Not a size 14W yet.

My "smaller" pants are too big now. The Talbot's size 18W I got July 4th weekend are baggy, and the used-to-be stretchy comfy pants from pre-surgery look like they belong as part of a clown costume. SO, tonight I went to TJMaxx to see if I could find some bargain pants. Picked up several Talbots size 14W to try on, but, alas, I'm not there yet. I ended up with some 16W no-brands for just $17, so that's cool for now. And, at least, now I know that when these are baggy, 14W will be plentiful on the clearance rack.

It's a little known secret. If you have gained some weight and should really wear a size 14W, you aren't mentally ready to go to a plus size store, so you find regular size 16s that don't look flattering but at least aren't technically from a women's plus size store. That means that the high quality brands with women's sizes (Jones New York, Liz Claiborne, and Talbots) have all sorts of size 14W that look nicer on but never get purchased, so you can snatch them up as bargains at the Outlet stores and TJMaxx. (-:

My body is weird, btw. Always has been, actually. For a top, I can do a regular size XL, but I can't do regular sizes for my pants yet. This is the worst size for clothes shopping (as I remember well from about 2000) as I am not naturally stylish enough to get my top pieces from a regular store and then find coordinating bottom pieces from an entirely different women's plus store. I will say I love that the Talbots Outlet and the Jones New York Outlet combine their womens and regular sizes into one store with different sections, and carry some of the same lines in each department. That makes it a bit easier. Of course, when you are on a tight budget and losing a lot of weight, one doesn't get to shop at high end stores- even the outlets- as often as one might wish...

Somebody, once I am down to 133 lbs, please nominate me for the show "What Not to Wear" so I can get a free $5,000 wardrobe complete with experts telling me what looks awesome and what looks horrible!