Not everyone is blindly following the latest fashion trend. Some people are focused on developing their own personal style, and want to invest in clothes that they genuinely love regardless of how popular they are.
But the industry still thinks it knows best and often prioritizes redundant items and designs while the truly needed ones remain limited and hard, if not impossible, to find.
So Reddit user Rachel_BA1 recently asked women to share what pieces of clothing they absolutely hate and why. Many agreed to share their thoughts and the comment section quickly proved that stores need to take a good look at their shelves.
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It’s not necessarily that I hate them, but EVERYthing is a crop top now. Can’t find a whole a*s shirt.
I hate finding a cute top that has the perfect length and neckline, but it comes emblazoned with something like "Live. Laugh. Love." on the front.
Sports apparel that turns pink in the women’s section. My alma mater’s colors are gold and black, why would I want a pink shirt?
The assumption that I want anything to be pink simply because I’m female really gets to me. I feel like we are slowly moving beyond it, but for so long every sports team I’ve supported has been like, “oh, you’re a lady? You must want a pink baby doll tee with a too small logo dead center on your tits.”
Clothing with cutouts that make it next to impossible to wear a bra.
I’m not that vain, I wear a bra anyway if I want to. Who cares if you can see the straps? I certainly don’t
Plus size clothes that are just larger cuts of the exact same pattern for smaller clothes, so if a shirt is 1" wider then it's also somehow 1" longer. How many adults grow taller as they grow fatter? It completely changes the look of the item.
Imagine if they took plus size clothes built for bigger bodies, bigger bellies and boobs and then just sized them down for smaller sizes. The fit would be ridiculous. I feel like fat people deserve to have well fitting clothes like smaller people do.
The most ridiculous thing were pants with low waist in plus size. I remember one year desperately needing new pants but couldn't find anything but. I'd rather go like Steve Urkel than having my belly sticking out all the time!
Ripped jeans.
There, I said it.
The fact that you have to pay more for an article of clothing that's mangled than it's intact counterpart is what gets me.
Knee high boots. I would actually love wearing them, but the standard sizes are too tight for my muscular calves, wider fits are inevitably of the "you're big, so you should be happy wearing ugly" variety, and I can't afford to have a pair made to fit.
Personally, I loathe all clothing made of polyester- spandex. What a nasty fabric. It doesn't breathe, so there's no escaping being hot. It clings to every figure flaw, somehow magnifying those. Sigh.
And all plus size clothing is made with it. 'Lets take people who are probably already self conscious, ok, now lets throw spandex with hideous prints on it' Why did they think this was a good idea??
Thongs.
The general women’s fit for t-shirts. I hate them! Too fitting, weird sleeves and necklines... I never felt comfortable in one. Once I discovered more boxy and gender neutral fits I felt so much more confident and happy. Just a different fit for the same type of garment can make all the difference!
I buy men's or unisex t-shirts. Better material and more comfortable.
High Heels. Why do they even exist? They’re basically death contraptions that are super uncomfortable that aren’t good for walking or standing for long periods of time. The only heels I’ve ever found that are comfortable enough to wear for more than an hour are my Clarke wedges, and even then those are wedges. There is no way to make stilettos comfortable
To answer the question of their existence. Shoes with heels were first used by horse riding peoples because they provide a better stand in the stirrups. If you look at the whole history, they were a integral part of mens fashion before women adopted them. So ladies, if somebody points out your lack of heels, you can ask them if you look like you plan on going to war on horseback.
Girl sleeves. Like short capped sleeves on women's tops. Just give me regular sized sleeves.
Shoes for women are literally the worst. Almost universally, they're designed to look good rather than to support your body. And I think most people don't get how damaging that is because it's so normalized. Shoes are what go between you and the ground! That's what absorbs the shock of your bodyweight slamming into the ground over and over again every day!
And, like, no one makes shoes for fat people. Women's shoes are so slim and dainty compared to men's shoes! Not just like, the length and the size, but men's shoes are clunkier and more sturdily built, I'm assuming to support a larger size of person slamming into them.
But, like, what happens when you're just a fat chick and you've got 200 lbs slamming into those ballet flats over and over?
Heel spurs. The answer is heel spurs.
And why are the comfy shoe only made in styles for much older women like you see grandma wearing them? Can't I have a cute orthopedic shoe? Style and comfort can go together and not take away from either.
Wool winter dresses - with short sleeves.
Lingerie. Especially if it's lacy. It hardly ever looks good underneath proper clothes, it's itchy and irritating and in my size, it's either unflattering or unaffordable. Also, most skirts above the knee and most trousers. I find them restrictive. I have refused to wear jeans since I was a teenager, as I find them uncomfortable and masculine. (Yes, I'll admit to being fussy.)
Can they please start making more clothes that don't need to be steamed before you put it on? It's 2021 I think anti wrinkle clothing should be the norm by now.
Those little booties with the toes cut out.
so much of women’s clothing is made to be uncomfortable or aesthetically pleasing, not comfortable to the wearer or conducive to free movement.
In (online) stores most of the clothing is too revealing and you couldn’t wear them to school or work. I see a lot of crop tops and annoying cut outs. For example I see a cute top in a store but when I turn it around it has an open back…. It is really hard to find modest clothes that are not old fashioned.
