May I vent a little bit here? I just went on the PC website to look at the dresses (out of curiosity), and I have to agree with Janet. The 2 models they use make me feel like I'd never be able to wear a dress again. Very tall, long bodied, small chested, and very thin women. This kind of presentation totally turns me off despite the fact that I know better than to let it get to me. This is precisely why I am scared to death of dresses, and cringe at the mere thought of having to buy one for any kind of occasion . I don't look like this (not many women do) and cannot relate. Where is the diversity on this site? Does this mean they aren't interested in me? This isn't the way I wanted to start off my day

Just looked back at site Lisa and yep, you're right, they should have more diverse models They do have things that would work on a range of body types, but the print dresses are mostly of the hourglassy variety. Honestly these are very forgiving-drapiness at hip disguises my dodgy bits!
I'm wondering if some of their lbds, or something similar, could be great on you. They have many shapes including some with asymmetric hems, and many are clearly IT, apple, and pear shaped.

Suntiger, can you tell which body types a dress will fit from looking at it on those models? I swear I’m feeling more strongly about this in two directions: I want to see lots of different shapes and colors in ads, to show the array of people who can wear x. But looking at sales sites, I feel like I am really starting to appreciate the point of having all the clothes shown on women who all have the same body. No, curvy pants won’t fit a woman who doesn’t have a butt, but if it’s one of those standard sized/shaped models, isn’t it easy to see the gapping there and know whether you’ve what it takes to fill it? Now that some sites have the diverse models I’ve been saying I wanted, I find myself squinting at them and trying to figure out if that model really has whatever body feature, or if the garment just makes it look that way. I guess it’s the difference between advertising and the actual sales decision. But seeing as stores’ sites can be both, that line isn’t clear at all

Well, many of those dresses I was referring to were shown off the models-so easy to see the shapes. For the others I try to look at the shape/ features/ drape of the garment-more than how it fits on the model (in theory). But, will observe more as I'm browsing and think on it!

I find online styling/model choice perplexing in general.....There are a couple of retailers here that really let themselves down with their online shopping experience, pictures of pieces, information etc.

I find buying shoes online my best bet....

I don’t have the visual / spatial ability to imagine how something will look on me . I expect to magically look like the model and am perennially puzzled when I don’t

After thinking on this-I've decided that models, no matter size or shape, are professional coat hangers Basically their job is to fill out the garments so we can see shape or details we may miss otherwise. None of us will have the same proportions as the model-And sometimes the items look better on us regular folk!
Shoes...that's another story! I've sent an ungodly amount of shoes back :p