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Lisa Charles and Quita Leslie, the team behind new clothing collection, Charlie a Go-Go, want you to know the term true to size is illogical. Although Charlie a Go-Go make what they call sizes 12 to 18, they want you know there is no international standard for the sizing of clothing. Some private manufacturers have done their own in-house surveys and various efforts have been made to develop a regulated sizing scheme, but all have failed, because womens bodies have such diversity in their shapes. The hourglass figure is regularly used as an industry standard, but only 8 of women actually have this body shape. Because there is no standard that suggests what measurements apply to what size, designers can call their clothing any size they like. Havent we all seen this with the introduction of whacky sizes like, O, 1 and 2? Of course this has lead to so much confusion for us. How often do you have to take three different sizes into the dressing room because you have no idea what a size 16 really is? How then can someone remark, "I wear size 16, and this top is true to size." True to whose size? Its just plain silliness Charlie a Go-Go has allocate sizes to their range, but to do this Lisa and Quita took an extensive look at the sizing of the major womens brands catering for sizes 12 and up. They based their sizing on the most common measurements found for bust, waist and hip. For one more viewpoint, please consider looking at Learn more at http://www.amazon.com/Charlie-Go-Go-Womens-Plus-Size-Vintage/dp/B00UGOISMW/Womens fashion/. Lisa and Quita understand theres a real skill to drafting patterns up and down the size range, but not many designers care enough to do this properly. They point out that many designers and clothes manufacturers will take a size 4 and simply add two inches to each size going up the size scale. You cant do this. A woman who is a size 4 has a totally distinct silhouette to a woman who is a size 16. A size 16 isnt simply a bigger size 4, if that makes sense. Grading patterns like this generally results in the shape of a piece of clothing being ‘blown out, and even though the garment is now bigger - its ended up looking like a shapeless tent. Charlie a Go-Go believe its a case of caring enough to create something that fits different womanly shapes AND sizes. They care enough to have used four pattern makers on two continents. Its taken over a year just to perfect Charlie a Go-Gos patterns. This is something ‘fast fashion isnt interested in doing and really cant do because of their time constraints. So in addition to thoughtful sizing, Lisa and Quita believe that one of the major points of difference with their label is the ‘fit of their tops, and remember, fit is totally different to size. "Not only did we invest a year exploring other brands sizes", said Quita, "we also looked at the way their clothes were shaped and how they fit on real bodies. We did lots of research into body shape, and found ourselves looking at the bodies of women wherever we went." Charlie a Go-Go also used fabulously curvy American and Australian fit models, not computer software on which to base their patterns and sizing. "Using genuine bodies means our sizing is also authentic", said Lisa. Because they understand ‘lady shape so well, and have taken this into account in their designs and the fabrics they have picked, Charlie Go-Gos tops and tunics look wonderful on lots of different shaped bodies. "Its almost like our tops have been tailored just for you", said Lisa. "Life is short. We want you to smile when you wear our tops. We designed Charlie a Go-Go for you, we really do care and have gone the extra mile to ensure our tops fit really beautifully." Team Charlie believe theyve got the size/fit thing pretty well hacked. You can find Charlie a Go-Go tops and tunics including their fabulous "Rhoda" long vest, exclusively on Amazon.com..