What Is Sizing Like at Valentino Garavani?

By Ella Blake — Fashion Stylist | Tellar Fashion Hub — Always honest, unbiased & unsponsored

Valentino Garavani uses Italian sizing and runs noticeably small — most women need to go up one to two sizes compared to their usual UK size, and sometimes more across the bust and hips if you're curvier on top or bottom.

Right, let's talk about Valentino. Because this is a brand that has caused more dressing room panic than almost any other in my career. I once helped a client prepare for a very important event — she'd ordered a Valentino dress online in what she thought was her size, based on the Italian number on the label. It arrived and she couldn't get it past her hips. She was absolutely devastated. The problem wasn't her body. It was Italian sizing, and nobody had warned her. That experience is genuinely why I feel so strongly about getting this information out there. Valentino is one of the most beautiful, technically accomplished fashion houses in the world — but their sizing is unforgiving, the cuts are precise, and if you go in unprepared, it will bite you.

Understanding Italian Sizing at Valentino

Valentino uses Italian sizing across its ready-to-wear collections, which runs significantly smaller than UK sizing. As a rough rule of thumb:

Italian 36 = approximately UK 8
Italian 38 = approximately UK 10
Italian 40 = approximately UK 12
Italian 42 = approximately UK 14
Italian 44 = approximately UK 16
Italian 46 = approximately UK 18

But — and this is important — that's only the starting point. Valentino's silhouettes are structured and very precise. They're not cut with any ease. If you are buying a fitted dress, a tailored blazer, or a broderie piece, you should size up from that Italian size equivalent and then size up again if you're fuller through the bust or hips. I'd always recommend checking your measurements against the specific product's size guide, because it can vary between collections.

Valentino Garavani Size Conversion Table

Italian SizeUK SizeEU SizeUS SizeBust (cm)Waist (cm)Hips (cm)368344826388381036686679240123889071964214401094751004416421298791044618441410283108

My advice: Always measure your bust, waist and hips before ordering anything from Valentino. Don't rely on your usual size number — it will mislead you almost every time.

How Sizing Works Across Valentino's Key Categories

Valentino makes everything from couture gowns to trainers, so it's worth going through the main categories:

Ready-to-wear dresses and gowns: These are the trickiest. Valentino's signature structured shapes — the bow details, the voluminous skirts, the floor-length column dresses — are cut to be worn close to the body. Size up at least once, and if you're between sizes always go larger.
Tailoring — blazers and trousers: Again, slim-cut and precise. The blazers in particular are narrow through the shoulders and chest. If you have broader shoulders, go up two sizes and consider having it tailored. The trousers have little ease through the hip and thigh.
Knitwear: Slightly more forgiving than the tailoring, but still on the smaller side. If you like an oversized look, go up two sizes. For a fitted look, one size up from your Italian equivalent should work.
Coats: Valentino coats are beautiful but again structured. Size up one, potentially two if you plan to layer. Their cocoon and wrap silhouettes are more forgiving; the belted and tailored styles are not.
Shoes: Valentino footwear — including the iconic Rockstud heels — tends to run small and narrow. Most women find they need a half size up, and sometimes a full size. If you have a wider foot, be particularly careful.
Bags and accessories: Sizing is not relevant here, but worth noting that hardware and leather quality are exceptional and hold their value well.

My Stylist Tips for Buying Valentino

Always buy from a boutique or department store where possible — trying things on first is essential with this brand.
If buying online, stick to retailers with a generous free returns policy. Net-a-Porter and Mytheresa are both good options for this.
If you're between sizes, always go up — Valentino does not have stretch in it, and a dress that's too tight will never look as the designer intended.
The Valentino PP Pink collection pieces (the hot pink moment a couple of years ago) became iconic — if you're hunting vintage or pre-loved pieces, sizing is exactly the same: Italian, small, size up.
Pre-loved and archive Valentino Garavani — particularly 1990s and early 2000s pieces — can run even smaller. Add an extra size onto your usual calculation for vintage.

