Your top gripe with buying clothes at the moment?

[Clotheswoe]

Mine is that often when trousers are described as 'high-waisted', they are not at all high waisted on me. They just aren't hipsters!

Oh ... I love viscose and haven't ever noticed shrinkage or bobbling at all.

Also nothing for age 35-50

What do you think happens to a woman at 51 that would make her want different clothes to someone aged 49?

Usually the bigger the trouser size the longer they are. Poor 5ft3 me.

The materials are by far the worst thing. Agree with all that has been said about how terrible it is across the board.

What I have found is that it doesn't matter if you spend £30 or £70 or even perhaps £120, these can all be the same thing because smaller companies often need to charge more for the same material because side they can't make the bulk savings/they are charging you for marketing/design rather than material. You almost need to do a proper jump up to companies like NavyGrey who make stuff properly but is priced accordingly.

You can sometimes get lucky at lower price points and I admit I never buy cheap "wool", nothing lenzing recoverpro none of that shit that looks like a dishcloth as soon as washed. In fact I hate it when companies put a touch of wool in polyester things - it's makes them itchy without adding at all to the quality.

Men's clothes often better.

Polyester
Frills
Stupid, stupid tiered dresses

I agree with others about men's clothes generally being better quality.

Sorry to repeat, but polyester.

Manufacturers, please take note.

This thread has actually cheered me up a little, I thought it was just me that couldn’t find clothes. I’ve recently lost weight so wanting to treat myself but can’t find anything, everything I’ve ordered online has gone back. I’ve ended up paying three times more than I wanted to pay for a special occasion dress cos owt lower priced was truly crap. Agree with the polyester, as a woman of a certain age it’s a nightmare on the hot flush front. I don’t mind viscose and tencel as it drapes better on me.

Debenhams used to be my go to shop but the website now is so full of crap and even filtering out stuff there are so many options and nothing suits, I even think a lot look crap on the 5ft 10 model so what chance do I have at 5ft 2. I’ve made my first vinted purchase this week so we will see, but I actually saw more stuff I liked than in the shops.
Don’t get me started on size inconsistency a 16 is not the same everywhere and sometimes not even in the same brand. And a large could be a 14, 16 or an 18. My other half is a 34 waist 29 inside leg and you can order anything online and it just fits. I’m sure companies would sell more if they standard sized.

My humblest apologies 😳

A great deal of what has already been mentioned frustrates me buying clothing. One of the biggest issues for me though is fixed waists and them being far too high! Why is there no body length sizing and even longer length clothing is often just the bottom half that is longer and not the shoulder to waist measurement.

Companies are charging premium prices for items that are vastly reduced in quality. Brora being one example recently. I've bought their lace edged thermal tops for years. I have some that are 12 years old, they wash well & the lace is excellent quality. This year's iteration is absolutely tiny, though it's supposedly 16-18 in size ( equivalent to a small 12) & the lace edging is thin & cheap. Why do they do this with their reputation for quality?

Men’s jeans are a revelation. Thicker, harder wearing denim. Better prices.

What a shame, thanks for the heads up. I will cross Brora off the list of companies I buy from.

I do want sleeves down to my wrists. Three quarter length sleeves can do one.

It's funny that now that there's never been a broader range of clothes shops and it's never been so easy to search for and buy things, the quality is going to absolute pot.

It's the inconsistency that kills you. I haven't gone into Zara for years, I'm short so what's the point, plus all the stuff mentioned above. Who needs it.

But after years of searching for the perfect puffer jacket I finally found one in a charity shop, it's warm, really functional, has cosy pockets and a well designed hood. It looks great too and it's from bloody Zara.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH

I think there’s less shops now. So many went bust or disappeared.

With online shops, the options have boomed.

And yet...

Jeans are too stretchy. I've had so many well-fitting pairs that do that weird puckery rippling thing after a while, usually at the crotch. (I hope you know what I'm talking about...)

Or they were rebranded, in a strange way.

I remember when Finery London starred, it had a very different aesthetic than the sea of dresses they offer now.

Oh yes! Absolutely. I find it’s better if I don’t tumble dry them (can’t afford to use the tumble drier now anyway!) but definitely a problem.

Not enough v or scoop neck tops/
Sweaters.

• Sizes that are all over the show. I have dresses that fit well that range from size 10 to size 18. I’m certainly neither.
• Trousers that almost come up to my bra.
• Proliferation of linen. It makes you look like creases on legs.
• Sleeves that are far too long.

Colours - the neutrals are either white or black, but both are really harsh on my warm-toned skin. I would love off-white, cream, navy and warm brown instead. Shops seem to offer black, white and baby pink 🤢 as standard colours. Sometimes neon green.

Otherwise everything else that's been mentioned, particularly the ridiculous over-priced polyester which refuse to buy.

It's really annoying. I can tumble all of DH clothes, because they are all heavy cotton. Polo's and jeans etc. Pretty much none of mine can be tumbled, not even the cotton t's because they are thin and badly made 😡