How Do You Know Which Women's Dress Size You Should Wear Without Trying Them On?

[Guest Pioneer]

Today I was shopping for clothes for my trip to New York which will be next week and I was tempted to grab a few women's clothes I spotted..but I didn't wanted to try them on because the employee was helping others at the dressing room and I had to return those if I put them on.

If this helps my height is only 5'7" with weighing 117 lbs, but despite that my arms, chest, and shoulders are muscular and nowhere near in shape that looks like woman's. If I knew the size for me, maybe I could order it online or something to save me some embarrassment.

I don't know what I want actually. Maybe cute top..I won't mind that.

[Guest Donna Jean]

Oh, Honey.....

The sizes are all over the place in women's clothes! If you have one thing that fits perfectly and buy another brand in the same size...it may be too big or too small....BOO!

See, men's clothing was standardized years ago because of the military so, most brands will fit if the same size.......no such rules cover female clothes!

SOOoooooo......

Try them on.....only really good way....I carry a tape measure and know my sizes by the inch and do a pretty good job that way!

And mail order????

Well...good luck!

You're a really good size and weight to find lots of really nice things that you can wear!

I hope that you find some really nice things!

Have fun shopping!

HUGGS

Donna Jean

[Guest Pioneer]

Oh, Honey.....

The sizes are all over the place in women's clothes! If you have one thing that fits perfectly and buy another brand in the same size...it may be too big or too small....BOO!

See, men's clothing was standardized years ago because of the military so, most brands will fit if the same size.......no such rules cover female clothes!

SOOoooooo......

Try them on.....only really good way....I carry a tape measure and know my sizes by the inch and do a pretty good job that way!

And mail order????

Well...good luck!

You're a really good size and weight to find lots of really nice things that you can wear!

I hope that you find some really nice things!

Have fun shopping!

HUGGS

Donna Jean

Thank you for the tip! If I gather enough courage, I'll stack some women's clothes secretly on men's t-shirts and head to men's dressing room lol.

[Guest Ryles_D]

See, men's clothing was standardized years ago because of the military so, most brands will fit if the same size.......no such rules cover female clothes!

That's ALWAYS annoyed me about women's clothes. I saw a picture comparing size 10s, and it was a really wide variety of body shapes- I'd never look at all 3 of those women and assume they were the same size. It makes no sense to me.

so, yeah, I'm sorry to say- but you'll have to try them on and hope. :/ You can try and figure out which size is closest for you (I think someone posted men/woemn sizing charts. You could also use an online site and find out what size your dimensions would suggest for a starting point) and hope over time you can either find a way to shop dressed without getting any looks or can get better at eyeballing what'll fit so you don't have to try too many things each time.

[Sally]

Sweetheart,

I'll just tell you what I did.

I went to a plus size clothing site, the Woman Within site is connected to Layne Bryant, Roman's and an overstock outlet for plus sized clothing - they have a very good measurement section - take all of your measurements and order something knit!

Try it and if it isn't stretching anywhere that is your size - in that brand (hint - they tend to carry there own brands and a few selected others that run true to their sizing)

I love their tunics (I'm tall with a huge stomach so I like the longer flowing things rather than fitted.

Be prepared for a ton of E-mail offers!

Love ya,

Sally

[Guest julia_d]

oh dear.. here we go.. clockhouse I'm a 16 .. everybody else I'm a 12 .. except George.. in those I'm a 10.. and doesn't that make me feel good?

[Guest mia 1]

'Pioneer'

Thank you for the tip! If I gather enough courage, I'll stack some women's clothes secretly on men's t-shirts and head to men's dressing room lol.

That a girl ..if I did you can do it. Psyched myself up for an entire day before I tried the clothes on in the dressing room..and went first thing in the A.M. before I lost my nerve,,,and it worked and you know what no one cared worth a wit.......SO Pioneer it is all up to you..remember you "Ain't" breaking "no" laws.......lol Mia

[Guest Pioneer]

Thank you ladies for the help. much love <3

[Guest ~Brenda~]

Hi Hon,

What I did when I first started buying dresses was to guess at my size. Initially, I made some mistakes and ended up with clothing too big or too small. I soon got it right however. Some clothes, eventhough they technically fit, just don't seem to hang right. You will discover which styles look good on you and which don't. Sizes? Yes they vary greatly with vendors. I simply stick with a few vendors that I know what size and styles work for me!! Experiment!

