New website lets women shop by body shape

Website Sizeable.com.au aims to revolutionise online shopping.

Women who are sick of buying clothes online only to find they don't suit or don't fit when they are delivered might have a new favourite website.

Sizeable aims to revolutionise online shopping by featuring models of different body shapes, who model all the items of clothing, so that shoppers can get a sense of what will look good on their shape.

The website, which launched last month, was started by Melbourne fashion writer Larissa Thorne, 25, and the models on the site are all friends of Ms Thorne's who were game enough to have their photographs and their measurements, posted to the site.

Ms Thorne started the website after she became frustrated trying to explain to her boyfriend how to buy clothes online for her birthday.

She said that for most women, buying clothes online was like "shopping in the dark" and that "every woman has had a few major online shopping fails" in their history.

"When shopping online I could be anything from a size eight to a size 12. You look at a model [on a clothes website] who is a size eight and you have no idea if that's going to fit you or look good on you. Then you buy it and it'll be gaping at the top, tight on your bust, and it's just money down the drain," she said.

When shoppers arrive on the Sizeable homepage they are greeted by photographs and measurements of six models who have very different body shapes and wear clothes ranging from size six to size 14.

The shopper can then see Sizeable's clothing range on the model who most resembles their body shape, so they can see if the outfit would suit them.

"Generally when shopping online it can be difficult to imagine what clothes would look like on your body," explains Sizeable's website.

"Comparing your own measurements to those of the models helps you to tailor the shopping experience to your body shape, ensuring you find clothes that flatter your figure."

Ms Thorne thinks also sends a positive message about body image, who are presented with a narrow ideal of beauty.

"I find shopping online can be really demoralising sometimes. It's left me feeling really down on my body and we want to encourage women to embrace how they look,' she said.

'It's a bit of a no-brainer, we all know there are millions of beautiful women out there who don't look like a Victoria's Secret model.'

The website currently features clothing from Limedrop, Ruby Sees All, AD by Haryono Setiadi and Leonard Street and is set to expand in coming months to include items form Keepsake and Black by Geng.

Ms Thorne says that the site will soon add three more models - one who is a size 14/16, one with more defined curves, and another who is a size four to six - and next year will look to add men's clothing to the website.

- Daily Mail