Where does the waist sit for you? (If you are female)

[AllTheChaos]

So I have an ongoing problem with anything vaguely tailored, whether trousers or dresses, even jackets and coats, and that is where the waist is positioned. I’m wondering if I have a strangely long rib cage or something! I will order something online (rarely get to actually shops for health reasons), with the correct waist size, but then it won’t fit as the ‘waist’ is up over my rib cage, just under my bust, and a good 2-3 inches above where my actual waist is (which is just between the bottom of my ribs and the top of my hip bones). It will be too tight around the base of my ribs, then baggy around my waist, be uncomfortable and look awful (if I can get it on at all). Trousers that claim to be for my waist size in inches either sit too far up and I have the same issue, or are the right gusset-waist length if ‘low rise’, but then I have to size down by a few inches as they all come up larger. It’s driving me mad, I’ve just tried on an expensive dress, from Vinted so no returns, and the damned waist is up at the empire line when from the pictures it’s clearly meant to be a waisted dress. Is it just me? It’s so frustrating as I am relegated to shapeless and saggy clothes that look awful on me, and it is really destroying my confidence. Help!

As this is Mumsnet, I’m adding a diagram!

I'm tall ish 5 9, anything with a waist sits under my boobs.

I wear two pieces as it is so frustrating.

I have a long torso and my waist is miles away from many brands waists. Boden is a particular offender, everything is empire waisted on me.

I've given up with buying anything with a waist feature or belt online. 90% of them are too high. Shift style only for me. And trousers are a pain too.

I’m glad it’s not just not me, but also annoyed. Why don’t brands realise that not all women have little torsos?!

Ugh me too. I'm 5'10", anything with a waist sits uncomfortably around my ribs and gives me a lovely paunch to boot. Grr.

It's the opposite for me! I have a long 'rise' and my narrowest bit (waist) is just under my ribs. Also short legs-I'm mostly pelvis, I guess!

I'm 5ft 10 with big boobs and it's pot luck as to whether it will sit at my waist, some random place or over my boobs

Opposite for me. Most of me is bottom.

well, Im extremely average (5'5 and a fairly even hourglass shape) and Ive bought several dresses where the waist sits just under the ribs.
Also trousers with very low or high rise that look normal on the models!

I dont think its us who are weirdly shaped....I just think clothing designers like to mess us around!

This is me. Sorry to divert the thread but what sort of styles do you think suit you. Everything gives me a camel toe due to having a lot of body. Then if I size up I look like a sack. Suit high waisted trousers but finding ones that fit is rare.

Me, too. I just wear the buggers with the wrong waist 😬 I'm also the wrong way up - top half's wider than my bottom half - with a sturdy rib cage. This means all one-piece garments are soggy round my hips, all bottom halves are either tight round the middle or loose round the bum, and top halves stick out at a strange angle.

I used to wear a lot of Karen Millen, and ALL the tops jutted out in front because she cuts for feminine types with boobs but no shoulders!

The waist usually sits perfectly for me. I'm 5ft 2, long body, v short legs.

don't feel jealous though because nothing, absolutely nothing else about a garment ever sits in the right place (length, sleeves etc),

I have the same issue.

The only dresses I have that are long enough in the waist are an Armani Jeans sun dress (from before dcs when I had money to spend on clothes), a Pearce Fionda evening dress and randomly, a linen dress from Pure.

I've got quite good at adjusting side seams in dresses or adding darts to move the waistline down, but it's an irritating hassle.

I’m standard height and hourglass shape with my natural waist at the same level as my tummy button, but big boobed (28G). So in dresses all the fabric migrates upwards to cover my boobs and the waist sits too high and makes me look like I’m fatter than I am.

I’m like this! Average height (ish) but long bodied and short legged, plus wide rib cage. Designers all assume either big boobs (nope) or bum (nope to that too). Where are the clothes for ectomorphs?

I'm high waisted but if it helps, Warehouse cut for those with a low waist.

Apparently Boden do this on purpose. Because clothing waistlines naturally ride up when you sit down, so if they put the waistline where our actual waists are, we’d complain about being cut in half every time they sit down. So they raise them.

I can’t get my head around this, but MidlifeChic covered it in her blog recently. I’ll try and find it.

Most stuff is too high on me too. Nader m boobs

Dresses never used to be like that

Perhaps we need some dropped waist styles for a change

Sorry word correct

Under my bust

Same! I'm only 5'5 so it's not a height thing. It never used to be an issue either, so I think it's the clothing designs doing it deliberately because they think it's more flattering.

I think they cut waists higher so they drape a bit over the abdomen. Drives me nuts because it just makes me look pot bellied (and meno doesn’t help). Agree Boden are
bad for this. I don’t have big boobs, if I did it might balance out but with smaller
boobs it just makes my belly look big.
I’ve given up on dresses with a waistline now. When in not in jeans, shorts or (recently discovered) linen dungarees, it’s shift and shirt style dresses all the way. Much easier.

I'm only 5'2" but have a big bust (G cup), so my boobs fill out and lift the front of dresses and everything ends up with an empire waistline. Even more annoyingly it also gives me an uneven hemline, with the front of the dress higher than the back. The Bravissimo clothesline (Pepperberry?) used to design with this in mind, but sadly are no more.

You must have a long torso then

They always sit well on my standard proportional body even if it is a bit chubby

I've been moaning about this for years - why don't we have differing body lengths (shoulder to waist) for dresses, so the waist sits in a better position. It is why I haven't bought Boden in years and go for dresses without a fixed waist seam. I also think this waist seam is to save fabric in production (I hate the random attachment of patterns in many tiered dresses) and means they cut corners with the cut, design used, lack of panels, darts and pleats etc.

I’m long waisted, rarely do the waists on dresses sit in the correct place for me. Elasticated waists are the worse, they ride up and make me want to grab the nearest knife 🤬
It’s unusual for me to find something that isn’t loose fitting that actually suits me!