Buying Clothes

I just got a reminder why only extraordinarily confident guys buy women clothes.

I saw a very nice blouse on the Ann Taylor site, here. Nice style, material, all of that. Only problem was, it said that it came in Misses and Petite sizes. I knew that she was not a Petite, but Misses? I was pretty sure that Misses didn't necessarily mean 'mid-twenties to mid-thirties', but I was reluctant to proceed without reassurance. So I noted the item number (211871) and dropped them a line. Got this in a size my wife could wear? They replied thusly:

Thank you for contacting us regarding the sizing of the Ann Taylor Silk Stripe Long Sleeve Shirt style number 213402.  This is a very elegant, classic style that has been extremely popular.  I am not sure what size you are seeking. However, we do have size charts on the website that may be able to  provide more information for you.  You might try to borrow your wife's favorite blouse from her  closet to determine the appropriate size.  If you need more assistance, please contact us a 1 800 DIAL ANN where a Client Associate would be happy to discuss all of the sizing options and fits with you.  We look forward to hearing from you.  

Hmmm... I said 211871, not 213402. But still.. so I looked it up. Same blouse -- only this page didn't say anything about Misses and Petite, it just listed sizes. But it did say Petite, and just that, up on top of the page. Her size did show up in the sizes drop-down box (which was actually on both pages), but I was still hung up on the M/P thing -- was it possible that there was a Misses size X and a Petite size X, which weren't the same, and neither of which would be right for my wife?

I called, talked to one of their people, who, at my hesitation, seemed to get the impression that what I was trying to say, without actually saying it, was that my wife was big...you know, fat. Which she isn't, and I wasn't. Eventually, we concluded that Misses really does mean 'women over 50, too'...and I ordered it.

Damn thing better fit.

Incidentally, I found this page, which is a guys guide to women's sizes. Not terribly helpful if you don't have her body measurements (and not the ones you remember from 10 years ago, either), but somewhat useful.