Anyone else have difficulty finding clothes that fit?

Mister Vain

I'm on the big side of small. When it comes to t-shirts, hoodies and jackets, I'm too big for the small but too small for the medium. It can be difficult to find chinos and jeans in the right size too. I've noticed in any shops I've been to the shortest leg length is 29. Thankfully that's just about right for me but if I was a couple of inches shorter I'd be fcuked. I haven't seen any shorter than that anywhere. Even when it comes to belts I usually have to cut a hole in between 2 holes to get the right fit.

the evasion_kid

I've noticed jeans are hard to find,I don't know if they changed the sizes or what,some of them you'd need to be built like a chipstick to fit into them.I was in a shop before Xmas and the lad working there had a picture chart on the wall of 5 different styles of jeans from skinny hipster drainpipes to relaxed,I went with the relaxed as they looked close to the jean style I'd normally wear and I have to say there quite comfortable and fit well.

Mister Vain

Yeah whatever happened to the baggy jeans? Them skinny yokes are ridiculous.

Wibbs

Funny enough and speaking as one of those "chipstick" type men(29/30 inch waist, 34/36 inch leg depending on cut), I've noticed this too. Where I've really noticed it is in casual shirts. I'd take a medium, which is grand, however the sleeve cuffs are usually quite the close fitting on me and I have a 6 odd inch wrist, IE tiny for an average bloke. I have no idea how a more normally built average guy who is a medium would be able to button his cuffs. Not without his hands turning blue anyway. Chest size can be another area of difference to what the label says. More noticeable among the high end fashion type labels IME. I've had a couple of "mediums" where I could only button them up if I ceased breathing and like I said I'd be of the scrawny type. Jeans wise I've certainly noticed changes over the years and given I've been a 501 wearer before the mid 80's NIck Kamen ads... Over the years I've noted them becoming slightly shorter compared to the label size and narrower/wider depending on the year. Defo more narrow these days. That may well be within my narrow size range, but I did notice it.

sky88

ahh i feel pain when shopping for jeans these days i cant seem to find a leg size that fits in most shops tend to have fold the leg up at the bottom. pain in the backside tbh as eithier im shrinking or they are sizing them differently these days.

RoadhouseBlues

I've found in a lot of stores its hard to get a size small in t shirts or tops. Superdry and Jack & Jones' size medium tops are more like the regular small size, so they fit me perfectly. Dress shirts are a nightmare for me though. A 15 inch collar slim fit shirt. The shirt will fit great but I can't close the collar for a tie etc. If I go to 15.5, the collar will be grand but the shirt is too big in the chest and shoulders:-). Arghhhhhhhhhh:-)

the evasion_kid

Wibbs wrote: »

Funny enough and speaking as one of those "chipstick" type men(29/30 inch waist, 34/36 inch leg depending on cut), I've noticed this too. Where I've really noticed it is in casual shirts. I'd take a medium, which is grand, however the sleeve cuffs are usually quite the close fitting on me and I have a 6 odd inch wrist, IE tiny for an average bloke. I have no idea how a more normally built average guy who is a medium would be able to button his cuffs. Not without his hands turning blue anyway. Chest size can be another area of difference to what the label says. More noticeable among the high end fashion type labels IME. I've had a couple of "mediums" where I could only button them up if I ceased breathing and like I said I'd be of the scrawny type. Jeans wise I've certainly noticed changes over the years and given I've been a 501 wearer before the mid 80's NIck Kamen ads... Over the years I've noted them becoming slightly shorter compared to the label size and narrower/wider depending on the year. Defo more narrow these days. That may well be within my narrow size range, but I did notice it.