LOL

bernii

[Guest Elizabeth K]

I don't know your size, but if you need to shop in the ful-size women's shops, I use four different ones in my area. All four let me try them on clothes in the store - no problem. [not bras and panties]

I also try on clothes at msjor deprtment stores - just don't go when they are busy. It's not your trying them on, its how they don't want to offend other customers. Also - take in a whole bunch at the same time so you are not - in - out - in - out - too much.

And if you don't have the nerve (it's really not that difficult) then buy in online catalogs - most have a return policy - which you need to read very carefully.

Google 'women's clothing sizes." Have a cloth tape measure handy. Usually you need to buy for waist size in pants and shoulder width size in blouses.

Also women usually buy pants about 2" longer in inseam because they... emmmm... rise up higher - no... err... obstructions.

Hope this helps

Lizzy

[Guest Pioneer]

Thank you girls again.

I really did try today once again but..I chickened out. I just couldn't..You girls are so brave.

Nothing but love for you girls <3 <3 <3

[Guest Valentine]

Most sites have a size chart, sometimes it is generic, other times it will list by manufacturer.

[Guest cynthia]

Sorry to say it, but the only way is to try things on. Even if something fits perfectly it may not look good on you! I don't think it's on anymore, but if you can find it on hulu or someplace like that, watch a few episodes of Tim Gunn's guide to fashion. (I wish he'd do a crossdressing episode!) He insists that the GG's on the show try everything on before buying. And it really is amazing how some things fit perfectly but look horrible on a particular person. The same outfit may look great on someone else. If you mail-order things, make sure that the site you order from will accept returns for any reason. GG's return half the stuff they buy through mail-order, so it's usually not a big deal. Someone has already mentioned onestopplus.com (womanwithin is part of this site), and they claim that no sale is ever final. If you buy something in a store without trying it on (pretending it's for your wife/girlfriend) ask about their return policy, and don't buy it if you can't return it.

Nothing is more frustrating than getting something that fits but looks bad. If this happens, don't assume that "I just don't look good in a dress." Return it and keep trying and eventually you'll find things that make you look great. It's easy to find male clothing that looks good because there isn't much variety. Female clothing is a lot more work, but definitely worth it!

Just my two cents.

Cynthia.

[Guest nymphblossom]

I just made my first trip to the dressing room on Saturday. Sweetie, it wasn't near as bad as I thought it would be. LOL, I don't think the teenage attendant would have cared if I had a bustier and a mini skirt!

I think it's good advice to bring as much with you as they allow in the dressing room so you can keep your trips to a minimum. If you get the same thing in a couple different sizes, you can narrow in on what fits you best pretty quickly. I mainly bought slacks and tops so I kind of cheated when I was picking things out. I had some guy stuff in my size for comparison.

Anyway, it's nice to know everything I bought fits. No messy returns and no wasted money- does that mean i get to go shopping again

Blossom

[Guest Pioneer]

^ Congrats Blossom. You did something that I couldn't do yesterday, which was purchasing. lol I'm happy that you like those that you have bought and I hope you get some more clothes! =)

So yesterday I manage to sneak in some tops hidden between men's T-shirts to men's dressing room. I really wanted to try those long dresses but I didn't think one T-shirt can cover the whole length so I just left them alone and focused on tops. I tried on 6 of them. There were so many that I wanted to try on that it disheartened me. And I didn't wanted to go in and out of men's dressing room more than twice so I just gave up afterwards. The whole process took me about an hour because I stalled a lot and wondered around a lot. That gave some security guy watching me I think because I was acting suspicious. Oops haha.

There was one that I liked so I took it to the counter. Before I stand in the long, dreadful line, I studied the cashier there what she does with clothes. Guess what, she lifts it up really high so everyone can see and folds it after the scanning the tag. So long story short, I didn't get the top that I was gonna buy. I even waited in the line until I decided not to. But I did tried them on at least so I'm gonna give myself a self pad on the back lol.

The punch line of this story is that I did purchase a hat since I didn't wanted to go home empty handed. And the cashier said, "Thank you, sir." I didn't know if I should have cried or laughed. =|

Nothing is more frustrating than getting something that fits but looks bad. If this happens, don't assume that "I just don't look good in a dress." Return it and keep trying and eventually you'll find things that make you look great. It's easy to find male clothing that looks good because there isn't much variety. Female clothing is a lot more work, but definitely worth it!

