What are products made for women that frustrate you?

r/

For me it’s underwear that isn’t cute/sexy or sports/activewear, and also isn’t made of cotten. I’ve been let down every time, like what’s the point??

That and scented pads. Maybe it’s the brand I get but it always smells suuuper strong and noticable (like 100x more than period blood would be). Every time I’ve bought scented has been on accident and every time regretted it.

Comments

  1. StardewMellie Avatar

    Razors marketed toward women!  The drying soap bar, the two blades max, the stationary heads!  I’ve been using razors marketed toward men for almost a decade now, so maybe there’ve been improvements to the former, but I switched over because:  4 blades, swivel heads to get around ankles and knees, no stupid soap bar, and no surprise nicks or cuts!!

  2. MeghanClickYourHeels Avatar

    Bikini line trimmers. They simply don’t cut it (as it were).

  3. alaskan_Pyrex Avatar

    Xtra-Tuff boots and Teva sandals for women. I loathe that companies assume women’s feet are super narrow. My normal-looking feet overhand the sides of Teva sandals so much it is comical. I always have to buy a size up (boots) or big kid’s/small men’s Tevas.

  4. alaskan_Pyrex Avatar

    Xtra-Tuff boots and Teva sandals for women. I loathe that companies assume women’s feet are super narrow. My normal-looking feet overhand the sides of Teva sandals so much it is comical. I always have to buy a size up (boots) or big kid’s/small men’s Tevas.

  5. 2340000 Avatar

    Vagisil and anything adjacent to it🙄

    I don’t think women naturally smell bad. There’s so many factors that affect how we smell – our hormone cycle, our hygiene habits, sexual partners, stress, etc.

  6. BobTheParallelogram Avatar

    Automatic flush toilets. GTFO of here with that.

  7. emilypostpunk Avatar

    any food with “skinny” in the name.

  8. EggsAndMilquetoast Avatar

    It’s all of women’s clothing. It’s a big gripe, I know, but there it is. I just want to be able to buy affordable clothes that aren’t fast fashion.

    It’s the whole concept of a fashion industry that tells us these kind of cuts and fabrics are what we wear “right now.” Screw whatever body type you have: this year it’s ultra low rise bell bottoms, a decade later it’s skinny jeans so tight you have to train to put them on, a decade after that it’s nothing but high waisted and chunky.

    Like, unless you can make your own clothes, it feels like you are almost unable to buy just bland regular stuff that fits and looks semi-professional. I had a job where we had to fight to wear jeans for several years, and right around the time management said okay was the period in which the “put through a wood chipper” look of ultra distressed jeans experienced a renaissance and it felt close to impossible to find jeans in a store that didn’t look like they’d been made from the bedding of an enraged badger.

    I’m also pretty sure there’s some kind of cartel in women’s clothing that designs each piece of clothing as to require the purchase of some other piece of clothing to wear it properly. All in careful coordination.

    Like let’s make sure skin tight leggings are in style, but only when 99% of all underwear sold anywhere is manufactured with super thick seams and mostly boy cut. This way, you have to go to 8 stores and spend 9 hours scouring the Internet to find underwear you can wear with your cute new leggings, thus making you more susceptible to impulse buys during your hero’s journey of shopping.

  9. wolfhuntra Avatar

    The “pink tax” on razors. And they aren’t as good compared to “non pink” razors most of the time.

  10. pumpkinspicenation Avatar

    Anything marketed towards perfuming your vag. Those poor microbiomes 😭

  11. Lionwoman Avatar

    Pads that they don’t stick, move and do not absorb the blood during night as they should.

    Underwear so thin that is like a tanga and uncomfortable.

  12. lilycamilly Avatar

    Most skincare gimmicks. The vast majority of that stuff doesn’t make a damn difference! Also vaginal deodorant. My girl is sensitive, that just sounds like an instant yeast infection to me (even if they claim it’s safe).

  13. Silver_sun_kist Avatar

    Small or no pockets in pants. Get a clue!! We want pockets!!!

  14. cytomome Avatar

    Does everything designed for women need to be pink or lavender??? Hate it.

  15. SAHMsays Avatar

    August 2023 was the first time commercial sanitary products used actual menstrual blood (submitted by pre-approved donors) to test their effectiveness. So this would be my vote.

    My pads say “(up to) 100% LEAK FREE”. Yeah- no shit Sherlock, a colander is UP TO 100% leak free. Asses.

  16. Cookiedoughspoon Avatar

    Polyester anything, especially in the summertime! That combined with how close-cut womens clothing is is a recipe for stank

  17. wuzacuz Avatar

    20 disposable razors for men (blue), $3.99. 3 disposable razors for women (pink), $4.99.

  18. faifai1337 Avatar

    Stupid feaking dressy shoes/heels with absolutely no padding at all. A special level of hell is reserved for the ones labelled Ultra Comfy Plush Soft Brand–because it’s a brand, not a description, and you’re still walking on hard plastic.

  19. Drew-CarryOnCarignan Avatar

    Allegedly, pockets in women’s pants are ridiculously small due to the choices made by one clothing designer years ago:

    “A Brief History of the Pocket in Women’s Fashion” by Susan J. Jerome, Piecework Magazine (Jun 22, 2020): 
    By-line: “Pockets – practical, convenient, and sometimes, so mysterious. Find them hidden inside or boldly stitched to the front of a garment”.