I started taking a scissors to the bottoms of the jeans, two slight cuts up along the hem and they weren't so bad...other wise I felt like an upside down christmas tree in the things

TwoGuysDublin

RoadhouseBlues wrote: »

I've found in a lot of stores its hard to get a size small in t shirts or tops. Superdry and Jack & Jones' size medium tops are more like the regular small size, so they fit me perfectly. Dress shirts are a nightmare for me though. A 15 inch collar slim fit shirt. The shirt will fit great but I can't close the collar for a tie etc. If I go to 15.5, the collar will be grand but the shirt is too big in the chest and shoulders:-). Arghhhhhhhhhh:-)

I know that pain with dress shirts and it's pretty common. Aside from getting a custom made shirt, you can either swim in material or spend the day fending off questions about why you look so red as the collar slowly constricts your neck! There are two things you can do with the dress shirt: either try every brand until you find one that works with your body/neck combination and stick with them for life hoping they never go out of business or get the shirt altered.

I've been in the exact situation as you except it was with a 15 neck. I'm a 15 body with a 14.5 neck. So I bought the 15 and brought it to get it altered. People think you're either vain or mad to spend money doing it but for an extra 10/12 quid you can have a shirt that fits you perfectly. And everyone feels better in clothes that fit correctly.

Not sure where you're based but the Alteration Centre on St. Anne St off Grafton Street is the only place I'll go to. Never had a problem, they size you up in seconds and their work is great. And the best part is that its right beside TM Lewin so you can go in any try some dress shirts there, then a 30 second walk and a couple flights of stairs and you're on your way to some nice fitting garments.

Pug160

Wibbs wrote: »

Funny enough and speaking as one of those "chipstick" type men(29/30 inch waist, 34/36 inch leg depending on cut), I've noticed this too. Where I've really noticed it is in casual shirts. I'd take a medium, which is grand, however the sleeve cuffs are usually quite the close fitting on me and I have a 6 odd inch wrist, IE tiny for an average bloke. I have no idea how a more normally built average guy who is a medium would be able to button his cuffs. Not without his hands turning blue anyway. Chest size can be another area of difference to what the label says. More noticeable among the high end fashion type labels IME. I've had a couple of "mediums" where I could only button them up if I ceased breathing and like I said I'd be of the scrawny type. Jeans wise I've certainly noticed changes over the years and given I've been a 501 wearer before the mid 80's NIck Kamen ads... Over the years I've noted them becoming slightly shorter compared to the label size and narrower/wider depending on the year. Defo more narrow these days. That may well be within my narrow size range, but I did notice it.

Are you under 6 foot? If so, you must have long legs for a man. I'm a good three inches taller than my sister but I can remember our jeans being the same length (something to do with men's and women's body to leg ratios being different I imagine).

Wibbs

5'10/11" and yes P I'm oddly built. Don't judge me you bastids. But yea, from the waist up if I was in proportion I'd be 5'6", but from the waist down I'd be 6'3/4". Maybe I'm in the wrong thread, or not. Being a gangly freak an all.

Actually IIRC women on average have shorter legs than men as adults past 20 anyway. Again IIRC the long legs thing as an attractant in the ladies is down to an age thing, whereby women between the ages of 16-18 are more likely to have a growth spurt in the legs and arms and because this is a period of high fertility men get triggered by it and high heels and such make hay with it. Yet again IIRC it's the sizes within legs that show a gender difference. IE men have longer calves compared to their thighs and the reverse is the case in the ladies.

BetterThanThou

I can't get a polo shirt that fits me right, a large looks nearly like a dress, a medium is too tight. Don't have a single pair of trousers that fit properly without a belt. And even at that, on all the belts I own, one ring is always too tight, whereas the next one is too loose.

H3llR4iser

Eh, at least Ireland is better than Italy when it comes to clothes sizes, as everything down there seems to be considerably smaller.

However the issue here is that men clothes seem to be mostly tailored either for short&tubby or tall&thin: often you find jeans/trousers that are like 34W/32L or 40W/29L, but not 40W/32L. Maybe it's just that the latter sells quicker (and is possibly in smaller supply).

Aidric

Wibbs wrote: »

Funny enough and speaking as one of those "chipstick" type men(29/30 inch waist, 34/36 inch leg depending on cut), I've noticed this too.

