There's no such thing as a size 9...

One of life's most annoying clothes shopping dilemmas as a woman... one size is too small, the next size is too big...

I was unfortunately in that position today when I found the most amazing dress in Karen Millen. I'd won a £100 voucher recently in an in-store competition and wanted to put it to good use when I discovered clothing perfection. The 60's metallic shift dress...

When I saw this dress I instantly fell in love, I knew this would be a classic dress that would be a keeper for years to come. The fabric, cut and quality are all incredible - this dress is made to enhance all the best features of a women - nipped in waist, legs and bust! But I fell foul of the age old dilemma, a size 10 was slightly too big which rendered the dress ill fitting and not worthy of the £175 price tag, whilst the size 8 looked absolutely fabulous but was the sort of dress I could barely go out for cocktails in let alone sit down and eat a meal.

After strutting around the changing room for 5 minutes whilst barely breathing I realised I'd actually been holding my breath and forcing finishing school posture for the duration. Sadly I had to kiss goodbye to this beautiful piece for the curse that is being between sizes.

Asda announced back in 2009 that they were the first retailer to produce jeans in mid-sizes 11, 13 and 15 solving the problem to one of the most difficult clothes shopping missions for women. Although being the 21st century I'm still stumped as to why there's no such thing as a size 9 across all shops and items, the fact that the fashion industry still produces clothes on a 2-size scale seems deeply old fashioned!

Have you experienced the same problem?

Lindsey