I'm in the midst of a full-blown clothing meltdown at the moment, which I will try not to carry on about,but the long and short of it is finding myself, still, with a major weight gain and change in body shape that is putting me out of lots of clothes I like. Nothing new, I know. I am at my wit's end trying to get rid of it, to no avail thus far. The culprits? Menopause and wine. I have been drinking far more wine that I ever have in my life, both as a social thing (it's become how my friends and I hang out together) and as an end-of-the-day stress reliever/relaxer. The sugar content and calories are horrifying, and I have been pretending all was ok, until today when I had a big meltdown trying on clothes. As of today, I am going alcohol free until I get my weight under control, and am watching every single bite that goes into my mouth.

Anyways, after coming thisclose to dropping $400 on a pair of Vince pants because they actually fit me, I hit pay dirt at Lululemon and Aritizia in putting together a small collection of things I can wear while I work on my , well, self.
Among some other pieces , there are two fantastic pair of pants, and I know i'm not the only one who finds pants extremely hard to fit. I'm fairly picky too when it comes to pants, and really need them to be fashion-forward, funky, and dressy at the same time .

So - here you go : the Lulu's are pull-on with a pretty satin waist trim, and the fabric is awesome! It's a twill weave but so smooth and almost sateen-like. Good crisp look, and you can roll up the bottoms to wear with booties for a dressier look. Easy, easy fit, and so comfortable and nice-looking. I think I'll be wearing them every other day ! True to size. I bought an 8.

The Aritzia's are made from their usual crepe, and are also pull-on with a bit of a pinch at the bottom to create a different look . Not quite track-pant-ish. Again, worn with leather sneakers or shoes, or with booties for a dressier look. These look nearly identical to the Vince ones (and actually fit better! ) , and were 1/4 of the price. Again, true to size, and I bought an M.

I feel a lot better after having found two pair of pants I can wear in the meantime and along with two pair of jeans from GAP (both Girlfriends in two different washes) , I can manage for a couple of months. The sad part is, I had this same meltdown at this time last year, and wrote about being all pumped over finding a pair of pants then, neither of which I wear now. I really hope I can make progress this time,and change my habits.

Thanks if you've made it this far through my diatribe, and I promise to keep my weight issues out of my comments from here on in - unless it's to report success!

eta: I'm not quite enough of a jerk not to realize that size 8's and M's aren't exactly an issue to many people , but I have a very fine-boned body and nowhere to hide weight. It shows up immediately and all in my stomach and around my hips. In the interest of full-disclosure, I am almost sized out of my favourite premium jeans, and that was the final straw. A 30 no longer fit at all - and that's where sizing can do a number on one's psyche. An 8 fits in one store, yet I'm sized out of jeans? Gah.