"I just don't look good in a dress." That was my assumption why I never tried on women's clothes for years until yesterday. Your words actually guided me while I was trying on some tops, although I didn't give it 100% effort to look for what I really wanted. Only 1 looked kinda okay and everything else didn't fit at all. But yea I only tried 6 so no big deal. It was kinda relief to hear that there is some cute dress out there that is waiting for me though. So thank you, Cynthia.

And thanks again everyone for the help.

[Guest nymphblossom]

You did great, Pioneer and next time will be easier

I used to cross dress alot about 20 years ago, so I have a little experience under my belt. And I wasn't trying on dresses, just capris and tops. Were you cross dressed while you were shopping? I wouldn't have any trouble buying a dress in guy clothes but I'm not sure I could take it to the dressing room to try on.

[Guest Pioneer]

You did great, Pioneer and next time will be easier

I used to cross dress alot about 20 years ago, so I have a little experience under my belt. And I wasn't trying on dresses, just capris and tops. Were you cross dressed while you were shopping? I wouldn't have any trouble buying a dress in guy clothes but I'm not sure I could take it to the dressing room to try on.

I cross dressed once or twice at home only but that was some 5 - 10 years ago and I never tried it on until the mentioned above.

I would never dream of cross dress on public in fear of getting jumped or ridiculed because it will be too obvious that I am and look like a "dude" in a dress. As I was trying some clothes on at the men's dressing room, there were two tall guys that looked very intimidating - and they were the ones getting in line behind me so I had to abandon the top that I was going to purchase. I was afraid to drop my women clothes because you could see the feet underneath if you looked down. There were like 4 dressing room, and I was like in the middle room between those guys. All I can say is good thing I wasn't trying on a long dress.

[Guest Krystyna_Marie]

That a girl ..if I did you can do it. Psyched myself up for an entire day before I tried the clothes on in the dressing room..and went first thing in the A.M. before I lost my nerve,,,and it worked and you know what no one cared worth a wit.......SO Pioneer it is all up to you..remember you "Ain't" breaking "no" laws.......lol Mia

right on, mia! tried on party dresses on clearance at marshall's just before closing that night . . . ooh funnnn! girl there lookd hard at me, but didn't give me a hard time. too bad they didn't have one i liked in my size - beware of party dresses that you fall for hard, tagged your size but really two sizes twoo small!! oh the irony ;>)

kisses!! km

[Guest androgynous]

Thank you girls again.

I really did try today once again but..I chickened out. I just couldn't..You girls are so brave.

Nothing but love for you girls <3 <3 <3

hehe, well I heard different stories from men who went shopping and noticed that girls don't even bother that you are skimming through the racks

Usually it's the clerks at the changing room but even they get used to seeing a lot of stuff everyday, I would advise to go shopping in large stores, they are used to see many people.

Personally I buy online, but I do that with men's cloths as well. If it ain't under XL I'm usually right, but I'd like to play safe and place my bet on stretch

[Guest Valentine]

You might want to try a resale shop, I have had only bad experience out of 20 or 30 and most of them were in small rural towns. A few were nonhelpful, but most were extremely helpful. Some of the women, young to old, were having fun "dressing me."

[Guest Ashlee]

Oh Pioneer,

I dont know how I missed this topic.

I'm so glad you were able to take those clothes in and try them on.

The first time is kind of scary!

Here's what I have done:

I go either dressed as male or subtlely dressed enfemme, that is wearing hose, slacks, a sweater and flat shoes.

I pick out what I want to try on, just like any other person shopping.

I take them to the mens dressing room and if there is an attendent, ask to try them on.

I go in and try them on!

I have done this many, many times in the last 5 years or more, and I have never been denied the opportunity to try on clothes.

Some stores make you put the clothes on a rack so they can be checked before I take them in. No problem with that either.

I have tried on dresses, (lots of dresses, long, short, all colors) skirts, blouses, and more.

I say, just go and have fun...

...I sure do

Ashlee

[Guest Pioneer]

right on, mia! tried on party dresses on clearance at marshall's just before closing that night . . . ooh funnnn! girl there lookd hard at me, but didn't give me a hard time. too bad they didn't have one i liked in my size - beware of party dresses that you fall for hard, tagged your size but really two sizes twoo small!! oh the irony ;>)

kisses!! km

hehe, well I heard different stories from men who went shopping and noticed that girls don't even bother that you are skimming through the racks

Usually it's the clerks at the changing room but even they get used to seeing a lot of stuff everyday, I would advise to go shopping in large stores, they are used to see many people.

