ABLE Clothing Review by a Middle-Aged Midsize Woman

I have been hearing about ABLE Clothing for a long while. A U.S.-based sustainable fashion brand founded in 2010 that offers clothing in sizes XXS-3X, along with leather bags, and jewelry, ABLE is especially popular with Millennial influencers. But would it work for me, a middle-aged, short, soft, midsize woman? I decided to write an unfiltered ABLE Clothing review with you.

Who Is Doing This Review?

Hi, I'm Alison. I am 49, 5'3″ and usually wear a size 14, sometimes 16 especially in jackets and structured pants. I have a large bust, a round booty, strong full arms, and strong solid legs. If petite exists, I take it when it comes to pants and jackets and occasionally dresses, but otherwise I do better with regular to have room for my soft curves.

I have tried ABLE Clothing for over two years. I wanted to try a range of their offerings and give them time to be truly worn and laundered to share a helpful review. While ABLE offered some of these items for free, I always chose which items I wanted and did not receive additional help for choosing size or style.

Able Clothing Review

I have tried a range of items from ABLE Clothing. Some were gifts from the brand, some I purchased with my own money. The items I have tried personally are:

• Lise Ribbed Tank in White (XL)
• Everyday Tee in White (XL)
• Mamuye Classic Tote in Cognac
• Claudette Fisherman Sweater in Antique White (XL)
• Chelsie Classic High Rise Straight Jeans (33)
• The Merly Jacket in Original Wash/Distressed (XL)
• The Bailey Classic Jacket in Light Blue Wash (XL)
• Heather Linen Blazer in Green (XL)
• Esme Linen Short in Green (14)

ABLE Clothing Tanks and Tees

After seeing a lot of influencers wearing ABLE Clothing, especially midsize and plus size influencers, I thought of the brand when seeing a new white tank. I purchased one and kept it. A year later, ABLE reached out and let me pick an outfit of my choice and one of the pieces I picked was a t-shirt.

Lise Ribbed Tank Review

I purchased the Lise Ribbed Tank in white, and based on the size chart, ordered a size XL. While I still own this tank, it did not make the grade for what I found to be one of the best white tank tops for women.

This tank is opaque, does have a nice higher neckline that won't show cleavage, has a classic rib, isn't skintight, and fits well under the arms. But it is NOT white. It is the color of something that is unbleached; some may call it ivory or winter white. Also as a 5'3″ person, I found the Lise tank to run very short. If I tucked it in and raised my arms, it would often untuck.

The Lise Ribbed Tank is a great tank for those who like a higher neckline without the cutout shoulders that are so popular right now. Opaque, a nice weight (not heavy but not flimsy), will cover up any bra, but doesn't look frumpy. It has held up to several washings and tumbles in the dryer. Best on shorter torsos as I am 5'3″ and as you see in the photos, it's not terribly long.

Every Day Tee Review

As mentioned, ABLE offered to send me an outfit and one of the pieces I picked was the Everyday Tee in white. Again I chose XL. I want to create a resource of great white t-shirts for women that come in a broad range of sizes and thought this may be a good addition.

Yet again, the “white” top I received was not white. It is off-white and next to white it looks dingy. But with other colors and denim, it looks crisp. The description states it is 100% cotton slub jersey, and you can see the slub effect more in person. Often slub tees are slightly sheer, but this t-shirt is a nice weight and you couldn't see my bra through it.

The ABLE Everyday Tee washed well; I chose to line dry because like the tank, it does run a bit short and I didn't want it any shorter as I like tucking it in. The XL was a relaxed fit on me; I think I could have sized down to L and it would have still fit comfortably in the bust and shoulders with a trimmer look.

ABLE Clothing Leather Bags

I had heard so much about ABLE leather bags, I decided to order one and see what all the fuss was about. I liked the look of the Mamuye Classic Tote which was very on trend at the time; I chose the Cognac color which felt like a nice choice for spring through fall and would go with both brown and black leather shoes and accessories.

