I’m one of those women who hates to shop. Whatever measurements designers use to make clothes are certainly not my measurements, so shopping has never been easy for me.
I’m thin with long legs and a butt, so pants shopping is a huge pain in my big butt. I also prefer that my pants not be so tight that they cut off the blood flow to my lady bits when I sit down. Apparently that’s not the style these days. If I wanted to show off some cleavage, I’d have to draw it in with a Sharpie, so these low-cut V-necks don’t do anything but make me agoraphobic. ”Fitting room” is the laughable title of a place where I find out I don’t fit in.
This nut didn’t fall far from the tree, so if you want to hear a lot of snark and complaining, come with me and my mom to a clothing store. (Actually we do that anywhere, but it gets worse in clothing stores.)
It seemed that I was good at finding things that would look nice if they only fit or things that fit but looked wretched. I decided to take that talent home and found that it really helped me organize my closet and my dresser. I dubbed it “unshopping.” Anything that didn’t fit or I didn’t like was bagged up. With some things, it was hard to imagine why I bought them in the first place. With others, I have no idea why I kept them so long.
Gone are the pants that could never hope for more than a long-distance relationship with my ankles. Gone is the size 5 dress that I wore when Paul and I were dating. (That dress led to marriage and two pregnancies that spread my hips out so far my skeleton wouldn’t even fit into a size 5.) Gone are the in-between shirts I wore when maternity clothes were too big but I still couldn’t fit into my regular clothes, the button-up shirts that looked so nice as long as I didn’t move my arms, anything that had to be ironed or dry cleaned.
It felt good to be standing there finding so many things “right off the rack.” I now have plenty of room in my closet and a completely empty drawer in my dresser. Luckily, my severe aversion to shopping means I won’t soon be filling them up again.
What has been haunting your closet?
Pic by becaberry
Home
7 Comments
I find that somewhere like Plato’s Closet works the best for me. I can go in and try on 30 pairs of jeans in my size and eventually come out with one or two. It broadens your options!
I find that I’m better about not making stupid purchases any more, for some reason. Despite having more money to spend than I used to, I’m much quicker to say “doesn’t look right” and let it go rather than hemming and hawing and buying it because I really love the style and hoping that it will look better on me than it does in the dressing room.
I had to go through all my shirts a few days ago and sort different drawers into Work versus NonWork. Work is sadly lacking apparently, since I’m a “Senior Tech” now, so shopping time for me. Unless I want to do laundry every two weeks, which is entirely too repetitive for my tastes.
We have a Plato’s closet here. I’ll have to check it out. The commercials make it look like teeny bopper heaven so I’ve avoided it.
Wow, you can go more than two weeks without doing laundry?!
I have the opposite problem: I look like a sawed-off 70s pro wrestler. On the plus side, I am very strong. On the minus side, there’s not much out there for the 5 and a half foot tall guy with a linebacker build – a brick Port-a-Potty, if you will. As a man it’s a little easier; we’re not expected to wear tighter clothing, so I just have my $3 Goodwill slacks tailored to my inseam (29″, and of course off the rack begins at 30″ – BOOOOO!!!!). I learned a lot when I sold suits, but the most important thing is that something fit in the shoulders.
My closet contains some relics from my time in the UK. Not having a car makes one thinner. I’m actually on the way back to those threads, so I’ve got them in a box for the time being. I figure around January I might be able to wear them. Lately I’ve been jettisoning things that are too big.
Wow, you’re getting off cheap! how much does it cost to get them tailored?
I wish it was easier to walk to places here in the States. I’d be taking my life in my hands if I tried to go any farther than the corner grocery.
Walking in TN is nuts unless you’re in Memphis. When I went down to MS to see my aunt & uncle, I was surprised by how many areas just didn’t bother to install sidewalks. I really thought they were required by law everywhere. Walking around town is pretty easy and I often do so with my ‘faithful’ dog in tow, but the supermarkets are all a mile plus away.
I feel for you. I’m just shy of 6 feet tall and quite curvy. Finding pants is nearly impossible. Finding shirts that are not men’s t-shirts that go around my chest AND have long enough arms? That never happens. Shoes are completely out of the question – they do not make affordable women’s size 12 narrow shoes!
I’m an 11 narrow in shoes! It’s nice to find a fellow sufferer. I can find my size sometimes, but they’re hideous. I love Tevas, but it is hard to find a non-sandal for a decent price.
I wish I could stand the 3/4 sleeves (which most “normal” long sleeve shirts end us being on me) because then most of my problems would be solved. Unfortunately they drive me batty.