Personally I buy online, but I do that with men's cloths as well. If it ain't under XL I'm usually right, but I'd like to play safe and place my bet on stretch

As I was browsing through racks, I saw a young woman looked at me and kinda cringed her eyes lol. And I heard some giggling from others but I could be wrong. I was in a super paranoia state haha. Size Large fits me but I wasn't sure if it really fitted me like it was suppose to. I heard a ripping sound around the neck on Medium size when I tried that on but don't worry no one got hurt lol.

You might want to try a resale shop, I have had only bad experience out of 20 or 30 and most of them were in small rural towns. A few were nonhelpful, but most were extremely helpful. Some of the women, young to old, were having fun "dressing me."

Oh Pioneer,

I dont know how I missed this topic.

I'm so glad you were able to take those clothes in and try them on.

The first time is kind of scary!

Here's what I have done:

I go either dressed as male or subtlely dressed enfemme, that is wearing hose, slacks, a sweater and flat shoes.

I pick out what I want to try on, just like any other person shopping.

I take them to the mens dressing room and if there is an attendent, ask to try them on.

I go in and try them on!

I have done this many, many times in the last 5 years or more, and I have never been denied the opportunity to try on clothes.

Some stores make you put the clothes on a rack so they can be checked before I take them in. No problem with that either.

I have tried on dresses, (lots of dresses, long, short, all colors) skirts, blouses, and more.

I say, just go and have fun...

...I sure do

Ashlee

Thank you for the tips and sharing your experience, girls. Much appreciated. =)

[Guest Ashlee]

As I was browsing through racks, I saw a young woman looked at me and kinda cringed her eyes lol. And I heard some giggling from others but I could be wrong. I was in a super paranoia state haha. Size Large fits me but I wasn't sure if it really fitted me like it was suppose to. I heard a ripping sound around the neck on Medium size when I tried that on but don't worry no one got hurt lol.

Thank you for the tips and sharing your experience, girls. Much appreciated. =)

I get those "looks" occationally too, believe me, the more nervous and paranoid you feel, it will show, and they will react that way. If you go in acting like your shopping for a SO or that you have every right to be there, (and you do!) thats what you want to project and they won't think anything of you being there. Be careful when you are looking at sizes. Size large 'typically' means Juniors sizes and they run on the smallish side. Some misses clothes use the S-M-L sizes and a size L in misses will be bigger than a size L in juniors.

"no one got hurt" lol

I forgot to add too that shopping at thrift stores is a good place to try on clothes. The people there really don't care what you take into the dressing rooms. I was even able to do something at a thrift store that I have really wanted to do - try on a WEDDING DRESS!!! That was incredible!

Please let us know how your future shopping trips turn out.

Happy Shopping

Ashlee

[Guest Pioneer]

I get those "looks" occationally too, believe me, the more nervous and paranoid you feel, it will show, and they will react that way. If you go in acting like your shopping for a SO or that you have every right to be there, (and you do!) thats what you want to project and they won't think anything of you being there. Be careful when you are looking at sizes. Size large 'typically' means Juniors sizes and they run on the smallish side. Some misses clothes use the S-M-L sizes and a size L in misses will be bigger than a size L in juniors.

"no one got hurt" lol

I forgot to add too that shopping at thrift stores is a good place to try on clothes. The people there really don't care what you take into the dressing rooms. I was even able to do something at a thrift store that I have really wanted to do - try on a WEDDING DRESS!!! That was incredible!

Please let us know how your future shopping trips turn out.

Happy Shopping

Ashlee

Hey sorry for the late response

I just found out that the mall I usually go to doesn't have that "nosey security people" lol..I think I can just pick my women's clothes and wear and just leave it there as a trophy if it doesn't fit..hmm..

WEDDING DRESS?? SO AWESOME. hehe.

As of right now though I've grown my facial hair back and I don't feel like much of a woman now. I don't know it's funny. But what I'm planning to do is grow my hair longer since it's still short and when it does I'm gonna try it out some more women's clothes since I can maybe camouflage as a woman better. It'll take another 6 months probably X_x

Thanks for the tips Ashlee. <3