I’m a size what here?

Clothing is one of the few things in life that seems to bring me joy no matter what. I look forward to my 10 minutes every evening, choosing my outfit for the next day, and I love waking up and feeling good about what I'm wearing.

Clothing is an amazing artistic outlet that will always be something I enjoy, even if I look back 2 years from now and say, "Why did I think I looked cute?". We all have those moments, but that's half the fun!

With the joy of clothing, there must also be sadness. Today I shall discuss the sadness of sizing difference in women's clothing.

Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about!

JCrew has always been one of my favorite stores, and the majority of my work clothing is purchased there. From their timeless silhouettes to their amazing sales, it's hard to beat a classic. However, I am more than frustrated with them right now. The other day I chose my favorite JCrew neon green skirt to pair with a lovely marble top from my Le Tote box. This skirt is one of my favorites because of the color, cut, and fabric. I snagged this beauty for only $25 on sale, and it is one of my favorite purchases of all time. This great little skirt is a size 2; now please understand that is in no way bragging, but is essential for understanding the issue at hand. This skirt fits great and it easy to wear all day long, regardless if I am sitting or standing.

Fast forward to Friday morning. The office has casual Friday, but we are currently working with a Hawaiian shirt theme for Fridays. I don't own one of these shirts, and I didn't think it would be a big deal if I wasn't wearing one.

I was wrong.

I, along with others, were called out for being Debbie Downers and not participating in this fun fashion trend, meaning this Friday REQUIRED a fabulous tropical top. Again, I didn't have one, but luckily my sweet man did. His Hawaiian shirt was not the traditional button up style, but was instead a modern t-shirt style.

To avoid being too casual, I decided to pair this with an orange JCrew pencil skirt.

My outfit was perfect, and as I begin zipping up my skirt Friday morning I realized there was one fatal flaw: this bugger was going to be TIGHT!

Now, normally this would not be surprising, but this skirt is actually a size 4! It's larger than the one I had on the day prior, and I could hardly breathe! What the actual heck JCrew!?

I am not stupid, and I understand these silhouettes to be different, but there should be more consistency here. There is no way one style of skirt can be a comfortable size 2, and others require the wearer to go up two whole sizes! I even sized up for this style because I was aware it was cut differently, and I wanted more room for my bottom!

This entire debacle happened in less than 2 minutes, but in that time this issue became my top priority.

Why does the women's clothing industry make it so difficult to purchase something?

Men's clothing is the same. It's the same in every single store.

You're a size 34x34 in Levi's? Guess what? You're also going to be a 34x34 at Brooks Brothers. Now, this is not to say that there is no sizing difference period, because the popularity of men's pants having a more tailored cut has required more men to size up for a skinny cut jean, but even for the most part the men's clothing world has been able to make skinny jeans with consistent sizing.

My boyfriend can literally wear the same size straight cut and skinny cut jeans because the companies have kept the waist and length consistent while cutting the pants to make room for larger thighs.

Seriously? In less than 5 years men's fashion has figured out how to do something that decades of women's fashion still hasn't gotten the hang of!

Why is it that a woman can walk into three different stores on the exact same day and purchase the exact same piece of clothing, but is required to do so in three different sizes?

Ladies, this is BULLSHIT and you know it!

No wonder we have so many body issues!

We don't even know what size we are!

How can I celebrate my body when I'm constantly frustrated with the clothing I'm trying to put on it?

I am not the girl who lets a number on her pants define her self-worth, but I am the kind of girl who get's frustrated because she feels like a multi-billion dollar industry is out to get her.

Nothing is worse than grabbing a size, trying it on, and not even being able to get a fraction of your body in it! Especially when it's the exact same size as something you just purchased from another store.

It's just not right, and I know I'm not the only one who feels this way.

Unfortunately, I don't have any answers.

What I do know is when no one discusses a problem no one can fix the problem.

Don't be afraid to voice your opinion!

Email your favorite stores, make Facebook and Instagram posts, hashtag the shit out of this!

Let's refuse to put up with this ridiculousness and actually say something about it!

Clothes should make us feel beautiful and fabulous, and I for one refuse to let a piece of fabric make me feel any other way.

Love,

Lilly