I try not to have to purchase new clothing unless it is an absolute necessity, mostly because I hate getting only a few months wear out of things before I have to purchase a smaller size. At the beginning of the school year, I purchased 3 pairs of size 20 khakis. They are literally falling off of me, so I went looking for some khakis that actually fit. I had recently picked up a pair of size 16 khakis at Walmart for $15 that actually fit very well and looked nice, and I would have bought 2 pairs then, but apparently a size 16 is a popular size and they only had one pair. I went back to buy another pair, but they were still out of the khakis that I wanted in the size that I needed, I remember from my plus sized days that most plus size lines start at a size 16, so I ventured over to the plus section to see if they may have what I needed, They had the same exact pants in plus sizes, and I found a black pair of khakis in a size 16. Being plus sized, they were just a little roomier in the hips and rear than I really needed them to be, but they would work for the time being. I figured they would shrink a little after being dried in the dryer anyway.
"So what's the problem?" you may be asking yourself. Well here's the problem. These pants were the exact same brand and size as the pants that were out of stock in the womens section. The ONLY difference between the two pairs is that one was a 16 and one was a 16W. So when I checked out, I was surprised to find that they were $25, almost twice as much as the "normal" size pair would have been if they had been in stock. This really rubs me the wrong way. Why should one pair be almost twice as expensive just because they are from the plus size section? It's bad enough being a plus size woman and struggling with your body and finding something that fits well and flatters you, but to have to pay so much more on top of that is downright despicable and disgraceful. I'll end my rant there, but it definitely gave me some frustrations.
Anyway, I'm going to try to get by on these two pair of khakis and one pair of jeans that fit until time to warmer weather. Then I will have to pick up some new things. I'm shooting for cute summer dresses and a pair of capris or shorts. Stll don't want to invest too much into it, because I know that I am going to spend a fortune on clothes once I hit my goal =).