    “Joseph Picone, 83, a Founder Of Line of Women’s Clothing” by Constance L. Hays, The New York Times (June 26, 2001)

    • Wikipedia: “Dart” (sewing): see “pocket darts”

  20. MamaBear4485 Avatar

    Not affiliated, just an enthusiastic customer but I cannot recommend Step Ones highly enough.

    Soft, comfortable and well made, with nice waist and leg bands. I always wait for their sales. Some of mine are 3 years or so old and still in bloody good nick!

  21. Lynda73 Avatar

    Don’t even get me started on bathing suits.

  22. kimdawn23 Avatar

    Pants and skirts with no pockets. I have a hard and fast rule: no pockets, no purchase!

  23. bevars Avatar

    Disclaimer : XY here, but I go with my wife almost every time she shops for clothes.

    What’s up with cloth sizes? What is 4 in one brand looks the same as a size 2 in another brand. Sometimes a S fits her well, while with some brands even PS looks baggy. Men’s clothing, except t-shirts, are sized in inches which makes perfect sense. Why not express sizes in inches/cms everywhere. There is no room for interpretation. While I make fun of her about how long it takes for her to choose 3 pieces of clothing, I understand why.

  24. amso2012 Avatar

    Anything shape wear.. why?? Why do we all have to have a certain shape? No one is ever comfy in those..

    Women’s clothes are truly not made for a real women’s body.. dresses, pants, skirts most of designs are snug on the waist which shows the belly of its not flat as a super model. I refuse to believe that designers cannot just create clothes for the actual body that will look good and not look like we have covered our bodies in sack bags.

    If shoes, jewellery undergarments etc can be innovated, sure outer wear can be too..

  25. punyhumannumber2 Avatar

    Bikini tops that only come in S, M, L and XL sizes.

    Clothes companies don’t even offer enough sizes in bras, yet they want to limit it even further? On something that is designed to not have clothing overtop? And has to get wet? It’s like the most important time you need boobwear to fit properly and they decided 4 sizes is good enough.

  26. LittleDogLover113 Avatar

    The sizing of all women’s clothing is different across every single brand.

  27. Euphorbiatch Avatar

    GOD I didn’t even realise scented pads were a thing until I accidentally bought some, and then I had my period AND a rash

  28. Serkonan_Plantain Avatar

    Athletic pants (and business casual trousers too). They’re all high-waisted “tummy control”. I totally get that some women want that, but 1.) nothing made for men’s athletic wear is focused primarily on tummy control, as if looking slim is the most important thing rather than the actual gym routine/sport; and 2.) a lot of times the waistband comes up to my rib cage and makes it uncomfortable to bend and gets in the way of diaphragmatic breathing so it actually inhibits performance.

    Just give us a choice. I feel like there was a sweet spot in the 2010s where there were high, mid, and low waist options for pants and now it just seems like it’s all high or ultra-high.

  29. darkredpintobeans Avatar

    Work boots for women are trash just buy the mens in your size.

  30. quietly_annoying Avatar

    Leggings where the waist band rolls down when you sit or bend at the waist.

  31. StarlightBaker Avatar

    I know it isn’t possible for everyone, but if you’re the least bit crafty and have access to a sewing machine, you can make your own underwear. Make them out of fabric that suits you in a pattern you like and you’ll never buy them again. You can even buy materials to make period panties.

  32. MarlenaEvans Avatar

    Scented pads and scented garbage bags are both useless AF.

  33. Spoonbills Avatar

    I just want measurement-based sizing.

  34. rxrock Avatar

    Bras.

    I am well endowed, and so my bras are easily $70. When my favorite model gets messed with by the design team, it can really mess with the girls and how they’re supported, and thusly cost me $100s til I find the next perfect bra.

    Tampons

    OB tampons were torture devices for me. I was a teenager trying to make it work but didn’t know anything about lubrication and why it was so painful to use them. Then I discovered tampons with applicators. Then I discovered applicators had sharp freaking edged that if you weren’t quick or careful enough, could “bite” you inside before removal.

    Clothes

    Womens clothing has zero continuity when it comes to sizing. It’s intentional and stupid.

    Womens jeans have the shortest pockets known to humans. No modern cell phone fits in the back pocket of womens jeans.

  35. Local_Designer_1583 Avatar

    Razors. Women razors cost more than men’s and they do the same thing. I always by mens razors. Save my pennies any way I can.

  36. cdalkire Avatar

    Stupid cap sleeves on women’s t-shirts. I was “blessed” with my Scottish/German heritage of wide shoulders. I want sleeves. That cover my arms. I end up getting mens shirts, just for sleeves.

  37. LoanSudden1686 Avatar

    Workout clothes… like why can’t we have functional pockets???

  38. getlowpapoose Avatar

    Women’s shoes that don’t stop at size 8 (uk)! This issue has made me genuinely hate my feet. I can never find cute shoes that are large enough, especially for work. I would love to find a cute pair of loafers or Mary Janes that fit my unwieldy, gargantuan feet

  39. Bitemyrhymez Avatar

    I never used to use pads ever. Definitely not scented ones. However, now at night I’ll use one of those Honey Pot lavender cooling ones and it’s actually nice lol. Doesn’t smell like Granny’s perfume like all the other brands.