The stereotype of women is that they all love shopping.
But frankly, shopping can be really hard, especially with a fashion industry who doesn’t think of their consumers. The average woman is a size 14, yet many stores max out at a size 16. Also, rarely do clothing stores with lingerie sell A cup bras without padding, as if to say women need to create the illusion they have bigger boobs. Women across all body types- short, tall, thin, thick- all have issues when shopping due to fashion industries appealing to only one body type when designing clothing.
Like finding a top that fits perfectly, until you have the space about the size of the Grand Canyon in the top because you can’t fill it out.
Or when you are trying to find pants that aren’t five inches too short- even when they are regulars.
When short people are trying on something that’s just too long-sleeved.
When you have a big butt and it makes the back of your skirt inches shorter than the front.
When you are a tall girl and people ask if you are going to pants with that outfit when you are actually wearing a dress.
When you are plus sized and try to find a flattering dress, but tend to just get a lot of circus tent, baggy dresses.
When you are stuck between sizes in jeans and nothing seems to make sense anymore.
When you try to do all of those trends to make it look like you are less flat chested, when at the end of the day you still have small boobs, now just with ruffles on them.
When plus sized girls just want to find fun, colorful dresses- not ones that have been dipped in a vat of Candyland and Spin Art.
When your friends laugh because you say you have to buy clothes in the kids section, when you are actually serious because they don’t carry your jean size in adults.
When your boobs are too big or too small to support a strapless top and you’re constantly pulling it up all day so you don’t pull a Janet Jackson
When you find shirts that button up…until you get to your boobs
When you have to buy a bikini with a small top but a large bottom and wonder who made the sizing choices here.
When you want to be all about the maxi dress trend, but you are too tall and it turns into more of an awkward calf length dress
When you do find clothes that are big enough to fit you, but worry that you might look like your Grandma Betty and her baggy sweaters.
When a top is so low cut you and you don’t fill it out, you just feel like you are showing a lot of chest and clavicle today.
When a sales associate says in a condescending tone, “We don’t carry that size here.”
Then you FINALLY find something that fits! Aaaaand you look at the price tag.
But that moment when you find the perfect shirt, pants, dress and you feel GREAT about your body
It doesn’t matter what you wear, as long as you feel like you can run the world walking out of that dressing room.
Remember- it doesn’t matter if you are a size 2 or 20, numbers are just numbers and every body is beautiful. Wear what makes YOU feel confident.
And remember that every body type has issues when trying to find clothing in an industry that thinks everyone is one particular body type. We are all in this together.
ShoutOut! James Madison University 
I really enjoyed reading this post and also the moving pictures that went along with it. I can relate to this “shopping with a different body type”. For several years up until my recent college years, I was more on the thicker side and when I would go shopping, some things just didn’t seem to fit. On average, my pants size was between a 9 and 13 (all depending on the cut of the pants). I used to hate going in a store that had jeans which did not fit to my curves. There were time when I tried on a size “13” and it absolutely did not fit but I had jeans at home that were as small as a “9”. It became annoying and I always refused to buy a pair of jeans bigger than a “13” because it made me feel self conscious. For someone who has a “big butt” but smaller waist, I struggled to find jeans that would fit my type.
Then when I lost weight, it was even a bigger struggle because I am smaller up top (through) my waist but still have hips and a butt so finding jeans that will fit me perfect in the waist and the thighs are extremely hard! I can agree with the buying a small bikini top and large bottom (no but really? who made these sizes?). Don’t let me get started on dresses, because they are absolutely not suited to fit every size! Sometimes, I have difficulty with the cleavage area because since my boobs will not always fill out the area, it tends to hang off me. I am glad to know that “we are all in this together” because these issues can sometimes make you feel self-conscious and uncomfortable with your body. It would be nice if someone can invent clothing designed for all body types!
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