Non Slimming Fashion - Bold But Not So Beautiful - Revised
Non Slimming Fashion - Bold But Not So Beautiful
Formal Apology
We would like to formally apologize for any grievances caused by the photos we used in the original article. Our goal was never to hurt anyone’s feelings. We were trying to help women learn about dressing fashionably, and instead we offended some of our readers—for that we are truly sorry.
While it was disheartening and we regret that we caused so much anger with our previous article, it is nevertheless amazing to see so many strong spirited and passionate women defending their fellow members within our community. We’ve been inspired by the many comments insisting plus size fashion is about embracing your body and not trying to hide or disguise it. You’ve truly shown that loving yourself and supporting one another is what makes plus size fashion such an unprecedented phenomenon.
Controversy
The original article inspired a mass of responses, and many of you were upset at us for insinuating that wearing slimming and darker clothing was the way to approach plus size fashion. With so many comments pushing for women to embrace their bodies and not hide or disguise them, we’ve been inspired to revisit this topic with a more open mind.
Many people want to accentuate their best features and play down those features they’re not so confident about – some may call this “minimizing the problem areas.” Other people have commented that they are happy with their shape and choose to embrace it. A few posters have also implied that any compromise disgraces plus size women. The attitude of “I am a big woman – take it or leave it,” has been clearly stated, and we highly respect those who can live each day with such fearlessness.
Since fashion is so subjective, there is no way all of us could agree on what looks best. Besides, selecting unique garments creates fashion diversity that allows us to be individual. That being said, however, whether you choose to embrace your best features or embrace everything, the most important thing is to be confident and proud of who you are.
Dress to Impress but Don’t Look Like a Mess
As a curvier woman, you’re all about making a dramatic fashion statement. Rich colors, striking designs, and eye-catching patterns fill your shopping bags to the brim. We all want our clothing to look divalicious, especially after all the time and money we’ve invested in finding each and every garment. Nevertheless, some of those chic outfits we bought might be bold, but not so beautiful.
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Many of us want our clothing to make us look sexy and gorgeous, but some of our choices tend to make us look fashion-challenged and frumpy.
Like everyone else, we full figured women try to use the latest trends to achieve that amazing sense of style. Whether it’s layering, using gorgeous fabric, or focusing on dainty ruffles, many of us are willing to try anything at least once. Some of these fashion trends will look fantastic on us, depending on our particular body shape, but it’s unlikely that every trend will work.
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Why Some Trends Don’t Work for Every Shape
As a way to make your bust look larger, using horizontal lines can be a good trick, but horizontal stripes widen, and square up the torso hiding your natural sexy curves. This can be an enemy to showing your sexier shape.
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Ruffles are wonderful and trendy this season, but layers of horizontal ruffles can add unflattering bulk. Smaller ruffle accents, or a few ruffles at an angle can be more flattering on many body types.
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Busy or oversized patterns aren’t always appealing to the eye, and generally over-accentuate. With few exceptions, treating patterns with a minimalist approach of “less is more” can really help you avoid a fashion disaster.
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Also, any type of shiny fabric, whether high-gloss or a subtle shimmer, usually makes every curve and contour 10x’s more noticeable. If you’re trying to redirect attention to a particular body part, glitzy fabric is the way to go. On the other hand, if you’re NOT trying to accentuate an area, try something with a matte finish instead.
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Plus Size Disaster Blame Game
Some of us blame fashion retailers, claiming they trick customers by putting supposedly plus size fashion on anorexic models. Other people blame the ever changing trends of fashion — how are we supposed to look sexy if we can’t even keep track of what’s in style?
Regardless of retailers trying to trick us into a purchase, or trends changing practically every hour on the hour, the point of being fashionable is to understand how our choices in clothing affect how other people perceive us and how we perceive ourselves.
Fashion Retailers Illusions of Good Plus Size Fashion
Why do some outfits look so good on the hanger but turn into a disaster the moment we try them on?
ANSWER: The majority of designers focus their efforts on women of certain sizes. If you’re dealing with retailers who don’t specialize in plus size fashion, you can expect clothing that was made to look fabulous on a size 8, but hideous on a size 18.
Occasionally retailers try to get crafty by putting plus size fashion on small models.
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As we can see, the material is pretty baggy on each of the above models. True — they are wearing tunic style tops, but that doesn’t mean these tops should look like colorful bags with sleeves. No matter how bold or stunning an outfit may look on a size 6 or smaller, that doesn’t mean it will look the same way on our body.
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As a good rule to live by, whether shopping by catalog or online, never trust fashion retailers that don’t have obviously plus size models wearing their clothing.
Be a Beautiful Woman and Avoid Unflattering Clothing Choices
No matter what the media tells us, big girls are beautiful. Our major roadblock is that some of us don’t always make the best fashion choices. We accentuate what we shouldn’t, and sometimes we hide our best features.
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It’s high time that we reclaim our fashion sense and wear clothing that’s stunning and shows us at our best.
Act to Accentuate
What looks appealing on one woman might look revolting on another — so how do we know what to choose?
