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Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
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Tart of Darkness
06/09/09

In reply to Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
And people wonder why other people use leggings as pants...
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clevernamehere
06/09/09

In reply to Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
Has anyone else noticed that a lot of workout/lounge gear has amazingly long inseams?

Right now I am wearing a pair of sweatpants I had to hack the bottoms off of because otherwise they covered my feet. Its at least the third time I've had to do this, which is really strange since I'm 5'9" with a 34" inseam. I don't think there are many women running around with a 40" inseam, so I'm really curious why some pants are cut so long.
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chainsawmascara
06/09/09

In reply to Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
Thank you! I'm five feet tall and I wear a 34D. On top of that, I have wide hips and a pretty big butt (which I think is fantastic, don't get me wrong). Shopping is absurdly difficult. Curvy short girls? Non-existent to retail stores. What I find really strange, is that when I go to petite stores everything is too large, and when I go to regular stores, things that fit my height are too tight, but things that fit my breasts/hips are too huge everywhere else. It's such a pain! While I'm not plus-sized, I definitely know the struggle of finding clothes that fit. We have curves, damnit! Why is that so wrong?!
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Tart of Darkness
06/09/09

@chainsawmascara: Ah yes, the big shouldered blouse with the safety pin in the cleavage... Sigh.
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kentuckienne
06/09/09

In reply to Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
Oh, and I'm not even that tall -- 5'11". Whenever I see a 6'+ woman, I marvel that she must have even more difficulty finding clothes than me.
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That_little_attention_whore
06/09/09

@kentuckienne: when I was at Duke (please don't hold it against me!) there was a girl on the basketball team who was 6'8. I have no idea how she got clothes. I saw her in person on campus once - it wasn't just that she was tall. She was a normally proportioned person, but a whole lot bigger than average. Plus, she was an athlete, with muscles and broad shoulders and all that good stuff. Poor girl probably needed a prozac IV drip after a trip to the mall.
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kentuckienne
06/09/09

In reply to Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
Actually, can we also address the plight of the tall woman? I swear most manufacturers didn't start making "tall" pants until I was in college (around 1999). Even now, they're generally only longer in the leg; no one thinks to make the seat or rise proportional, so they're frequently indecent when I sit down. Dresses are impossible -- the waist always comes up to my ribcage and the hips flare out right at the narrowest part of my waist. Long sleeves are three-quarter legnth, three-quarter length sleeves hit me at the elbow, short sleeves are cap sleeves, and cap sleeves sit on my shoulders like Lilliputian epaulettes. Shirts that fit me in the shoulder billow at the waist; skirts that should be knee-length are a couple inches too short. I'm really about to give up and take some sewing classes -- anything's got to be better than another fruitless trip to the mall.
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That_little_attention_whore
06/09/09

@kentuckienne: I've wondered about "tall." Having tried on "tall" sized pants before (with the possibility of just sucking it up and getting them hemmed) I can attest that the "regular" and "tall" in my size seem to be built for the same size person, only "tall" has longer legs. Which doesn't make sense to me, since usually taller people have a bigger frame than us shorties.

I am no Kelly Ripa, but I am a pretty small person. I always wonder how many women out there have my exact same proportions, but are six inches taller than I am?

I posit that this would be a market even smaller (hardy har har) than petites, and if any line would be cut, it should be this one (rather than plus sized)
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tscheese
06/09/09

@kentuckienne: THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS.

the waist always comes up to my ribcage and the hips flare out right at the narrowest part of my waist. Long sleeves are three-quarter legnth, three-quarter length sleeves hit me at the elbow, short sleeves are cap sleeves, and cap sleeves sit on my shoulders like Lilliputian epaulettes. Shirts that fit me in the shoulder billow at the waist; skirts that should be knee-length are a couple inches too short.

