FashBlog.com

By Christina VanGinkel

Ever open your closet one morning and discover there is not a single item inside that you want to wear? I just did. I have the proverbial dress clothes, comfort clothes, jeans and t-shirts, etc., yet I cannot find a single item hanging or in a drawer, that I want to go out in. Everything is suddenly looking very old and dated, worn out to the point that even if I did want to wear it, it would not be appropriate for much more than a quick jaunt outside to do chores. All of this has come about because I spend the majority of my time typing, or running kids to practices, with my most adventuresome task of the week being a visit to the grocery store or our local Wal-Mart.

This weekend I have an excursion out of town to an away game for my son's football team, followed by a dinner at a restaurant in the area. Nothing fancy, by most people's standards, but for me a major outing now because, as I said, my closet is empty.

I am terrible at shopping for clothes, so this is another major factor against me. I have no patience for clothes whose sizes apparently do not match those in my current repertoire. Why is it that a size nine is not always a size nine? In addition, this is not a problem inherent only to my closet, either! My daughter recently purchased a pair of jeans at an upscale boutique near where she is staying. They were in her typical size five, yet they did not even come close to fitting her. She had my grandson with her when she originally purchased them, so had relied on the tag for sizing, not trying them on. She ended up having to drive back to the store the following day to exchange them for a different size. This time, she had her husband keep their son, and she tried on several different pairs of jeans, as she could not believe her size had jumped. What she discovered was that she fit a size three, a size five, and a size seven. Most surprisingly, the five and seven were the same brand of jean, just a slightly different style, so she could not even break down her size by brand!

This means I need to not only go to the store and find an outfit, I actually have to try it on to make sure it is going to fit. Why can't clothing manufacturers get together, within their own companies even, and decide on a set standard for sizing? Is this really asking all that much? Oh well, I had better make time for a shopping trip this afternoon, one that includes enough time to not only shop, but to try things on. Unless my son and husband would not notice if I went to the big game in an old pair of pajama pants covered with reindeer and candy canes. I could always tell them I am trying out outfits for the big Christmas party we attend every year!