This is fundamentally because women looking attractive and skinny (or showing off those curves without pockets distracting) is more valued than female quality of life. What makes women’s lives better, easier, and more efficient simply is not valued. What makes women look prettier is. Women’s fashion is consistently uncomfortable, impractical, and overly complicated.

I don’t know how this can be solved when women seem so complicit in it. A few years ago, I went shopping for a bag. First, I wrote down the specs I wanted, having had various difficulties with bags in the past (non-adjustable straps, too heavy, not durable, too difficult to open and close, too easy to have things fall out of, etc). I set my budget at $3,000. No bag met my desired specs. After a month and countless hours wasted, I gave up and bought a piece of shit bag off eBay because I’m not going to support this misogyny.

I also stopped shopping. I used to love fashion because I’m inclined towards design and, frankly, I look really good in clothes. But I realized I was drawn towards what made me look best rather than what makes my life best. And I realized I spent way too much money. Recently, a sundress got damaged so I looked for a replacement. I wasted 6 hours online and it was extremely difficult to stay focused because women’s fashion is just so complicated. I found myself ready to check out with some high waisted lace shorts (I have way too many shorts already) and a $700 sundress in my cart, which was dry clean only (not practical!). So I decided “fuck this.” I will be wearing the same thing until people make it easier for me to shop and make clothes that make my life easier, not more difficult.

Online shopping gets especially heinous as I get older and no longer look as much like the models. For one, I do not like looking at dozens of women who are prettier than me and remind me I no longer look 22. It is weird to me that the models are so young. How old are the customers? Especially with high end clothing, doesn’t it make sense to target women who are at least in their 30s and have more money? We don’t want to be made to feel old! So why are teens used to sell clothing to us?! Also, I used to figure out whether things would fit based on how they fit the models. I’m 5’8”, 110 lbs, but because I’m 31, not in shape, and have curves, ordering online is still a crapshoot. I honestly don’t know how women who are not underweight can shop online at all. It is ridiculous there still isn’t a way to try on clothes online.