Maybe tall types are such a minority that we don't even warrant a mention in most stores, let alone our own section.
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clevernamehere
06/09/09

@tscheese: Really tall women have to be a serious minority. A few years ago I read that women over 5'8"+ were in the top 10% of the US height-wise, 5'10" (or maybe it was 5'11")+ women were in the top 5%. I'm 5'9" and while I occasionally buy tall clothing, its not my only option.
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inabook
06/09/09

@kentuckienne: I'm a tall chick with a proportionately long torso. Hello, constant midrift!
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That_little_attention_whore
06/09/09

In reply to Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
just out of curiosity, where do you measure inseam to? your ankle, or however long you want your pants to be?
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georgina
06/09/09

@That_little_attention_whore: The easiest thing to do is measure a pair of pants you have that are actually the right length for you. I am shorter, but tend to wear heels and HATE pants that look at all short (unless they're meant to be cropped). So I like a slightly longer inseam than most people with my height and/or leg length.

And if you want to use your inseam to get a pair or pants hemmed without trying them on- beware. Most people's legs are slightly different lengths. Always best to have both pinned on you.
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That_little_attention_whore
06/09/09

@georgina: thanks.

that makes me like 27" at the ankle/foot area and about 30" ish for heels? I think that means I have really short legs?
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MissAmy
06/09/09

In reply to Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
Yes, I realize petites have problems. However, it is a lot easier to get regular clothes tailored down to fit a petite person than it is to get regular clothes tailored up into plus size. You can tailor a size 8 down to an 8 petite. You can not tailor a size 8 into an 18. It bugs me that petites are trying to jump into the same bitch wagon as us fatties. They are NOTHING alike.
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PinkSoxHat
06/09/09

@MissAmy: Can we PLEASE stop playing the "I have it so much harder game? You have a hard time finding flattering clothes. I have a hard time finding flattering clothes. My beautiful skinny 5'8" best friend has a hard time finding flattering clothes. It's hard for all just about all women who want to find flattering clothes.

And yeah, I can and do go to a tailor. But it adds significantly to the cost of my clothes, and I'm not rich.
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tscheese
06/09/09

In reply to Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
I would also like to be able to try on a shoe in a brick-and-mortar store that meets the following criteria:

-Not made of plastic.
-Not made for "exotic dancers" or Payless.
-In size US 12/13.

Get on that, designers! CHOP CHOP.
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Notes from the underwhelmed
06/09/09

@tscheese: Aw! Come to Chicago, there's a whole shoe store that only sells size 9 and up!
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PreposterousHypothesis
06/09/09

In reply to Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
Remember when Cristal was complaining about hip-hop artists dropping the name of its champagne in songs, even though their sales probably INCREASED, because they believed the hip-hop culture downgraded their product? This is what's going on here.

Please note I believe none of the theories I'm positing here or the notions behind the theories. It's all bullshit. But what they're thinking:

In this culture, overweight = ugly. Overweight = lazy. Overweight = unsexy. They want their products to be aspirational, and the last thing they're going to do is cater to those frumpy slobs who won't even appreciate their "artistry." They are far more worried about the downgrading of their brand (it's how they see it, not me) than having the heavy girl wearing their tags.

I think I mentioned this analogy in "the Fashion Show" thread, but it's like an artist who doesn't want their work shown in a gallery they feel is "beneath them." That's where the sizeism comes in. The overweight woman is their least desired canvas, and they would sacrifice profit before displaying their product on such a person.

Disgusting, truly.
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mommy_dearest
06/09/09

In reply to Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
Tatiana, so well-written, as usual. I am also impressed that you are addressing the issue, since you are the annonymous model, not the annoynmous plus-sized model. Very good on you.
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Kitanne
06/09/09

In reply to Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
Worse than being plus size or petite? Being a petite plus-size! Most petite sizing doesn't go up to 18, my size, but regular plus size clothing is usually too big for me. Too long in the shoulder to waist, too long in the leg, too baggy in the ass (I HAVE NO BUTT). It sucks. I make some of my own clothing, mostly dresses and skirts but I don't have the skills or time to make all my clothes. I wish I did!
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dissolver
06/09/09

@tscheese: Oh god, plus and tall is fucking impossible. I'm 5'5" but leggy for my height and I need to buy tall jeans and hem them or I look like I'm waiting for a flood, and even finding pants that EXIST in plus + tall is near-impossible. They never stock them in stores, either, even if they stock short length (I'm looking at you, Lane Bryant, not that you're any use to me with your horrid new jeans cuts...) The ones I do find usually have my 33-34" inseam, which... sorry, is not THAT long. I have no idea what my mother did, she had a 37" inseam.

