Shopping for plus size clothing

I don't enjoy clothes shopping. I know what I like and I know what flatters me. This isn't what I find in the shops.

I am a size 18 but size 18 clothes don't usually fit properly which isn't so surprising, there are many different shapes of us out there! I find that tops are often too short and don't cover my generous tum, if they do they could do double duty as the family tent or will be something my grandmother would wear. I've also noticed that plus size women aren't supposed to have breasts, just one big blob that includes the stomach. This is why I regularly buy a 20 or even 22 so that I can adjust the fitting to be just a little more flattering.

My biggest bugbear is the lack of clothes available. As an 18 I am able to walk into most shops and find my size. But of the clothes that would actually suit my shape they are usually nowhere to be seen, just a rail of 10's and 12's with an occasional 16 (strangely the 14's don't often seem to be on show either). I understand that this is because it costs more to make the larger sizes so the result is that there are fewer available on the shop floor. I realise that some stores are better than others but this is certainly true for the cheaper end of the market where my budget currently dictates that I go.
I have come to accept this over the years but I spent yesterday shopping with my mother who is a petite size 10. She walked away from the experience shocked by how little choice I had and possibly with a little more understanding about why I choose to wear what I do.

I did, however, manage to pick up a few items. A couple of compromise tops all of which need adjusting to provide a better fitted bust and one strapless sack that looks a lot like this one from Primark . With my more generous though shorter figure it has a very different look to that of the model but it is definitely comfortable to wear in this current heat - the whole reason I went shopping in the first place. Just don't expect to see me to wearing it away from home!