If You Love Valentino, Try These Too

Valentino occupies rarified air — those prices are not for the faint-hearted. But the DNA of the brand (structured tailoring, bold colour, exquisite femininity, Italian craftsmanship) can absolutely be found elsewhere at every price point. Here are my picks.

High Street

Reiss — Without question the most Valentino-adjacent high street brand available in the UK. Impeccable tailoring, clean lines, and a colour confidence that echoes the Italian house. Their structured dresses and blazers are genuinely excellent.
LK Bennett — The British go-to for polished, feminine occasion dressing. Think structured heels, printed silk dresses, beautifully cut coats. A brilliant and much more accessible alternative for Valentino lovers.
Hobbs — Reliable, finely made and quietly elegant. Hobbs does the kind of structured, wearable tailoring that shares Valentino's appreciation for precision — at a fraction of the price.
Phase Eight — Especially strong on occasion dresses. Phase Eight consistently delivers beautiful, feminine silhouettes with great fabric choices — perfect for weddings, events, or anywhere you'd want that Valentino feeling without the Valentino spend.
Coast — A brilliant option for bold-coloured occasionwear. Coast has improved enormously in recent years and is genuinely worth a look if you want that dressed-up, statement-making aesthetic that Valentino does so brilliantly.
Ted Baker — Great for feminine prints, structured occasion pieces, and a general appreciation for the dressed-up. Ted Baker's party and occasion range has a similar sense of occasion to lower-range Valentino diffusion pieces.
Massimo Dutti — For the Valentino tailoring aesthetic on a much kinder budget. Clean lines, quality fabrics, and a European sensibility that feels closer to the Italian houses than most high street brands manage.

Premium

Self-Portrait — The premium brand that comes closest to replicating the Valentino feeling — structured lace, bold colour, impeccably feminine silhouettes. A firm favourite for weddings and black tie events. Widely stocked at Selfridges and Net-a-Porter.
Roland Mouret — British luxury tailoring with a similar precision and femininity to Valentino's ready-to-wear. Famous for the body-conscious, architectural cut. An absolutely brilliant investment if you love Valentino's tailored pieces.

Luxury / Designer

Giambattista Valli — A natural step across from Valentino — romantic, dramatic, beautifully made, and similarly structured. If you love Valentino's couture-adjacent ready-to-wear, Valli is the obvious next stop. Also Italian sized; the same sizing rules apply.
Dolce & Gabbana — Another Italian house with the same ferociously structured sizing and a similarly uncompromising approach to the female silhouette. Bold, exuberant, and utterly Valentino in spirit — just with a different postcode.

Independent Picks

Lisou — A London-based luxury occasionwear label beloved by stylists and quietly stocked by some of the best boutiques in the country. Their silk printed dresses have a real Valentino energy — feminine, considered, and genuinely special — at a far more approachable price point. Well worth discovering.
Safiyaa — A British independent label specialising in exquisite column dresses, structured gowns and occasion pieces with a colour confidence that would make Valentino himself nod in approval. Beloved by red carpet dressers and special occasion seekers. A genuine hidden gem.

Stop Guessing — Get Your Exact Valentino Size Instantly

Italian sizing at this price point is not a game you want to get wrong. Tellar.co.uk is the UK's leading clothing sizing tool — it matches your exact measurements to 1,500+ brands instantly, including designer and luxury labels. No more converting, no more guessing, no more expensive mistakes.

Measure once — your bust, waist and hips (or use a brand size you already know fits you).
Use the Store Size Lookup tool to get your precise size at Valentino, Self-Portrait, Roland Mouret, Reiss and hundreds more — instantly.
Always free — no downloads, no subscriptions. Works straight in your browser.

And while you're there, explore the Tellar Fashion Hub — a library of free, honest, unbiased styling posts. No sponsorship, no fluff. Just real advice from real stylists.

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