Increasingly difficult to find clothes that fit

grannyjo

Member
I have been finding it increasingly difficult to find clothes that fit.

I'm a fairly small person, just 5 foot 2 inches and I weigh 7 stone 8 pound.

Most long sleeve shirts have sleeves that reach way beyond the length of my arms, and long pants are always several inches too long.

I've tried shopping in the "junior" sections of department stores, but at my age, a lot of what is there is way too juvenile for me to even contemplate wearing.

Very frustrating having to alter brand new, just bought clothes before I can wear them.
 

I have the same problem... I have to buy in the petite range of Next or similar.. M&S I find is too old fashioned... but sometimes I have to bite the bullet and just buy and have them altered.

I can take up the sleeves of jackets myself, but trousers always look better done professionally...

I forgot to say that I buy a lot of my clothes in Spain, because the average height of the women there are about my height, so there's plenty available and more affordable too .. whereas here they tend to cater more for the young 6 footers..
 
Me, too, I'm 5'2" but probably under that not having had myself measured for quite a while. The only "slacks" I wear are jeans and most of them come in "short". But I am careful to buy only "high rise". Even the smallest mid-rise or low rise seem to start hiking down. I don't like long sleeves so I don't have a problem with that. But then I also live in a warm climate. I find that I have to order from Amazon to get what I want.
 

We have similar problems here too and so tend to buy a lot of our clothes in the Netherlands or Germany. On their recent girlie holiday, our daughter bought so many clothes in Spain that they wouldn't all fit into her suitcase. Her mother had to take the rest in her case.
 
I have the opposite problem. I’m tall and long limbed, with a long torso, so most pants are high waters, tops aren’t long enough and sleeves end above my wrists.

I’ve learned what brands are cut well for my size though many are way more expensive than I’m willing to pay. Not Your Daughters Jeans are a good example. They’re perfect for my body type but at close to $200 I just can’t afford that for one pair. So I shop on eBay and buy NYDJ jeans there for $20 or under that are my size but are out of fashion because the leg is too wide, take them to my seamstress who will alter them to fit me the way I want for another $15 or $20, and have perfect jeans for me for $40 or under! That’s as much as I’d spend for jeans new, but with the added benefit that they're much better quality and will last forever!!
 
Most long sleeve shirts have sleeves that reach way beyond the length of my arms,.

I have the opposite problem. I have Orangutan arms. The sleeves on standard long sleeve garments are always too short. I seldom wear long sleeves, but when I do, I have to get shirts in 37 inch sleeve length and for jackets I always have to pay extra to get the Tall sizes even though I'm only 5-11.
 

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Since you said your weight was in "stones", I take it you're not from the States, but one of them foreigners. Yet, you do live on earth, thus Amazon can get a package delivered to your door. So, there must be a clothes outlet that caters to your body type. Maybe our members know the exact place? Is there a reason you haven't used the net to buy clothes?
 
I also need the tall sizes and have to pay extra for them. At least short people can have their pants altered. I can't make mine longer. I do sympathize with the shorten women as far as style goes. My sister in law complains about that all the time. She is 80 years old and very short and looks ridiculous in teen style clothing.
 
I have trouble with button shirts that gape. My problem with pants is that if I get them to go around my waist, the crotch is down to my knees. If I get a good fit in the hips, the waist is way too small. I tell peope I have a perfect figure - 46, 46, 46. That's the problem with being shaped like an oatmeal box.
 
I have trouble with button shirts that gape. My problem with pants is that if I get them to go around my waist, the crotch is down to my knees. If I get a good fit in the hips, the waist is way too small. I tell peope I have a perfect figure - 46, 46, 46. That's the problem with being shaped like an oatmeal box.

😆
 
Buy clothes online at QVC as they have a couple of lines that fit well. They also have a great return policy and a range of sizes from xs thru 3x. Their size charts are true to size. Don't buy many new clothes as I still have really nice clothes from my working days.
 
The vast majority of clothes that I see in stores are styled for young people. I'm an old people.
I buy almost all my clothes online.
It is 32 years since I was last in the UK, The scale in the hotel read in Stones and Kilos.
 
The vast majority of clothes that I see in stores are styled for young people. I'm an old people.
I buy almost all my clothes online.
It is 32 years since I was last in the UK, The scale in the hotel read in Stones and Kilos.
Stones and pounds... actually, but we've been officially metric for years now along with the rest of Europe... so although we weight things in Kilos... measure things in centimetres, and metres, buy fuel in litres instead of gallons as we used to... we still measure distance in miles and not Kilometres ..and we still have British sterling whereas most European countries use the Euro

Most of us over 50 still talk of stones and pounds.. and feet and inches... but the young only understand the metric system.. so asking for a 6 feet long piece of wood or a 1/2 inch nail in the hardware shop from someone under 30 will get you a blank look

However when we leave Europe at the end of October, it'll be interesting to see if we return to the original British Imperial system..


