My feelings towards fashion and beauty are kind of mixed. On one hand, I know that wearing the right clothes and makeup is not going to make me a better person. I know I feel better about myself when I look good, but that doesn't mean I'm going to hate myself over a bad hair day. On the other hand, I know that people judge each other based on outside appearances, so why not make the best of what I've got?
The thing about being a plus size woman is that it's sometimes very hard to look my best because of the pure lack of options I have. If I'm physically going to go shopping, as opposed to shopping online, my options are very limited. Let's just say that Lane Bryant has gotten a good chunk of change from my purse over the years. Other than that, department stores tend to cater to older women (ie: frumpy clothes from Hell) and stores that are popular for people my age just don't carry my size. Suffice to say, I do a lot of my shopping on the internet.
I've found a lot of great sites for women of size who don't want to wear tents, ugly prints, and frumpy clothes. Slowly but surely, the fashion industry seems to be getting the clue - fat women want nice clothes! However, it's still a challenge to find things I like and can actually afford.
On the right side of the page, I've made lists of sites I especially like. I've shopped at many of them and I put them there because I was impressed with the selection and service. I guess I want this weblog to be a resource for women who are like me. I love shopping for clothes and other girly things. In the future, I plan to post reviews of online shops and my views on fashion and beauty.
I know exactly what you're talking about. I shop online most of the time now, but before that I had to make a trek to the nearest Lane Bryant store. As for most of the other department and mall stores, they do mostly catter to older women. And it's hard to imagine that even older women want to wear something that looks like it could double as a tacky printed curtain. In addition, the prices for that "stuff" were outrageous. There is no way I am going to pay $60 for a shirt that looks like it took $10 to make. I'm just glad that more and more boutiques are popping up online that are geared towards those of us who like to look stylish and hip. Now if only we could convince the major clothing corporations that people our age shop at that other sized females want to be hip (and are willing to pay) too.
Posted by: Stephanie | July 17, 2003 at 04:56 PM
Excuse my "catter" typo. Ahem, cater.
Posted by: Stephanie | July 17, 2003 at 04:58 PM
First, thanks so much for creating this! I have a friend coming up to shop in August, and it's really helpful that you've included stores that cater across age lines. I can help her with what colours and cuts look good on her, but I have no idea what's trendy for 23-year-olds.
Second, although I don't know if they even have a website, but I was in Lord & Taylor's yesterday. I went through their sportswear, and saw a lot of pretty things I might be able to wedge into - but maybe not. I continued into their Women's section, and found many, many of the same exact outfits, only in Women's sizes! Very appealing outfits in silk and linen, as well as some of the inevitable poly. I thought it was a hopeful sign that L&T might actually want our money.
Posted by: Antonia | July 18, 2003 at 08:59 AM
Lord and Taylor does have one of the best women's departments in my opinion. I buy most of my suits from them, and have found cute casual wear on sale at great prices. And most of their stuff is well made.
Posted by: Kimberly | July 18, 2003 at 11:41 AM