If It Zips It Fits, and other Fashion Lies

You may be surprised to hear this, but fit is even more important than what you choose to wear, because if whatever you wear fits well or properly and is true to your individual size, then it’s going to be hard for you to look bad.

But what is “Fit”? Just because you can button up or zip into something does not mean that it fits.  In the fashion industry, there are no laws or regulations regarding sizing. So a size 8 in one brand may be a size 12 in another. The sizing differs greatly between brands and manufacturers. This is also part of the reason why you may have already found that Chinese-based online clothing stores run extremely small, with their labels of “large” often being our average equivalent of an “extra small.”

Remember, there is a big difference between something tailored to fit your body, and something plastered on. Some people wear their clothes so tight that it looks like the wearer had to use grease in order to slide into them.

How to Achieve a True Fit:

Knowing your body, especially your body shape, height and proportions, is all very key in this. If you have long arms and a short torso for instance, you want to make sure to accommodate for that, otherwise you’ll end up looking frumpy, baggy, or like your clothes got shrunk oddly in certain spots. Dressing in a manner to flatter your shape and size can be difficult if you’re just buying whatever you think is cute or trendy. Researching the various body shapes and types can be exceedingly helpful (short of a personal stylist) in helping you to steer away from garments that will be unflattering for you. Understanding how a garment should look and drape is also important, because not all styles are made for all people.

Lastly, I’m afraid to say, that buying clothes right off the rack in a store and expecting them to fit perfectly is nearly impossible.  The fashion industry does not cater to individual shapes and sizes, but rather according to a “fit model,” who is an average, but certainly not representative of all the various shapes and sizes people come in.  If you want to avoid the costs of bespoke clothing but still get a good fit, take clothes in to be hemmed, taken in, let out, etc. as a less expensive way of obtaining clothing that fits your body well.  And if you come across a garment in a store that fits you like a glove, then buy several pairs of it, because you’ve hit the clothing jackpot!