Endlessly browsing clothes online is one of life’s greatest simple pleasures. But it’s not a pleasure when the fruits of your digital shopping efforts arrive at your door and the sizes, colours and materials are all wrong.

There’s nothing more irritating than that. Except, of course, when you request for an exchange or a complete return but sadly they don’t allow that. Or you go to reorder it only to find that it’s sold out.

Below are my favorite tips to help you reduce the chances of disappointment.

1. KNOW YOUR SIZE

One of the major online shopping problems is that every brand fits differently and a lot of e-commerce sites tailor, pin, or retouch their clothes in photos to make them look like they fit better than they actually do.

Even so, you can still limit your fit-disappointment by grabbing a tape measure and taking your bust, hips and waist measurements. After which you can go through the size chart the site has provided (if not, just google a size chart. Either UK or US) and run your measurements through to see which exact size you should pick.

If it arrives and it’s still not your size but you really like the item then get a tailor to manipulate it as needed.

2. RESEARCH ABOUT THE FABRIC

If the item has a type of fabric you’re not familiar with, do your research. You cannot risk receiving that dress you’ve been eyeing for weeks only to find out that the fabric feels like sandpaper.

Since you can’t touch it and can’t distinguish what the texture of a piece is like just by looking at a photo, it’s a good idea to familiarize yourself with the fabric content by doing some research about it.
You can also go through your closet and find the pieces that you love the most, as well as anything that feels itchy, stuffy or uncomfortable. Make note of their material compositions and use it as a reference point when shopping online.

If you know you don’t like polyester and that top you’re about to buy is all about it, you’ll know it’s better to take a pass.

3. GO THROUGH THE REVIEWS

One of the best ways to find out if a brand is legit is by their reviews. It could be on their website or on their social media pages. Customer reviews are very valuable.

Scan for comments touching on size, fit and quality of material to get a better idea of whether an item fits true to size, or if you’ll need to size up or down.

While the piece may look on point in the photo, it might end up being tight in the bust and awkwardly loose through the hips, or any other less-than-fab combination.

4. SIMPLICITY IS KEY

When shopping online, try applying simplicity. Trust me, you do not want to shop for a t-shirt in the amethyst shade of purple! Really, it’s unnecessary and you’ll be putting yourself up for disappointment by doing that.

The wisest approach to a successful online shopping process is to keep everything on a basic level. Don’t go crazy on colours, designs or sizes.
Keep it simple.

5. THOROUGHLY GO THROUGH THE RETURN/EXCHANGE POLICY

Even if you’ve followed all of the above steps, there still might be the occasional disappointment. Be prepared and familiarize yourself with the return policies before placing an order.

Things to look for: free returns, how long you have to send the product back, whether or not you can make exchanges, if returns can be made in-store and if there is a restocking fee.

BONUS TIPS

The models say it all – Look at the way the model is posing. If she’s covering a certain part of the outfit that isn’t visible in other angles, she’s hiding something that’s unflattering. (E.g. a dress that has weird puckered-up curves at the hips; in the photo, she’ll probably have hands on her hips).

Edit your cart – Before placing and confirming your order, go through your cart and scrutinize everything in details. You can even leave the tab open for a few days just to think about it. Reason is, when shopping online, everything looks so attractive. You may be more susceptible to impulse buying. So, take a long pause first.

When in doubt, email, call or text – The worst mistake you can make when shopping online is assumption. Never ever assume anything. Be sure about everything and anything. You’d rather know too much than to know little to nothing at all.

Avoid anything with seams that are supposed to go directly under your boobs – Unless you are completely flat-chested, anything with curving or diagonal seams under the chest is probably going to cut you badly (i.e. across your chest instead of under it). Make sure the site is secure before putting your card info – Read this article as it
contains more information about that www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/en/articles/shop-safely-online

I hope this was helpful. Let me know in the comments which tip you think is gold and why. Also, if you like this, kindly share it.