My biggest fit challenge is also my feet. I have wide feet except for a shallow heel and so can't wear ballet flats or many other shoes as my heels slip out. I wear orthotics at least some of the time and for those times, usually wear hugely expensive shoes made just for that ( which are deeper, to Elly's point)

I am feeling a bit distant about other fit challenges since it is so long since I went shopping but I can relate to the waist hitting too high, like Tanya, since I am very longwaisted. Also I have a curved back so lots of garments hang loose at the back.

Let's see...I have very small shoulders and a 34DD chest. I'm a size bigger on bottom than on top so dresses are hard, especially in the summer. My calves are skinny and my feet are long and narrow...that is ok in sandals but some shoes look like canoes (like Converse). Aging is causing other issues like skin not looking great in sleeveless or bare tops. This is a big problem because I live in NC where we have very hot summers. Other than these problems, shopping is a breeze! No, really, I'm grateful for the body that God gave me...it works!

Hmm...I'd say my overall giantness is probably the biggest fit challenge! Specific areas are broad shoulders, very long arms, very long distance between my crotch and my waist (so even high-waisted pants hit below my belly button), and legs that are usually right smack in between regular and tall lengths.

Exactly the opposite of Jonesy - being 5'1 and having to wear petite sizes - stores are getting better about carrying good petite lines, but the offerings are still limited.

Feet that are size 9W and toes that are splayed apart instead of tapering in make it difficult to find stylish shoes.

I know I can find clothes that flatter if I am diligent but my short-waisted apple shape frustrates me no end.

Where do I start? Like Marianna I have size 12 in shoes and there is not much out there in this size Add to it that there is no Nordstrom in Canada and Zappos Canada selection is pretty limited...picture is pretty bleak. Thanks God for Tall Girl store in my city where at least I can walk in and always have something in my size to try on!
My height does not make it any easier for me. I am not comfortable to wear heels above 2 in, which limits my footwear selection even more.
Also - thanks to my height - finding anything long enough in sleeves, legs and torso is a real challenge. Small waist and full hips and thighs make pants fitting a nightmare as well. In addition I have wide shoulders and narrow back and chest so usually if it fits in the shoulders it needs to be taken in to fit.
On the bright side I found that sheath dresses are easy to fit for me which is a blessing.They usually need to be taken in under the arms and in the chest but it is a simple alteration. Oh, and having my mom as a personal seamstress does simplify things. Right now being tired of looking for the long enough tops for pants I have decided to ask my mom to make some for me.

What Jonesy said, plus having a super-curvy booty on an otherwise mostly straight body.

I'm with Anchi and saying my broad rib cage (and mine is not due to childbirth!). Inevitably the first place a dress is too tight on me is over the ribs.

I think my apple shape actually makes pants easy to buy (easier than tops anyway), as waist, hips, thighs seem to work for most pants. My height however often makes the length an issue, it can be difficult to find pants with an inseam long enough, although strangely most jeans are ok. Luckily I wear jeans 80% of the time anyway!

What an interesting thread!

My revelations have come about over the past year and from my recent pattern making exercises. They are:

Short shoulder to bust (like Megan)
Short waisted
Long arms (so tops small enough to fit the shoulder-waist are too short in arms)
Long rise (waist to crotch)
High Hip fairly in proportion to rest of me, but 10" down from my waist and it all expands!
Short legs with chunky thighs, but slim calves.

Knit tops are fairly easy to fit, woven it depends on how the darts are set up and the sleeve length, but pants/skirts are horrible - I have never EVER in my life had a pair of pants that fit my waist and hips - belts used to be my best friend, but now I'm just making my own pants LOL

It just goes to show with how many different issues we have here, why ready-to-wear clothes just can't meet all of our needs.

1. General smallness. German brands are a complete no-go, but I can find things from Italian and French labels. I have made my peace with hemming though.

2. Wide hip bones. Regardless of weight my hips are out of proportion. I can only hope this is also good for something, like child-bearing.

3. Slightest bit of exercise gives me huge quad muscles that make my pants ride up. Weird, huh?

I actually think it is kind of cool how we are all so different.

I have a very straight, narrow rib cage and small bust, but relatively curvy hips. This makes sheath dresses almost impossible to fit without serious alterations--they are all gigantic in the upper body and flare out under the arms. I also have very narrow shoulders, especially for my height, so jackets can be tough to fit. Even though I am 5'9", petite cuts sometimes work for me through the rib cage and shoulders, if the item is short-sleeved or sleeveless. I have a long inseam (34" --more for heels), although I am slim. Then there is the bunion on my right foot only!

