Clothes are made to fit miniature odd-shaped people. That’s why. Joking… you would nearly believe this in some cases.

So why is it so difficult to find clothes in retail shops that fit comfortably, not too big or too small? Through Ann’s knowledge of ‘off the peg’ garments and experience working in clothing factories, along with my research I soon identified the problem. Mass-produced clothing is made from sizing blocks that were generated many years ago by taking an average of the population at that time. Back in 1940 in America, a survey sample size of 10,000 women using sixty measurements was taken and in the United Kingdom in 1950 a similar survey with 5,000 women was measured. Now you can imagine in the 70 and 80 years since then women’s sizes have changed dramatically yet many brands still use an outdated sizing metric system.

It is with sadness that I inform you it is next to impossible to make clothes that will fit the majority of people unless the material has considerable stretch properties. Mass-produced clothing perfectly fits almost no-one and that is the reality. If you want perfectly fitting clothes getting them custom made or learning what shapes suit your body type and get them tailored to your fit are the only options.

Please remember it does not make sense to blame your body for not fitting these clothes, as Ann would say; “They were never made to fit you anyway”. It is not “my thighs are too big for these trousers”, it is “these trousers are too small at the thighs”. We can learn what brands and styles suit our body shape.

Every single person in the world has a unique body shape. We aren’t meant to be the same or fit the same mould, so why should we all fit into the same clothes?