These don't fit

Being tall has some advantages, but shopping for clothes is not one of them. In fact, it's become harder over the past several years as I've lost weight. Many folks think that if you produce a line of clothing for "big & tall" clients that these two terms are inter-connected. In fact, these need to be re-examined.

It needs to be understood that "Tall" crosses many waistband boundaries. Some tall people are thin, some are fat. But here's the crux...I apparently needs to have a 36" waist to be sized in many tall cuts of pants. The problem is I have a 34" waist, so I have to hunt around to find what I need.

I recently found that the Gap brands (Gap, Banana Republic, Old Navy) have smaller waist sizes with a 36" inseam on the pant. This length will do, but a 38" would be perfect. So I have to do the next best thing which is to be diligent and not shrink the pants in the dryer. Hanging drying baby, right next to all the cycling gear.

And another interesting thing to note. You can't buy these tall sizes in the store. Online only.

Gap must have waistband amnesia. I received a pair of 34" waist khaki's that fit great. The next pair of pants in the shipment was also a 34", but a different type of pant and cut. These didn't fit; in fact, I think they were sized to fit 32" waist (the tag said 34"). I wear enough tight fitting cycling gear to feel comfortable in my own skin, but these pants were way too tight. They're getting returned the next time I get back to a Gap store.