Imperial to Metric
  • 1 inch = 2.5 centimetres
  • 1 foot = 30 centimetres
  • 1 mile = 1.6 kilometres
  • 1 ounce = 28 grams
  • 1 pound = 454 grams
  • 1 pint = 0.6 litres
  • 1 gallon = 4.6 litres
Metric to Imperial
  • 1 millimetre = 0.04 inch
  • 1 centimetre = 0.4 inch
  • 1 metre = 3 feet 3 inches
  • 1 kilometre = 0.6 mile
  • 1 gram = 0.04 ounce
  • 1 kilogram = 2.2 pounds
 
My problem is with pants: the legs are always too long, even if I get "petite short!" I'm somewhere between 5'2" and 5'3", not exactly midget size, so I don't get it.

I've given up buying full length pants, and only get the "crop" type (easier in summer). So that way, the pants that are supposed to end somewhere around mid-calf go down to my ankles.

I think it's ageism. More clothes are bought by the very young, who in general are taller than my generation, so that's who the clothes are designed for.
 
My problem is with pants: the legs are always too long, even if I get "petite short!" I'm somewhere between 5'2" and 5'3", not exactly midget size, so I don't get it.

I've given up buying full length pants, and only get the "crop" type (easier in summer). So that way, the pants that are supposed to end somewhere around mid-calf go down to my ankles.

I think it's ageism. More clothes are bought by the very young, who in general are taller than my generation, so that's who the clothes are designed for.
Here in the Uk we have a store that is for older people...not the greatest fashion store by any means but for jeans and smart trousers, which are generally good quality and very reasonably priced they do a lot of good lengths for shorter people... from 25 inch inside leg up to 31 inches... I almost always get my jeans from there..especially the stretch ones...

https://www.bonmarche.co.uk/womens/clothing/trousers-and-shorts/

https://www.bonmarche.co.uk/womens/clothing/jeans/
 
I'm 5 ft tall and 105lbs. Clothes that fit have always been a problem. When I was younger I could wear boys slim cut jeans. In my late 40s I got hips!!! Then due to a few compressed disks in my spine I have a pinched sciatic nerve - no more jeans - no more belts.

I wear leggings in the winter with an overshirt that covers my butt. You just scrunch them at the bottom for length. In the summer I wear yoga/harem pants, with long lacy over tops.

Agree that the clothes in Spain fit great. I just can't afford to fly over when I want to shop.
 
Yep, Fuzzybuddy I am one of the "foreigners"!

I don't buy online for a very good reason.

Sizing is not international.

What may be a size 10 or 12 in Australia could be a size 1, 2 or 3 in America, or would fit an elephant in another country.
 
My problem isn't so much clothing that fits as it is clothing that appeals. I'm a pretty solid size 8 and wear mostly skorts and shorts that fall several inches above my knee. On our chilly days I put on jeans or skinny pants that have some lycra in the contents. For tops I live in sleeveless, short sleeve and long sleeve tees.

Dressier events are the bigger challenge but I tend toward the same basic model. Dresses or skirts that hit above the knee, pants on the skinny side, and tops that don't need tucking.
 
I have been finding it increasingly difficult to find clothes that fit.

I'm a fairly small person, just 5 foot 2 inches and I weigh 7 stone 8 pound.

Most long sleeve shirts have sleeves that reach way beyond the length of my arms, and long pants are always several inches too long.

I've tried shopping in the "junior" sections of department stores, but at my age, a lot of what is there is way too juvenile for me to even contemplate wearing.

Very frustrating having to alter brand new, just bought clothes before I can wear them.
I bought a sewing machine at a garage sale across the street and taught myself to sew.

I can hem all my slacks to the exact length I need. I also can make simple alterations.
So if you can't sew, find someone that can alter any clothes that you like but can't fit because they are too large. Close out places usually have small sizes because those are the last to be sold usually.
 
Buying online is a risk because you can't try on what you're buying. I do order online because here in Hawaii it's just really hard to find the type and size of clothes you want. It's really hard to find small sizes because so many women here are petite like I am and you need to get there first. I hate to send clothes back so I end up donating stuff that doesn't fit or are just ugly.

As far as altering my clothes. I gave up sewing decades ago. Not worth my time.
 
Small town clothing stores now dwell with the Dodo Bird. (Warning-codger speak ahead) Back in my day every town had an assortment of local haberdasheries with mostly good quality clothing. There was also usually a Sears, JC Penny or Wards that sold clothing and shoes for men and women. In the town nearest to where I now live, there is.....Wally World and nothing else. Online is pretty much the only viable option unless I want to drive to a major city.....which I don't.
 
Then I have to make a trip to the post office. The packages they send clothes in get ripped up by the time you get it open. Then I would have to find another container to put them in. Not worth my time or aggravation.
 


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