Sizing, especially for vintage dresses, is always a problem!
For one thing, there is no actual standard of what ‘Size 12’ actually means. Different companies work to different rules, so size 12 Next is not the same as size 12 Marks & Spencer. On top of that, the general idea of size 12 in 1965 is not the same as the general idea of size 12 in 2015, so if a vintage dress has a size label, that’s not much help either.
So – this is how things work in The Looking Glass online shop. The actual dress measurements are specified in the description of the dress. Please note – these are measurements taken from the dress itself – which won’t be quite the same as the measurements of the body to fit in it!
A good way to check sizing is to compare against a similar dress of your own which you know fits you well. So, lay your dress out flat and measure across the bust, waist and hips with a tape measure. (For example, if you measure across the bust with the dress flat on the floor, and the measurement is 45cm, then double that to give you the total dress bust size of 90cm).
I do give dress sizes in my online shop for guidance, and just so you know, this is how I work it out:
| UK size | Bust in cm | Waist in cm | Hips in cm | Euro size |
| 8 | 80 – 84 | 62 – 66 | 87 – 91 | 36 |
| 10 | 84 – 88 | 66 – 70 | 91 – 96 | 38 |
| 12 | 88 – 92 | 70 – 75 | 96 – 101 | 40 |
| 14 | 92 – 97 | 75 – 80 | 101 – 106 | 42 |
| 16 | 97 – 102 | 80 – 85 | 106 – 111 | 44 |
| 18 | 102 – 107 | 85 – 91 | 111 – 116 | 46 |