AIBU to ask why so many clothes are sized for taller women?

[sarahb083]

Genuinely question - why do clothing companies design clothes for women who are much taller than average height? Why not make the 'standard' size fit 5'5ish women, then offer petite and tall sizing if there's demand for it? The vast majority of women are somewhere within a few inches of 5'5 and very few are 5'10!

I've been looking for a jumpsuit. They all look lovely on the model, then you look at the model's height and she's 5'10. Surely a very small percent of women are this tall? Some companies make petite sizes (great!) but most don't.

I love the look of these for example, but the model is 5'10! They'd look ridiculous on me and I'm average height.

I often ponder this. I am five foot five and Uniqlo is particulary bad - the trousers drape along the floor. M and S gets the leg length right in their short arse leg range (and my legs aren't actually freaskishly short!) but then they go for the weirdest waist to hip ration and they always bag around my stomach.

I've found the extra width in men's shoes an absolute blessing now I have dreadful bunions on both feet! I used to be a size 6 in women's shoes, now I'm up to a 7 and I buy men's trainers and slip ons to accommodate the bunions and it works well.

If I have to buy women's shoes (for the aforementioned weddings etc), I have to buy an 8 just to get the width for my poor tortured toes.

I'm 5ft 2 and clothes are nearly always too long for me,even the petite sizes. I've been reduced to buying children's clothes. Perhaps I shouldn't complain too much, they are cheaper.

100%.agree - and also apparently for women with really long arms - i am average size 5ft 5" but always have to take up the hems of trousers, and turn back the cuffs of blouses,jumpers and jackets. I dont have short arms BTW

I find that generally men's clothes are better quality fabric and better designed and yet cheaper than women's clothes. Especially knitwear. In fact if the colours weren't so dull and restricted i would only buy men's jumpers, unfortunately men only seem to like murky dark shades of brown and grey. I also get really cross about the far too deep v necks on women's jumpers, surely the point should be to keep warm not to flash cleavage ffs, and the stupid bows on knickers, slippers etc. Why? I cut them off as soon as i get home. Waste of fabric, money and my time.

I’m 5ft 1.5 but have long legs and a short body, and find petite ranges wrongly proportioned apart from maxi dresses. I have to wear regular length trousers and jeans as short are always too short.

Re: men's clothes- I have a couple of hand-me-down (up?) t-shirts from ds1 (and a thermal long sleeve top for winter) that fir perfectly. Broad enough in the shoulder (I have broad shoulders), but narrowing to fit at the waist. I think they were probably the fitted style, rather than boxy.

Bonus- they're years old and still look good for their age because they're made of better fabric than most women's t shirts.

Yes, I’m 5’4” which is pretty average but so many things are ridiculously long on me. Not just trouser length but sleeves, straps, the waist of tops just being in the wrong place.
I’m usually too tall for petite ranges though.
I agree petite, standard and tall ranges would work better for most women.
Men usually get more than one leg length option after all, and short/long shirt and jacket lengths

@Shodan I agree. I wear small or extra-small ones (topman) or teenager ones (next) as vests in the winter.

What does the TV stand for?

@Allseeingallknowing , they were tights made to fit men.

Transvestite

I'm 5ft 5in tall and I often have trouble with the lengths of clothes! I usually find tops and T-shirts too short, and trousers/leggings too long. I get fed up with tops constantly creeping upwards and having to keep tugging them down. I gave up wearing tights years ago because the crotch always seemed to be heading for my knees. As for trousers,I always have to check that I am buying the shortest length,usually 29 in inside leg. Guess I must have a long back and short legs even though I'm not particularly tall!

I’m a shortie and it’s a nightmare. I just don’t bother trying on anything maxi or long trousers. M&S I find good for the short size options. Mostly I buy midi dresses or skirts which are then maxi on me!

They’re really not.
high street maxi dresses generally fall to mid calf, more a midi length and they look stupid.
theres not a single shop in my local town (not a big city, but a county town) where I can go and buy a pair of trousers, not one. It’s not just the inseam, it’s the fit. The shaping is all in the wrong place.

Every maxi dress I’ve bought in recent years has trailed on the floor, @mymumwouldntapprove - I have to take off several inches to get them to hit ankle length. I took six inches off a denim pinafore dress.

Same here. I'm 5"8 but long legs and I can only find trousers that fit in a few places (Next Tall range, some M&S longer length etc).

I’m 5ft 2. Getting anything to fit is a bit of a nightmare. Even petite trousers are often too long. I don’t bother buying clothes in physical shops - nothing fits. Petite ranges are usually terrible and limited. I’m also small so that doesn’t help either. I recently bought an age 9-12 dryrobe as the adult xs was absolutely massive on me.

Please tell me where I can find them?

I'm 5'8" and can assure you that jumpsuits are not made for tall women. I'm not even that tall but have never found a jumpsuit or bodysuit or one piece swimsuit that fits my torso in length. At least if things are too big they can be taken up. I'm handy with a sewing machine but adding length to a torso is not very straight forward!

Absolutely. I often hear “you can shop in the kids section” but as a 50 year old menopausal woman who has had three c sections I do not have the body of a 13/14 year old

I’m 5’9” and recently managed to buy a jumpsuit that fit my long torso! Halara wide legged jumpsuit in tall.

my legs aren’t actually that long for someone my height so I also ordered the regular length but it was too short in the torso.

https://thehalara.co.uk/products/V-Neck-Short-Sleeve-Plicated-Side-Pocket-Wide-Leg-Flowy-Waffle-Casual-Jumpsuit-24-566?pmui=24.2.collection.list.12.jumpsuit&pmuih=jumpsuit&promo=index.ShopByCategory.1&currentSkc=1904789

Oh !! I have been saying this for years. I hate that petite is a thing. I'm not fucking petite , I'm short.

I'm 4ft 8. I'm also 54, have had 3 children, went through puberty., have size 34f boobs and in no way look prepubescent.

It is not a failing, on my part that I can't buy clothes from the childen's department. Because I am not a child.

I am just short- with the body of an actual adult.

All the women in my family were under 5ft (before me and my sister had children)- don't get us started on shoes. Even 40 years ago my mother was getting frustrated in shops because nowhere sold 3s. And I'm only a 2!

I'm a shoe size 8 (was a 9 before I lost weight). The sizing thing does my head in, I always look for a 42 as you can't rely on UK 7/8 sizing being right.

So the long & short & everything of it in between (excuse the pun) is that women’s clothing sizing is just crap!

I have a feeling most clothes are made for my height as I never have these problems. I’m 5ft 7 and the only issue I have is with things that are short waisted as I have a long torso.