Warning -- snarky/feministy tangent ahead!
Quote from: ImagineKate on September 11, 2014, 09:48:42 AM
Women's sizes are a pain in various parts of the body. They are never consistent.
My short, snarky answer: so women will always feel like there's something wrong with their shape.
Longer answer: while some of it can be blamed on the fashion industry's cavalier attitude towards women (cf.: Procrustean Bed), some of it is that you can't specify the fit of an article of clothing with just one number, especially if it's at all form-fitting. If I were making a sheath dress, for instance, I can think of at least eight measurements I'd need. (I've made dresses, but not sheath dresses.) Note that men's pants have at least two measurements on top of coming in different fits, and they aren't usually as form-fitting/revealing as women's clothes.
Quote from: ImagineKate on September 11, 2014, 09:48:42 AM
Oh, and why are all these darn zippers in the back???
Two possible answers, take your pick:
a. You're supposed to be weathy enough to have a chambermaid to pull up the zipper, or, better yet, sew you into your dress. (Anybody see
Dangerous Liaisons?) Failing that, a man to take care of it. (By the same principle, women's clothes have any front buttons placed to make it easier for a right-handed maid / lover to button or unbutton them.) It gives the wearer that oh-so-feminine aura of helplessness.
b. Unless you're designing a dress/skirt/blouse with the zipper as a conspicuous part of the design, you want it out of sight. The back comes closer to "out of sight" than the front. As in answer a., convenience for the wearer is far less important than how it looks. FWIW, some dresses (and some women's jeans) have side zippers.