“Try Me On”: A Love Letter to Conscious Style & the Myth of Size

Dear Mindful Human,

We opened our doors on May 1st, 2025, after a long and winding journey that began in October 2024. That’s when we first started negotiating for our space—an adventure that came with a hefty price tag, not just financially, but emotionally. We had to prove our worth and identity to the town, navigate a maze of permits (which I truly hope to never deal with again), and build out the space from the ground up.

But we did it.

Academy St. Thrift is here—and we are thriving.Not just because folks are showing up to support, but because you are walking through our doors with open hearts, sharing feedback, giving us grace, and reminding us why we’re here. Your presence means everything.

Being both the owner and the one working the floor is exhausting, yes—but it’s also one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life. Every day, I get to meet people from all walks of life. I get to witness those tiny, magical moments of connection. And to be part of someone’s story—even just through a passed-down garment—is a true honor.

So thank you. Thank you to everyone who has supported us, visited, donated, shopped, or simply told a friend. I love the community that’s blooming around us—this tribe of conscious humans who believe in something more than just clothes.

Let’s Talk About Size (and Why It’s a Suggestion)

Something I hear often is: “This is sooo cute… but it’s not my size.”So, on garments I’ve researched and measured—pieces I know to be flexible—I’ve started writing notes on the tags. Things like:

“Try me on — size is a suggestion.”

Because it is.

When you walk into a thrift shop, vintage store, or any space where garments weren’t mass-produced for today’s fast fashion system, you have to let go of the “prescribed” sizes society taught you to live by.

Why?

Because size is not static. It’s not a law—it’s a moving target, shaped by decades of fashion trends, cultural ideals, and industrial shortcuts.

Let’s take a brief walk through history:

🧵 Vintage Era (Pre-1960s): Clothes Were Made to Fit You

Before the rise of ready-to-wear, most clothing was tailor-made, handmade, or altered. There were no standard sizes. People bought clothes based on measurements—or made them at home.

Even department stores included measuring guides rather than size labels. When numbers did appear, they were wildly inconsistent. A size 12 in 1950 might translate to a modern-day 6 or 8.

✨ Retro Era (1960s–1990s): Standardization & Shrinking Sizes

Mass manufacturing post-WWII ushered in standardized sizing. But those “standards” were built from a narrow dataset—mostly young, white, military women—which excluded the diversity of real human bodies.

Enter vanity sizing: a marketing tactic where garments were cut larger but labeled smaller. Suddenly, a size 8 in 1975 might be labeled a 2 or 4 today. The goal wasn’t accurate fit—it was aspiration.

Sizing also became more gendered:

• Men’s clothing used inches (waist, inseam, chest)—practical and measurable.

• Women’s clothing used abstract numbers tied to ideals of thinness, youth, and femininity—turning size into an emotional experience.

  
  

🛍️ Modern Era: The Illusion of Consistency

Today, a size 10 in one brand might be a 6 in another and a 14 in vintage. Why? Because there’s still no universal standard. Fast fashion prioritizes speed over precision, and trends constantly shift sizing logic.

Let’s not forget: sizing is still deeply gendered and exclusionary.

• Men are nudged toward “strength” and “function.”

• Women are fed ideals of “delicacy” and “smallness.”

• Nonbinary, gender-expansive, and plus-size bodies? Often ignored entirely.

🌱 A New Kind of Fit: Let Your Body Speak

Your style isn’t defined by a tag. It’s defined by how you wear your story.

When you shop secondhand, you’re not just finding clothes—you’re unlearning old rules. Archaic norms that no longer serve individuals or reflect the richness of our communities.

At Academy St., we invite you to let your body—not a label—lead.

So yes, try it on. Try on the “wrong” size. Try on something outside your comfort zone. Try on joy. Play. Discover.

We’re on a mission to shift the narrative—one tag note at a time. Because size is not static. Because clothes were made in different eras, for different bodies, using different measurements. Because your body is not a number. And because clinging to a size—whether it’s an “ideal” you’ve been taught to desire or a number you’re afraid to let go of—might keep you from discovering something that actually fits. That actually feels good. That actually reflects you.

So, come explore.

Come play.Come try on that thing you “never would.”You just might fall in love—with the piece, with the process, or, hopefully, even more… with yourself.