Ha, just on this I've noticed in the last year it's virtually impossible to find a 30 inch waist in the main high street stores.

Is there a collective of 30 inchers just waiting for new stock to arrive before swooping in and grabbing them all? Or maybe I'm just paranoid.

Mister Vain

Yeah I've never seen a 30 inch waist anywhere. 32 is the smallest in most stores.

Wibbs

Yep I hear ye and that is why I buy online, oh and for the cheapness aspect. If going for vintage jeans(Levis), I look for a 28 inch waist, as there was a little bit of looseness going on back in the day with the 30 for me depending on style/fit. I have a few vintage 501's and using a measuring tape old stylee "28" was more a "30", whereas more modern and new stuff, you can reverse that. One advantage being oddly fashioned as a human is that such sizes go for feck all these days. More popular sizes go with more of a premium.

Funny you mention Italy H3llR4iser. Back in the day(80's) I used wait until the summer to buy jeans as some shops in Dubland would buy in stock for the Spanish student types and like your Italian example they were similar, either short and stubby or snake hipped scrawny fecks like me. I've been in Spanish clothes shops and checking out the sizes and I'd have no issue finding any number of jeans in any number of styles to fit my mutant frame. Ditto for Italy and Greece.

source

I used to do a lot of cycling, which had led to huge thighs. It's near impossible to get any sort of trousers that fit right. I'm a 34in waist and have to get 36in so they go over my thighs, it's that or i have to go around looking like they're painted on.

The problem is, Irish clothes shops seem to cater only for what's currently fashionable. The fact that the current fashions don't suit everyone isn't considered.

234

source wrote: »

I used to do a lot of cycling, which had led to huge thighs. It's near impossible to get any sort of trousers that fit right. I'm a 34in waist and have to get 36in so they go over my thighs, it's that or i have to go around looking like they're painted on.

The problem is, Irish clothes shops seem to cater only for what's currently fashionable. The fact that the current fashions don't suit everyone isn't considered.

To be fair, the problem you have, which is a problem many cyclists have, is that they have a lot of muscle mass on their legs and very little elsewhere; a kind of localised weight gain. So it's always going to be difficult to find clothes to fit that kind of abnormal body development.

TwoGuysDublin

source wrote: »

I used to do a lot of cycling, which had led to huge thighs. It's near impossible to get any sort of trousers that fit right. I'm a 34in waist and have to get 36in so they go over my thighs, it's that or i have to go around looking like they're painted on.

The problem is, Irish clothes shops seem to cater only for what's currently fashionable. The fact that the current fashions don't suit everyone isn't considered.

If you need to get a 36in pair, would you not be better buying them and then getting them taken in? They will slim the leg to suit as well as taking them up. Then you have a perfect fitting pair of trousers.

ongarboy

For the poster who said they find shirts too baggy even if they have the right collar size, always check to see if they have slim fit style. They fit much better for guys with slimmer chests but regular neck sizes. Zara does great slim fit shirts with long arms which suit me perfectly.

Also someone said trousers/jeans only seem to start at 32" waist in most places. I'd disagree with that - any of the high street chains (which tend to be youth oriented and hence the slimmer sizes) will have loads of options from 28". It's anyone with a waist size larger than 36" that I feel their options for jeans and trousers are very much reduced as only traditional menswear stores or department stores seem to stock larger sizes.

Barna77

source wrote: »

I used to do a lot of cycling, which had led to huge thighs. It's near impossible to get any sort of trousers that fit right. I'm a 34in waist and have to get 36in so they go over my thighs, it's that or i have to go around looking like they're painted on.

The problem is, Irish clothes shops seem to cater only for what's currently fashionable. The fact that the current fashions don't suit everyone isn't considered.

Same here. 34in waist and have big legs too. Found out that Next straight cut jeans are the best that fit me, still looking kind of loose.

Any shops on the Zara group are a no go area. They are all fecking skinny.