Stocking and Sock Sizes? Help me understand !

P

Patentleathershoes

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VFG Past President
Alright I must admit my ignorance here. I hope you all don't laugh over how dense I am.

Throughout life I always wondered why i wore "ladies size 9-11" socks. And in fact i had almost always seen thngs offered in just that size, alhtough occassionally would see a 6 to 9. I am not a size 9 shoe. I even wore the size waaaaay back in the day (lets try 6th grade lol) i was a size 7 shoe.

what is the deal with sock sizes? where did that come from

Have I passed up ladies vintage stockings that were marked a size 10 or 11 but would have actually fit under the "size 9-11" socks rule??

Of course pantyhous are A B C and Queen so its not as prevalent a system with modern stockings and pantyhose in the US now.

In otherwords, please fill me in on my extreme ignorance!

Chris
 
Now don't quote me or anything! lol but.... I think that women's stockings are sized larger than their footwear. I think they use the same scale as men's footwear, so a size 9 stocking is actually about a size 7 women's shoe. I only say this because my own collection of vintage stockings are usually large sizes but women who have modelled for me have worn them who have smaller feet and they fit just fine. I am in the dark as much as you are and was too afraid to ask the question in the past, in case I looked like an idiot!
 
So you were waiting for someone else to look like the idiot first ha ha. Glad i could help you out :)

I see lots of size 10 and 11 stockings out there mostly. I don't think i have really seen a 9 but maybe i have and just don't remember, but i definitely hadn't seen a 7 or 8. I still am not quite comprehending because i can fit into a men's size 6.5 shoe as long as it is on the narrow side and not a wide, and wear an 8M in ladies and that seems to be the opposite of what you are saying. But i could be just extra dense today. (possible!)

Maybe i should just accept that there really isn't as hard and fast as a reason and just try size 10 or maybe 9 stockings and not know the reason, but just accept that its the way it is and not know what i am doing.

It just puzzles me how the same 9-11 sizing today would still carry over when all other sizing scales and sensibilities have changed for everything else repeatedly.

Anyways, I also see stockings from the UK with the same size numbers, so maybe stockings truly have their own system that make no reference to either sizing system. ANd then maybe that somehow makes it okay to be totally clueless and maybe there is no answer and its just "a tradition"
 
LOL, being a US size 10 myself, I actually never noticed that socks always seem to be sized for a ladies 9-11!! LOL! I suppose I took it for granted :)

For stockings it's a bit trickier as you do have to take a "number" that is bigger than your actual shoe size number. I'm a US 10 or a UK 7-8 (depending on the style and brand). In vintage stockings, I have worn ones being marked 10, 10.5 and 11 if the leg length as been tall enough. It depends on how "largish" the manufacturer made them and how much stretch is in them. Sometimes an 11 has been loose and with other brands, it's been perfect. More often than not, 11 is a bit loose though but I think my feet may be shrinking (literally too!).

Once in Montreal, I found a pair of 50's seamed stockings marked size 12 and those fit like a glove so go figure!!

Lei
 
Oh geez,

They are not standardized on top of it?

Figures, doesn't it! I will just have to do the trial and error thing when it comes time.

(and yes, i don't understand how all women fit into that 9-11 sock size range)
(i steal my husband's socks a lot though because they just are made a whole lot thicker than most ladies in the same price range).
 
Being a size 9-11 stocking since I was a teenager....!!!! .... I think the scales are pretty much the same. What I do is measure the foot length (heel to toe) just like we do with shoes. Yes they stretch but at least the person has a starting point.

What concerns me more is that "chubby legs" can affect how older stockings fit more than the shoe size. So I would think that heel to top length is important AND width at top.

lots to measure....
 
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