I wasn't exactly sure where to post this so I'm just putting this out there. Does anyone have a good place - online catalog is fine - that sells women's size zero business clothing? (I'm looking for something less than Rodeo Drive prices!) Department stores aren't carrying smaller than size 4 in the NE Colorado/greater Denver area. Talbot's does however $350 suits - AND THOSE ARE SALE PRICES - is just not what the budget can do. Any suggestions? This is for my college daughter just entering the business world. (If manufacturers scale down the sizes one more time, that puts her at size MINUS 2) Thanks so much. BW
I went looking around for dresses for mature women in that size and was told to get a sewing machine. Luckily I do sew, but there are women in this area that will sew you clothes for a price. Might be cheaper than buying on line. Might want to check that out. The alterations shop can tell you who does it.
Only helpful thought I have is that Asian women and the shops that cater for them have already done all the searching you need to do. Do you have any Asian communities within reach?
My DD is a size 0 too. I have to make any dress clothes she needs. They just don't seem to make her size. They have some good and easy patterns out though.
If your daughter is petite as well, try the petite shops. Does she really need suits? Lots of people in the business world do not wear suits to work anymore.
Try Chico's - here's a link for store addresses: http://www.chicos.com/store/store_search.asp They carry "zero" but you should inquire about exact measurement of the garments. Do a web search for Petite - that should bring up some size zeros. There are a number of stores - just can't think of them right now.
Good luck to your daughter in her new career. My daughter is also a size 0 and for casual wear, she's pretty well settled on Wrangler, they have a line of dress slacks that are easy to care for, takes a thousand washes and fit nice. For dress clothes, we've found the consignment shops in high end neighborhoods is perfect. Small size business clothes are made but tend to be very expensive so I prefer to let someone else pay the initial cost and we buy them cheap. Sometimes it takes a trip to the cleaners, updated buttons a new belt to make something not bad into something fantastic.
Try eBay. There are currently 581 listings under Women's Garments with Size 0 in the title line. For those not familiar with it, just go to www.ebay.com. On the home page look for a button for Search. On the next screen just type in Size 0 in the search block and enter it. On the next page to the left you will see subcategories. Click on the one for Womens Garments. Just be careful you put in size zero and not size Oh. However, you might do a keyword search of size O (Oh) to see if someone has used it instead. You can sometimes find some real deals through listings with errors like this in them. One I look for is tools under the keyword of ferrier (should be farrier). Normally I don't want the item and will advise the lister as to the misspelling. When I did on one the seller was snotty about it. I then bought the item, relisted it under farrier and sold it for about double my purchase and shipping cost. If you are handy with a sewing machine this might be an opportunity for you to make up a couple of basic patterns in a couple of basic colors and materials for mix & match. You might have tops in zero and skirts and pants in size one or two also. You can list your full line in an eBay Store, with just enough regular listings to draw your potential shoppers there. Call the store something like Size Zero Women's Wear. You don't necessarily have to have an entire inventory of every style in every color and material made up in advance. eBay won't allow you to have a buyer's choice of say A, B or C. However, you can give the buyer some options as to color, etc. as long as the purchase price to them is the same. You then make up as purchases come in, having advised the buyer in the listing of the possible delivery delay. For a photograph, instead of just the outfit against a background, use a model in a business-like setting. One item I list is retractable dog leashes. I was able to get them in red, green or blue and could give the buyer their choice of color. Now I can just get green so it is not an option. On the blacksmithing tools I make and sell I can offer to customize at no additional cost, such as the size of the hardy shank. However, I couldn't say the buyer has their choice of say a bending fork, a twisting wrench or a hot cut hardy blank. Ken S. in WC TN
BTW, they might not have many business-type clothes in clearance, but their suits, slacks, and blazers are usually reasonable priced in the regular-price section.
Update: To get size O (Oh), you need to search on "size O". The quote brackets tell the search engine to look for those exact words. Otherwise you might come up with those with say Size 10 O'Neil... Another eBay search technique is the asterick. A search on say blacksmith* would bring up blacksmith, blacksmith's, blacksmiths' and blacksmithing. A % in front a word bring up similar sounding ones, such as %farrier bringing up ferrier. If you are searching for misspellings, also look for two words when it should be one, such as black smith, vs blacksmith. Ken S. in WC TN
The Store called "5-7-9" carries small clothes, despite their name. if you happen to have a shopping mall nearby, that's the only place i've ever seen that store. maybe they have online shopping. I had a very petit asian friend in high school who bought almost all of her clothes there. they also carry dresses, although i don't know about suits. good luck! Lisa
My fiance is tiny and she loves Banana Republic clothes. They always have stuff on clearance, but it is usually the larger sizes. Gap, Banana, and American Eagle are owned by the same parent company. Not business attire and very faddish, but Ambercrombie & Fitch seems to cater to the petite high school crowd.