I don't mind much about modesty, but being of a certain age, I don't care to display the upper arms, but apparently sleeves in summer are forbidden
Ugg boots... Short for uggly...lol
Maybe it's the fake UGG boots, but I think they're dreadful as they never hold their shape, never seem to fit anyone well and look so dingy and dirty. I just never got the love for them.
Lots of people love them, so I'm glad they're comfy. I think they looked ridiculous on me, and about 99% of people.
I don't care about trendy anymore, I have wide feet and want to be comfy and pain free, so you'll have to live with Crocks and uggs lol.
Strapless bras. They either don’t stay or you have to wear them too tight they are uncomfortable
I have two strapless bras from Wonderbra and they are awesome! Great fit and great hold. I'm a size D
Ankle pants. Sitting here waiting until this God awful trend goes away so I can buy pants again. Unflattering, ugly, especially the wide length ankle pants, just why??
I'm actually happy with ankle trousers because I'm short, they are normal length for me. It's so difficult to find nice trousers when you are short
Boho style dresses with the little boob cups, sized up for 12 and above without expanding the cups.
Seriously. Really hate the specified boob areas for most tops and dresses. Most I see even being a b cup might be too big to fit. And if you're a ddd amd buy your size and try to allocate your boobs in the area there's no way because not even nipple would be covered.
Most shoes, as they are too narrow.
Why oh why can't we have shoes with proper toe boxes? Even the tennis shoes are too narrow at the front. Are we not supposed to have toes?
Trousers with fabric so thin that it clings and highlights every lump.
Also not a specific item, but I hate it when I'm shopping for clothes and see something that looks great but then it turns out to be made of icky fabric that feels scratchy or would make you feel swampy and sweaty or is too thin to hang nicely.
Pants made of thin material also pill and wear through after being worn only a few times. As for icky material, how about ordering a designer name cotton jersey nightgown that smells like vomit, even after being washed repeatedly with highly scented detergent and scent crystals? Waste of money, as the smell is so foul and strong it makes me nauseous and I can’t sleep. Can’t even use them as rags, because they’d just be vomit-smelling rags.
Tights! I think Americans call them pantyhose. They are so annoying, especially if they’re too small and they started to twist around the crotch area lol
Bras.
If they are the right fut and don't have anything that's itchy or poking me I love the support and security.
Cold shoulder tops. Why. Why would you create a thing that makes you cold ON PURPOSE?
Cuz not everybody is cold all the time? Personally, I'm always too warm. Also, it's a style. Some people like it, others don't. Variety exists for good reasons.
1 piece bathing suits are leading me to believe that I'm not proportioned like a normal human
Strapless dresses/ tops. I'm flat chested, so those never stay up. If I go too long without tugging them up all the damn time, my nipples come out to say hello. It pains me whenever I see an otherwise cute dress/ top that I can't wear because they're strapless.
I don't see the point in this list. It's less "these are the problems with women's clothes in general" and more "I hate this particular clothing item". Virtually all of these just have me saying "OK, so don't buy them".
Yup...For over half the list I was going "huh...I actually like this though". The only real issues are the "pants with no pockets", "everything is pink" and "why the heck is every shirt a croptop now??". Everything else is just a matter of taste.
Load More Replies...My biggest complaint is that my clothes dont last anywhere near as long as my husbands do. Even my jeans... we go shopping and both buy jeans, which we both wear with the same regularity. My jeans are always more expensive than his, even if we buy the same brand, and on average last 18months before they start to wear and get holes or the stitching comes undone. My husband's jeans least him on average 3 years. Same for our work clothes. We are both professional office workers so our attire is similar. His work shirts last approx 5 years before they fall apart. Mine last approx 3 and most significantly less. The shirt I have on right now actually needs to be thrown away. It's 2 years old but the stitching around the cuff is all coming loose. I've already had to replace the buttons twice. Why are women's clothes such shitty quality???
I have been shopping in the Men's department for a couple of decades now. Pants, you can buy length you want, they are usually well made, and wrinkle free. Shoes/sneakers are also better made and better styles if they carry the smaller mens sizes. Sweaters, some tops too. You can accessorize to make them more feminine. Women's fashion is just awful
Load More Replies...I don't see the point in this list. It's less "these are the problems with women's clothes in general" and more "I hate this particular clothing item". Virtually all of these just have me saying "OK, so don't buy them".
Yup...For over half the list I was going "huh...I actually like this though". The only real issues are the "pants with no pockets", "everything is pink" and "why the heck is every shirt a croptop now??". Everything else is just a matter of taste.
Load More Replies...My biggest complaint is that my clothes dont last anywhere near as long as my husbands do. Even my jeans... we go shopping and both buy jeans, which we both wear with the same regularity. My jeans are always more expensive than his, even if we buy the same brand, and on average last 18months before they start to wear and get holes or the stitching comes undone. My husband's jeans least him on average 3 years. Same for our work clothes. We are both professional office workers so our attire is similar. His work shirts last approx 5 years before they fall apart. Mine last approx 3 and most significantly less. The shirt I have on right now actually needs to be thrown away. It's 2 years old but the stitching around the cuff is all coming loose. I've already had to replace the buttons twice. Why are women's clothes such shitty quality???
I have been shopping in the Men's department for a couple of decades now. Pants, you can buy length you want, they are usually well made, and wrinkle free. Shoes/sneakers are also better made and better styles if they carry the smaller mens sizes. Sweaters, some tops too. You can accessorize to make them more feminine. Women's fashion is just awful
Load More Replies...