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Yes!! I'm a size 1 and some of the dresses I tried on were a size 8!!! The dress I bought was a size 4 but the size 8 in the designer dresses really bummed me out! Some of them didn't even fit me at all. I know that my hips and thighs have gotten bigger since I had a child, but I didn't realize they were that big! I was really upset over it for awhile, but when I went to buy my dress the lady at the bridal store told me that the dresses are made EXTREMELY small and that unless you're stick thin with no curves at all you will never wear your actual size in bridal. I'm sure your dress will come out fine. Mine was way too long, way too big in the bust, and way too long in the torso, but it turned out beautifully and I'm sure yours will too. Best of Luck!
I had an eating disorder for several years and am not exactly comfortable with my size or my body. I've seen so many comments here about how it's common to have to go up two or three sizes when buying a wedding dress. I haven't started shopping for a dress yet, but based on what I've seen/heard, I just don't understand the sizing at all...why can't designers just make the dresses true to size, rather than two sizes smaller?
Bridal sizes are soo different than regular street clothes as I'm sure you know! I work in a bridal shop and I know how frustrating it can be to have to get soo many alterations, but it will turn out beautiful! If they didn't use your largest measurement, it would be too tight in your hips! You can fix too big, but not too small! Everything will just fine and dandy!
I had to order a size 16 for the hips as well!! Unfortunately, it's very difficult to let a dress out, which is why they always order a size up to fit the biggest measurements. This did make me upset since I am normally a size 12 and hope to back down to a size 10 come wedding time. I am hopeful that it won't be too bad as far as sizing go since it's a corset top it can prob be pulled in more if neccesary.
I think that's normal; that's why there are alterations.
One of the great things about wedding dresses is that they DO get altered - imagine how hard it would be to find one that fit off the rack for every woman! We all have such different body types and shapes... it's hard enough finding jeans ;) I can imagine trying to find a dress that would fit with no alterations.
I wouldn't worry too much about about the 14 on the tag - it's an abstract, arbitrary number with no real basis in reality (I mean, it's not like we American use centimeters or inches or anything else to actually measure anything, haha). What matters is that the dress fits you after alterations, flatters your body, and makes you look and feel amazing!
Absolutely do not worry about the size on the tag! It has nothing to do with your body in particular. The sizing issue exists even for petite girls. I'm a street size 0 or 2 and ordered my wedding dress in size 4. Alterationists can work magic - I'm sure your dress will be lovely and that you'll be beautiful in it!
I'm actually somewhat concerned about the size ordered by the bridal shop, but for different reasons. After purchasing my dress, I read that they're supposed to order it based on the largest measurement of hips, waist, and chest. With me, my waist was one size, my chest was another, and my hips were yet a third size. Rather than fitting the largest one and having to take the other two in, my bridal shop ordered the dress based on the middle size, so now I'm terrified that I'm going to have to lose a bunch of weight to make my waist shrink small enough for the dress to fit.
Dress sizes seem completely arbitrary. I wear a size 6 in "street" clothes and I bought my first dress and it was a size 8. I changed my mind about what I was wearing, and the second dress I bought was a size 12!! They both fit the same, which is crazy!
I wear a size 8 in street clothes and ended up with a size 14 in my dress. I don't think it has that much of a bearing on actual sizes. Wedding dress sizes are MUCH smaller.
I know that wedding dress sizes are generally higher than street sizes, but I've never understood why. I mean, wouldn't it be good marketing to do the opposite, and make people feel thinner when they go to buy their dress, rather than having them buy two sizes up?
Apparently the bridal industry uses a different "sizing" system. I don't know, I don't trust it. The numbers are completely arbitrary... having a dress that fits, rather than having one that is a number you are attached to (I am thinking of those brides that order a dress one size too small, because they don't want to be a certain number) is what's most important. I will be having my dress made -- it has no size at all! It's a size Mitla, lol :)
Maybe when you take the dress home you can cut the label out -- it's a small gesture, but the physical act of cutting out the label might make you feel a bit better.
From what I've heard, many of the bridal dress sizes reflect what street sizes USED to be. Street sizes have used good marketing tricks to make us feel smaller. Ugh. It's depressing to hear, but I try to remember that it's just a number.
I don't know why it bothers people what number something is! Different lines will give you different numbers, it doesn't mean anything, a bigger number doesn't make you any bigger or anything.
Wedding dress sizing is actually what sizing should be in the end...over the years, clothing makers have increased their measurements on each size. Everything in a store nowadays is "vanity" sized...the number is smaller to us so we feel better about ourselves. If you compare the measurements for say, a size 4, 20 years ago versus today, it will be completely different. Wedding dress sizing hasn't really changed over the years to match the vanity sizing.
In the end, don't worry about the number on the tag; the dress will be altered to fit you, and it will look perfect!
I've had some eating issues in the past as well and while I think I've gotten used to the sizing issue, the fact that there's this pressure to lose weight / get in shape for a wedding is what's bothering me (I'm pretty happy and healthy at the moment, but my issues were with orthorexia and compulsive exercise, so what others consider "getting healthy" is pretty close to what was undereating / abusing my body / being obsessive and depressed to me).
As far as the size goes, for most of us a wedding dress is going to be one of the only things we buy with the intention to alter it to make it fit perfectly to all our measurements. When buying clothes off the rack, we go for "best fit" and deal with the waist being a little tight or the hips a little loose or whatever since generally the size chart doesn't have a size that matches all our measurements. But with a wedding dress, it's a significant enough purchase to get it fit to each part of our body. Since it's easier to take in than take out, the idea is to order up.
Also - the sizing is outdated. Yes, it's kind of depressing, but at the same time back in the day the ideals were different as well (no one wanted to be size 00 - the size didn't even exist). Not only that, but waists were tiny due to all the constricting undergarments people wore. I'll take a couple inches on my waist measurement for the ability to forego girdles and breathe freely.
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Since all the hub-bub about plus-sized versus curvy versus voluptuous versus full-figured has surface with the approach of a new board, was anyone disappointed in the size the bridal salon ordered for you in comparison to your actual size?
I've had eating issues since I was 14 and have gone back and forth between a size 6 and 14 since then. When it was time to go dress shopping, I had HEALTHILY lost weight and was a 6/8 in street clothes. However, the salon took my largest measurement (as I know they are supposed to) which was my hips...and I ended up in a size 14 dress. Not only was I disappointed with the number, but then when it came in, I was severely upset by how HUGE it was on me. :( Seriously, the only place it fit was at my hips. Had to have six inches taken in on the waist and several on the bust as well. I'm still kind of freaked out that it looks big in the bust area.
Any other brides felt this way about dress sizes?