And coats/jackets always look like you've shrunk them in the wash, or like they've got very oddly-designed 3/4-length sleeves...

I really need to get my sewing machine working.
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tscheese
06/09/09

@dissolver: I have a 36" inseam and I weigh manatee.

Basically I just wear skirts and dresses. In forgiving materials, in vague sizes like "large" and sometimes "extra large." What the hell else is there for me?
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thesciencegirl wields the truth like a mighty axe.
06/09/09

@tscheese: I love you right now for saying that you weigh "manatee." lol
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The HZA.
06/09/09

In reply to Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
Being curvy and petite also makes clothes shopping a headache. Finding the right kind of jeans that arent a billionty dollars is like trying to find a friggen unicorn.
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Jello Mix
06/09/09

@The HZA. [member of the zombie nation]: Ann Taylor Loft carries Curvy Petite jeans. They are the only ones that have ever fit me.
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PinkSoxHat
06/09/09

In reply to Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
I'm petite but have a larger than average bust for a petite woman. So it's always petite pants for me (which many times have to be hemmed anyway), and most shirts are "regular" sized but have to have the sleeves taken up. A lot of stores have stopped carrying or limiting their petite offerings as well.

The lesson, as always? Shopping for clothes that actually fit sucks bigtime for just about every woman.
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HuckleberryFriend
06/09/09

@PinkSoxHat: I think we are body twins! Have you ever tried to buy a suit? It's like being in a Kafka novel after a while.
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PinkSoxHat
06/09/09

@HuckleberryFriend: Ann Taylor and Jones New York petite separates FTW. At any given time that I'm shopping, each usually has one suit out that fits and isn't ugly. And they STILL have to be tailored. I loathe shopping for suits, but it comes with the territory.
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saintbernadette
06/09/09

In reply to Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
As much as we go back and forth in these threads over who has it worse, who understands and who doesn't, I think it's time we all embrace one undying truth:

Shopping fucking sucks.
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Jello Mix
06/09/09

@saintbernadette: Amen. No one has it easy.
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tscheese
06/09/09

In reply to Plus Vs. Petite: Why Retailers Find It Hard Making Clothes To Fit Most Women
When I was about 12-13 years old, I stopped being able to shop in normal "misses" sizes. And I had to look for something that's even rarer and more hit-or-miss than "petites:"

TALL SIZES.

Now, I've read that the average woman is 5'4", so I imagine the bell curve has a way to go on either side before you get to a freaky outlier like me. It may just be that the majority of women are fitted best by the range of petite and misses' clothing, which is why there's no such thing as a "tall" section in any department store. (There are often "petite" sections, but my shorter ladyfriends inform me that the selections are abysmal.)

Basically, I haven't been able to buy pants for the last two years. The selections for talls are even worse if you get into plus sizes, which seem to be staunchly set at an inseam of 32 or 33. Last time I looked around at an Avenue, there were perhaps two or three pairs of "long" pants in the entire store.

The message I'm getting from the retail apparel industry is that humans must fit a very narrow range of sizes and weights, and any outliers should just...I dunno, wear a potato sack.
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Uncommon Whore
06/09/09

@tscheese: I'm always jumping on your bandwagon when these issues come up.

I did just find some 37" inseams jeans on sale from BCBG, but the sizes only go up to a 31 waist.

Any way you look at it in either direction it IS extremely discouraging.
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jurisenpai
06/09/09

@tscheese: Ann Taylor loft has long pants that fit and are flattering! It's like a whole new world opened up to me...
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tscheese
06/09/09

@jurisenpai: Yeah, but Ann Taylor Loft just decided to stop carrying my size in stores, so I'm a little miffed.
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