ABLE Mamuye Classic Tote

The ABLE Mamuye Classic Tote is an unlined tote with an interior pocket. The interior pocket is very simple, essentially a rectangle sewn on three sides. The unlined interior is rough and I found shed a lot the first few times I wore it. It took me a bit to understand why I looked to have sawdust on my clothes until I realized it was from this tote.

However, a year later, I like this bag a lot and use it regularly when I need to carry a lot and look a bit more polished but not professional/formal. The straps are very sturdy (and don't shed) and fit over my shoulder easily even if I'm wearing a jacket or have the bag very full. The pocket has softened with use and is more functional. The leather is thick yet soft. It does get scratched/weathered easily but I like that effect, at least on the cognac color.

This bag isn't anything revolutionary, and it won't stop folks on the street asking where you got it. It's not really structured so while it can fit your laptop, your water bottle, your lunch, and your purse it's going to lose its shape and can feel heavy on the shoulder. If I didn't own it, I'd have other bags to use in its place, but maybe I'm not the right customer for it.

ABLE Clothing Sweaters

This is a category of ABLE Clothing I know the least about. I ordered one sweater in early 2023 and haven't tried any since. But here's my experience:

Claudette Fisherman Sweater

Since high school, one of my wardrobe staples has been an ivory/cream colored cotton cableknit sweater. I love them for throwing on with denim shorts on a cooler summer evening, pairing with jeans and boots in fall, layering over a button-down or turtleneck in winter, and styling with chinos in spring. So I just had to try the ABLE Claudette fisherman sweater and see if it was a worthy addition to my closet. I ordered it in XL.

The Claudette is made from 55% BCI Cotton, 25% Recycled Polyester, 20% Recycled Nylon. It has a flat neckband that matches the cuffs and hem. It's not as heavy as my cotton fisherman from L.L.Bean, but it doesn't feel flimsy. The reason I returned it is because the style of the shoulders/arms fit super weird on me.

This sweater felt like it was a size S pattern graded up to XL. The cut made my shoulders look large and rounded, it was snug on my biceps, yet the body was very roomy. I also felt it emphasized my bust more than my other cableknit sweaters. Many readers and followers on Instagram shared they love this sweater, but I don't think it's a good fit for those of us with fuller shoulders, busts, and arms.

ABLE Clothing Denim

ABLE is best known for its denim jackets and jeans. As someone who is shorter and softer, I couldn't relate to many of the reviews by Millenial influencers and wanted to try for myself.

Chelsie Classic High Rise Straight Jeans

When looking at ABLE jeans, most of them had inseams far longer than I could carry off, even with heels. Other than the Clarissa skinny jean and the Holly kick flare, all the styles were 32″ or longer. The Chelsie was supposed to be a slightly cropped jean with an unfinished edge, so I figured they'd be regular length on me and if too long, I could DIY a shorter inseam. Not sure how ABLE jeans fit, I went with the size chart and ordered them in 33.

The jeans seemed to fit well right out of the bag. I liked the weight of the denim, and the wash looked cool. With 1% Elastane, they had a hint of stretch while still looking like rigid cotton denim. However, the jeans continued to stretch with each sit and step, seeming to elongate the rise as well as bagging at the knees, rear, and stretching out the waist.

The Chelsie jeans stretched out so much, by time I got home at the end of the day, I had a saggy diaper butt and I could almost take them off without unbuttoning. Maybe I would have liked them better if I sized down. I also clearly needed a petite version to fit properly in the rise. If ABLE came out with Petites, I'd try their jeans again.

The Merly Jacket

My first-ever purchase from ABLE Clothing was the Merly Jacket. Seeing so many rave reviews online and desiring a distressed denim jacket that wasn't stiff and boxy, I felt this could be perfect for me. I have a friend who owns it and seeing it IRL on her sealed the deal. The next day I ordered it in Original Wash, size XL. And I returned it the following day.

Like the Claudette sweater, the Merly Jacket did absolutely no favors for my shoulders, arms, and bust. I looked like a big person in a little jacket, though the jacket fit from armpit down. It was soft and stretchy and the distressing was super chic looking but the fit felt extremely Juniors.

