Hi Everyone,

I am an overweight guy and really struggle to find long pants or jeans to fit. Measuring my hip diameter where my pants normally sit I get a measurement of 128 - 130cm. Converting this to inches makes it 48 - 50 inches. Just about all the shops I visit stop at a size 44. I was once lucky to get a pair of jeans that stretch at the waist which were either a 46 or a 48. These I managed to find in Coop in Zurich (actually I am pretty sure I was slimmer then so they may have been of a slightly smaller size, but the stretch factor helped.

Can anyone help me find a shop that has clothing over size 44, same goes for shirts. And converting S, M, L, XXL etc up to 5XL is another problem. I spend more time in the fitting rooms trying on different brands than I do choosing the clothing!! Also the fact that where the countries come from and how they size their clothes gets quite confusing. Luckily some shops put up conversion charts for this.

Whilst on the matter of size, I live in a furnished apartment with a bed size of 140 x 200, Damned if I can find any places that stock linen for a bed this size. most are 160, 180 or 200. I have bed linen for 160 and it is too big and creases all the time as well as looking untidy hanging over the sides.

Thanking you in advance for any support you might be able to give. Buying online is not really an option when it comes to clothes because it is too unreliable when it comes to getting the correct size (and length for that matter). Who says anyone with a large waist is over 6ft tall and needs extra long pants??

Kind Regards,
Twitter.

www.bonprix.ch


They send an invoice with the order, and you can send things back that don't fit or you don't like...


And no problem getting 140cm fitted sheets from Ikea.
https://www.ikea.com/ch/de/catalog/p...643/#/10337638

C&A do large sizes for men. They go up to 6XL I believe and provide a size chart for conversion.

Thanks for the Ikea tip Swisspea. It will be my next point to get the correct sized linen. Posting back and forth with refunds etc, can get complicated, and you could end up dealing with unscrupulous people, and the whole process could take some time to complete.

Thanks Belgianmum, I will look for one here in Zurich. I am not looking for anything high-end or ego / brand related. Just something that will fit comfortably.

Otto's or Radikal if there are any near you.

An old thread but may have something:

https://www.englishforum.ch/other-ge...ar-zurich.html

Tes, I recently bought a pair of jeans size 48 at Otto's. It is a bit of hit and miss their, but their prices are really low which is good for me.

I know you said not online, but this may be worth looking at. Lehner do large sizes mail order. They do have a couple of shops, but not near Zurich and there's no guarantee they'll have the bigger sizes in them anyway.

https://www.lehner-versand.ch/fr/k-m...andes-tailles/

Not cheap though.

I think most companies will have a returns policy, though it can be a nuisance having to return stuff.

Try female jeans. Lot's in 48" it seems.
Might be perfect for you . I ever only wear male jeans - so why shouldn't guys wear "female" ones? It's about body-forms, not sex.

If you order and try them at home it's also more comfortable for you than spending ages in shops. I get home-orders with invoices so the returning/refunding part is easy: I just pay what I keep.

As to sheets: Yep, it's a pain in the neck. I need 160 and the 140-160 are too small while the 160-180 are too big. I constructed an elastic system underneath the mattress that keeps them in place. So only putting the fresh one on is a bit more work.

__________________
be inventive!

Do you know that Ikea delivery small amounts of goods for a standard postage fee of about 10chf....

Check out the sales sections in stores.

Here in Switzerland the only things you find consistently on sale are XL, XXL sizes. They're nearly always on stock.

I suggest a weekend trip to London.

Also, and I know you said you aren't looking for anything fancy, there is a price point at which MTM becomes an option, and there is something to be said for clothes which don't just work but actually fit well.

Thank you Medea, I will have a look at the site.

Cheers Curley,

Interesting advice. Worth a shot though. Wasn't there an old yarn about the way men and women button their trousers, one buttons from the left and the other from the right, maybe back in the day before zippers. I recall someone telling me this when I was a youngster. Probably just a tale though :-)

Nope, it's true. I have some of my late father-in-law's t-shirts and the buttons at the collars are the "wrong" way around for me. Someone told me that it's probably because upper class ladies used to have maids to help them dress so the buttons were "right" for the maid, while men did their own dressing. Not sure that's right though, since upper class men would probably have valets who helped them dress - and what about the majority of women who didn't have maids. Maybe they didn't have buttons either.

True Thomas, if only I had the money :-( It would be very nice to wear clothes that fit decently and look good on you / make you look good. In the meantime I am just going to have to work harder on my diet.

Aah, so it wasn't a false memory then. I remember after being told this checking out the the clothing people were wearing and it was as I had heard, As to the origins, that will be a good thing for me to look up, I enjoy finding these things out, like why the British drive on the left, and when walking down a street with your girlfriend or wife which is the correct side of her to walk on, but now we digress from the topic :-)

Those are normally my first port of call. Thanks kngavl.

ETA:

For jeans you might look at Landi. The selection is limited, as you would expect they carry outdoor work clothes, but there are often larger sizes. The jeans are a pretty good value for the money as well.

And being Landi, I have a reason to go there other than clothes shopping, as per below.


My husband is a hard to fit kind o' guy.

I understand that buying online from Swiss retailers you are not familiar with is not what you wish to do - and I wouldn't do that either. However, have you looked into purchasing online from retailers back home that you know and trust, and having the clothes shipped here?

I've been doing that for 20 years. After a few exhausting attempts here, running thither and yon in pursuit of that needle in a haystack to keep my husband decently attired, I decided it wasn't worth the hassle and just order from home, where I know the retailers, I know how their sizing works. Given that prices back home are generally quite a bit less expensive than here I have found that even with shipping and customs duties I still come out ahead.

I am often in the States, so I can even go one better and ship to a US address then bring the stuff back with me. And US retailers generally have very good return policies so if something doesn't fit my husband I simply bring it back with me on my next trip home, mailing the return back to the retailer from the US.

I would rather gouge my eyes out with a spoon than go shopping, so when looking at total value I also consider the fact that I didn't have to waste days in a hated activity

If you can't find what you need here, you might consider continuing to buy from trusted retailers back home. If prices back home are better than in Switzerland, the total might still work out in your favour.

Good luck - hope your search is successful.

There is a store in Leimbach called Gromod next to the train station https://www.mykompass.ch/gromod-damenmode/

Well, we tend to do that a lot on the forum. Conversations wander off in all directions.

Can't help with the Brits on the left (never heard/read the reason for that), but men always walk closest to the road to protect the women from water, mud, crap, etc, thrown up by passing vehicles. Also suspect that further back in time, it meant men wearing swords could draw the sword without hitting the woman next to him. Might be why the Brits drive on the left too, drawing a sword on horseback meant the left side was clear of obstacles.

Back on topic, if you do go to the UK it might be worth having a look at Jacamo - they specialise in larger sizes and do both online and stores. Unfortunately don't ship to Europe/Switzerland at all.

Not just a tale, it’s still like that even today. It’s the same for shirts and coats.
Men’s shirts etc button from left to right and women’s blouses etc from right to left.

Do they sell men’s clothes as well?
I know Curley suggested women’s trousers to him but I don’t think many men would be comfortable going into an exclusively woman’s clothes shop to try on trousers.

I don't know I just suggested a store that I know sells larger clothing, I am sure the OP can do their own research from here.

Try J.B. at Schwamendingenstrasse 5 in Oerlikon see: mensclothing.ch
Not cheap but up to 10X available!