 180 cm against your own height and 104 cm against your own chest: only the second comparison is about fit, and only the chart carries it.
What to do
- Read the model line for the size worn, then look for the chart figure beside it.
- Compare your own measurements with the chart, not with the model.
- Ask the seller for the three figures before ordering when there is no chart.
The misread is ordering the model’s size because the photo looks right on that person.
Bites at: stage 2 — Hand the link over
Does a shoe listing’s size number describe my foot or the insole?Usually it is a labelled size rather than a length, so the comparable figure is the insole when the listing gives one.
Worked example Shoe labels are names on the same pattern as clothing letters: they are assigned by the maker and they shift between makers. What can be compared is a length. Stand on a sheet of A4, 210 by 297 mm, mark the heel and the longest toe, and read the millimetres between the marks; then compare that figure with the insole length in the listing, leaving room in front of the toe. Without an insole figure you are comparing a name with a length.
What to do
- Measure both feet on paper in millimetres and use the longer one.
- Look for an insole length in the listing rather than a size number.
- Ask the agent whether the seller can supply an insole figure when only a size is listed.
The misread is converting a shoe size number between markets and treating the result as a length.
Bites at: stage 2 — Hand the link over
Can I have the warehouse measure the garment before it ships?Ask while the item is in storage, and ask for named points in centimetres; the reply is then a number you can act on.
Flow dependency The measuring request belongs to the storage window between check-in and packing at stage 6, because that is when somebody can reach the item and a tape. Once the box is closed, the figures attached to it are the packed weight and the box dimensions, not the chest of a garment. The wording decides the answer: measure the chest flat, the shoulder and the length, in centimetres returns three figures, while does it run small returns an opinion that cannot be compared with anything.
What to do
- Send three named measurements in centimetres, not an adjective.
- Send the request before packing day, and say which decision depends on it.
- Compare the figures you get with the chart before you approve packing.
The misread is asking whether the item looks small and treating the answer as a measurement.
Bites at: stage 5 — Read the QC photos
What do I do when the garment arrives and the measurement is off by a centimetre or two?Measure it against the figure you wrote down before ordering, because that is the only comparison that can decide anything.
Flow dependency The decision at stage 9 needs a number that existed before the parcel arrived, which is why the measurement you wrote at stage 2 or stage 5 is the useful one. Lay the garment flat and take the same three points again. If the difference sits inside the tolerance you set before ordering, there is no case to raise; if it sits outside, you have two figures and two dates, and that is what a return request or a report is judged on. Guessing from the feel of the fabric gives you nothing to send.
What to do
- Re-measure the same three points, flat, in centimetres, and write them beside the earlier figures.
- Compare the difference with the tolerance you set before ordering.
- Raise it with both sets of numbers and the dates when the difference is outside the tolerance.
The misread is deciding from how the garment feels rather than from the two measurements.
Bites at: stage 9 — Receive and check