I kept trying to make it work. What if I roll the sleeves, what if I pop the collar, what if I wear it with only a tank underneath. But denim jackets are supposed to be that effortless layering piece and this one was anything but effortless or cute on me.

The Bailey Classic Jacket

ABLE offered to send me a piece of denim last year, and I went with the Bailey Classic Jacket. The description said it was a more relaxed fit than the Merly and I hoped that meant there would be some room for my shoulders and upper arms. Again, I went with an XL and got the Light Blue Wash.

The Bailey Jacket fits much better. I like that it's much lighter weight than any of my other denim jackets, but still has a super cool wash and finish. It is not stretchy, but since it's lighter weight, it does have some give that helps the jacket mold to your body. I have not washed this yet; I don't plan to unless it gets dirty or stinky or goes on a plane with me.

My teenager says this jacket looks good on me and has even borrowed it from me. While it's relaxed it looks pretty classic on me and looks good with dresses, jeans, and pants in a range of lengths and silhouettes. The Bailey Jacket would be good for travel as it's so lightweight you could tie it around your waist or stuff it into a bag.

ABLE Clothing Linen

This year, ABLE reached out and offered to send me an outfit. I was curious about ABLE's linen so I ordered the linen blazer and matching shorts in Green. This is the outfit I reference above; I ordered the Everyday Tee to go under the blazer for a complete outfit. You can see me in this outfit in this Instagram Reel video.

Heather Linen Blazer

I ordered the Heather Linen Blazer in size XL. I usually benefit from a petite-cut blazer, but for more relaxed styles, I can do regular and just push up the sleeves. Made from 55% linen and 45% cotton, this blazer is a really texture that is soft but not prone to extreme wrinkling. The jacket is fully lined in a lightweight soft cotton the same exact color as the exterior. Well made, nice pockets, this is a good blazer.

However, the blazer is snug on my upper arms. This is nothing new; I often experience this from brands like J. Crew and Madewell. This is the only negative I have for the Heather Linen blazer, and one that won't be an issue for all bodies.

This color is super pretty, it would look nice with denim and chambray, with white, with navy, with gray, and with khaki/tan colors. It could look more professional with a silky shell or crisp button-front shirt, or look casual over a tee. And the color and texture of the Heather Blazer perfectly matches the shorts.

Esme Linen Shorts

Same exact fabric and color as the Heather Linen Blazer, this made a gorgeous set right out of the bag. Not lined, but these shorts had the right weight to look polished, not wrinkle a bunch, and remain opaque. If shorts can look professional, these are it but they'd also be nice with a simple tee or tank. I ordered a size 14 in the Esme Linen Shorts since reviews said they ran large. I haven't worn a 12 in years… but I wish I ordered a 12 in these shorts.

With an elastic back, these shorts are hella roomy. I didn't wear a scarf as a belt just for style; it was keeping the shorts from hanging off my hips. I plan to take them to the tailor because I think other than that, the shorts are pretty perfect. The subtle pleats don't emphasize my belly, the shorts are comfortable in the waist, seat, and I like the length.

I like the Esme Linen Shorts a lot. If they came in black I'd buy them (though a size smaller). I think the pleats, the length, and the volume make them look more polished than traditional linen shorts. These would be great with a linen shirt or tank, and come early fall would be great with a Breton top or beach sweater and leather flats or sneakers.

Final Thoughts on Able Clothing

My experiences in general have been positive, though sizing can be a bit inconsistent. I feel confident recommending ABLE's tees and tanks and the new linen collection. The leather is thick and soft, and makes me curious about their other bags. If ABLE came out with petites in jeans, they would have me try them again, though in a more relaxed style (wide-leg petites and talls, please!).

I am only one person, so my review may not be the same as others. Have you tried ABLE Clothing? What are your thoughts? Do you have a favorite piece or have a different experience from what I did? Do share in the comments so you can help a fellow Wardrobe Oxygen reader make an accurate purchase or steer clear of a certain garment.