Size does not matter....

I recently completed my seasonal ritual; switching over from my winter wardrobe to my spring wardrobe. During this time I take inventory of items I need for the new season and then take that list with me when I go shopping. Armed with my list I walked to my favorite store, Lord and Taylor on Fifth Avenue and was elated to find on display such bold, bright and beautiful fashion items. Coming out of the doldrums of a cold New York winter, this was incredibly refreshing!

After trying on multiple items I made my way to the cashier desk and realized that in my hand I had an array of sizes ranging from a size 0 to size 4. I’ve been fairly true to my size since high school with very little deviation in weight but of course through the years, things have “shifted” a bit but I tell myself that this is the beauty of life. I thought back to when I attended classes at the Fashion Institute of Technology and a former teacher talked about the lack of standardized sizing for women as evidenced by the fact that for every US size, there is approximately more than 12 variations in that size and this does not take into account the variations in color dyes which can alter the size (some shrinkage can take place). So if you take this number into consideration along with the plethora of designers out there you will begin to realize that the confusion as to what size you really are is absolutely valid. Now that you know this tidbit of information, the next time you go shopping do not shop for that single size you think you are, shop in a size range and focus on the fit. This concept is quite liberating!