Okay, this is going to make me sound like a crazy person, but at 5' 3 1/2" tall, I am just beyond a petite, but too short for many regular sized items. It's like I am in some bizarre size range that everyone forgot Drives me crazy!!

Through YLF, I realized that my 30 1/2" inseam (again, about 1/2" shorter than many "regular" inseams that are often 31") is NOT compatible with petite sizes, where the inseam is often 29". However, I am short-waisted, meaning that petite bottoms often fit me better in the rise (the rise is shorter). When pants rises were higher (I thanked the fashion gods when low-rise pants came into style), the waistband often felt like it was hitting me halfway up my back. In the 90s, when jeans rises were super duper high, I used to take my jeans to a tailor to have the waistband lowered.

On top, I am definitely a petite, with my short waist and short arms.

Does this explain why I am the dress queen?

Ha, Laura - I feel your *almost petite* pain. Although it is my top half that keeps me trying both.

Historically, I have the biggest fit problem with very small waist in proportion to fuller hips AND thighs. Has always made pants and jeans shopping a disappointment.

This year, I have also found trouble with my muscular upper arms and *seems to be* wide across my back shoulders -- for jackets and woven shirts.

I'd probably never have struggled with this if I hadn't found YLF and decided to move beyond all knits!

Isn't it encouraging to know that we ALL have challenges?

I actually think I'm pretty lucky -- a lot of things fit me well off the rack, and I'm a size 8 shoe, which is really easy to find. My big challenges are finding fitted button front shirts that fit throughout the body and shoulders but don't pull apart at the bustline (being a D/DD cup), and finding pants and jeans that fit my thighs, which are not exactly slim.

Ah well, it just means I have to try on lots of stuff.

The main fit issue I always take into consideration while dressing is my height; at 5'3" I always shoot for an outfit that makes my legs look as long as possible.

When shopping it's usually my curvy back+ample rear+small waist making pants tricky (well, height too but that's easier to solve). Tops are pretty easy with my small bust and small top frame overall (though shoulders are broad), but longer torso length makes it harder to find tops long enough that are small enough (rarely find 'em). I'm a bit worried after reading Taylor and Angie's comments since I'm working on losing some weight and will likely get sized out soon for tops (I already wear small and xsmall in many brands).

Maya, I read yours and just wanted to give you a hug. I know that I am not as small as you are now, but when I had my reduction I was skinnier, and I think my chest was bigger than yours. So if you're a freak, so was I.

My biggest fit challenge is knee-high boots. I have 15.5 inch calves but I am 5'1 and I wear a size 6.5 shoe, have small ankles, and wear a size 4 in clothes. This means that wide width boots or boots from plus-sized stores, which tend to be wider in the calf, tend to be way too large in the ankle for me. Added to that difficulty is the fact that I don't purchase leather or anything using animal skins/fur/hides, and finding knee-high boots is a huge challenge (but I have managed to find a few that have worked).

Fascinating! I feel I have a very common fit issue but having read through the thread so far, it seems I share it only with a few! It is the curvy booty compared to waist - making it necessary to buy trousers to fit and then take them in at the waist. Not a big problem, I am counting my lucky stars!

I'm a petite so pant legs and sleeves are always too long -- often even in the petite sizes. But I have a monstrously large chest and fat back so blouses and jackets are extremely problematic and prone to gapping. And dresses are well-nigh impossible because I'm so much bigger on top than on the bottom.

Kate S., I have the same problem you do, and think it probably is quite common. But it's not my *biggest* challenge, so I didn't mention it.

Hmm. Chest that's out of proportion to the rest of my body; a long torso but short arms; and enormous and wide-ish feet combined with relatively short legs and small calves. Also a, uh, disproportionately large waist measurement. Probably the chest the most, though.

My wide rib cage is definitely an issue, it makes fitted tops and sheath dresses a little hard to fit. Plus, even when I find one that does work I'm quite self-conscious about how far my goofy ribs stick out. My feet and calves get me, too. I have big feet (11's) and there aren't many choices in brick and mortar stores around here. (and they often only get in one in any given style). Then you add in skinny calves and boots are nearly impossible to find - there is certainly nothing available locally.

I love denim leggings and always it worries when it comes to tucking. if I don't tuck, then I am seen too much fat. as on leggings, with tuck it doesn't look good but here I have got to compromise with tucking so as to keep myself feel comfortable with as I am slim rather thinking the appearance, though it doesn't look that good.