One Reason It Pays Not to Be Size 6

mannequins

A friend of mine, who shall remain nameless, is a perfect size 6. You know the cute little sizes all the store mannequins wear? Yup, a size 6. She can walk into any store and find a plethora of shirts, dresses and sweaters that mold perfectly to her build. When we went wedding dress shopping she tried on half the gowns in the store and found they all fit like a glove, almost no alterations needed. You know the cute, little shoes that sit on top of the displays in department stores, yup, those all fit her too.

I always thought those size 6 women were so lucky. How amazing would it feel to walk into a store and walk out with bags full of clothes that fit so perfectly? The same is never true for me. I am rather impossible to fit. Although the fashion industry employs models with super long legs, there are actually few stores that make clothing for tall women. For years I shopped in the men’s department at the gap. It was the only place I could find pants that would fit a 36 inch inseam.

Needless to say shopping has never been fun for me. I’m not the kind of girl who owns fifty pairs of shoes or wears a different outfit for every day of the year. It’s not necessarily that I didn’t want to own a lot of clothes, but rather that I could never find any to fit me. I can walk into a dressing room with 50 articles of clothing and not find a single item that fits. I can’t tell you how often I leave a store empty handed.

In the past I dreamed of being a perfect size 6!

These days I have a different outlook on things. A medical crisis transformed my notion of what’s important in life and fitting into everything I try on is certainly not high on my list.  I now try to lead a minimalist lifestyle and I’m happy that my dressers are moderately empty. Although it’s probably not a good sign when your husband comments on the fact that you wear the same five shirts week after week.

In fact, as I look at my friend’s closets I see a bunch of stuff. Stuff that she couldn’t resist buying. Stuff that she is literally running out of space to store. Stuff that she spent a lot of money on. Perhaps it’s good not to be a size 6 after all. If nothing else my lack of clothing options has saved me a significant amount of money over the long haul.

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