Amid this impending weight-loss hysteria, Cosmo published a super interesting article about the emotional power of clothing sizes. And, speaking as a girl gearing up for a fabulous week-long spring break cruise to the Bahamas, I could not relate more.

The battle arises yearly. Lose weight! Get into shape! Drop a size and feel good about your body when it’s time to hit the beach.

But these days, losing a pant size may not mean you’ve actually lost weight. A size 2 nowadays could be as much as 3 inches bigger than a size 2 just 10 years ago — which Cosmo calls “vanity sizing.” When you think about it, it’s brilliant…for them. If I could fit into a size 2 at a store, you’d better believe I’d buy the place out. So, if manufacturers by default make their products just a bit bigger than normal (throwing the size spectrum out of whack), they can make their customers feel good about themselves AND make a huge profit. There’s just something gratifying about being able to drop a size; we’ve become inherently number-centric and it’s only going to get worse!

This got me wondering how well “vanity sizing” works. As a test, I decided to ask 10 of my friends if they’d be more likely to buy clothes from a store that “inflated” their sizes — aka, they’d be able to fit into a size or two smaller than normal. ALL of them said yes. Without hesitation. All of them!

The thing I’ve always loved about bevello is that the company truly does cater to all sizes. When we ran as an online boutique, we put our clothes on all REAL people — real shapes, real sizes. And, honestly, I think that’s the way to go. Because, when it boils down to it…size ain’t nothin’ but a number. Preach!