Each woman has her own specific body shape, and each shape has its own set of positive and negative attributes . Society has conditioned us to focus on the parts of our body that we don’t like, which is a horrible mindset to live under. On the other hand, we do have to be realistic when it comes to knowing our body and what traits and features we have to work with.
For instance, if you’re a bottom-heavy gal, sometimes called “pear-shaped,” you know that the lower part of your body is the widest part of your frame. Likewise, top-heavy women, sometimes referred to as “apple-shaped,” have to deal with the opposite problem of having their busts, stomachs, and shoulders as their widest features.
The important thing to do is recognize your shape and understand which features you want to accentuate. Focusing the attention toward specific parts of your body involves three simple tips that can truly transform your entire appearance.
- Tip #1 — Wear colors that accentuate your good qualities and play down other features.
- Tip #2 — Choose clothing styles that focus on areas you want to accentuate.
- Tip #3 — Wear clothing that makes you feel comfortable.
Color Counts
It’s amazing how different colors can really trick the human eye into seeing things as larger or smaller than they actually appear. The number one rule to know is that certain colors instantly attract attention, whereas other colors are more subtle.
Bright, vivid shades can act like a highlighter on your body. If there’s a part of your frame you want people to look at, bright colors will get the job done. In contrast, darker, rich colors are coy but clever. They may not get immediate attention, but they have the ability to tie an outfit together. Balancing these two extremes of bright and dark colors will accentuate and intensify the beauty of your clothing.
Color In Practice
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The above two tops are identical except for color. Her bust and hips are more accentuated in the lighter colored top on the left than in the dark colored top on the right.
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Even in a range of colors, as in the three pictures above, the darkest dress on the left makes the model have a more hourglass silhouette than the brightest colored dress on the far right. In between colors, such as the one displayed in the middle, will alter your appearance to some extent, but not necessarily as much as truly dark colors.
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From darkest to brightest in the above set of pictures, your eye instantly notices the brighter colors on the right side. Light and bright colors pop out, highlighting every curve of your body to make both your good and bad features more noticeable.
Match Your Style to Your Shape
After understanding how darker and lighter colors can help or hinder your appearance, you need to know how to apply that knowledge to specific clothing styles. While you could wear dark colored clothing from head to toe, that really doesn’t do much to show off your best features. Strategically using both lighter and darker colored clothing can balance out your appearance and direct attention toward specific areas.
Apples
With generally broad shoulders and fuller breasts, Apples tend to get noticed for the upper half of their bodies. Flaunting your bodacious bustline doesn’t take much, but you want to show off the whole package. Drawing the eye downward to display your luscious legs isn’t always the easiest of tasks, however, which is why it’s essential to pick clothing with a particular design in mind.
Directing people to see your best features from head to toe requires a well put together ensemble. Most people look at you in the face first and then let their eyes wander down. You don’t want them to get easily sidetracked if you can help it, right? Horizontal lines on your upper body, including seam lines, can distract people. Outfits with an A-line cut, on the other hand, create a cohesive design that keeps the eye moving.
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Vertical or diagonal lines can also be very pleasing on apple-shaped women. For one thing vertical lines give your admirers instructions on where to look — either up or down. Diagonal lines hug your body and better define those sensual curves. For some people, vertical and diagonal lines might even make you look a smidge taller, which could be nice for those of us who want to add height without the discomfort of heels.
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If you succeed in choosing a top that has the ability to keep the eye moving, then you have to wear something on your lower half that is truly a treasure to behold. Not necessarily formal wear, but something exciting and interesting that makes people want to look. Flared or tiered skirts create drama with luscious fabric and chic texture. Likewise, the shape of this skirt can bring balance to both your upper and bottom halves. Wide and flared leg pants keep the attention focused on your legs. Capris aren’t a bad choice either, but they do tend to look more alluring on taller people. Shorter apple-shaped women can look just as stunning in capris with the aid of a sexy pair of heels or wedge sandals that will extend the look of their legs.
Pears
As practically complete opposites of Apples, Pears get noticed for their well-defined hips and derrière. While these women can certainly shake it with style, Pears have a different struggle of trying to move people’s attention upward over the entire body. Encouraging people to check out your delightful bust and dainty arms as well as your hips requires some skillfully seductive design.
Particular styles accentuate the bust and neckline, drawing the eye upward. V-neckline and sweetheart neckline tops, for example, flirtatiously attract attention. Smocked or gathered necklines add interest in texture. Empire waistlines cleverly embellish your bust. Additionally, since most empire waistlines are gathered, the fabric drapes elegantly over your midsection.
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While horizontal lines are usually something many plus size designers avoid, they can be useful if applied to the right situation. Pears who are trying to attract attention toward the upper portion of their body can use horizontal stripes across the bust. Horizontal lines on the upper sleeves can also be playfully eye-catching. Keeping the stripes higher on the upper body directs the focus so passersby don’t miss out on any of your features.
Since Pears get so much natural attention directed at their midsection, they have to find an appropriate pair of pants or skirt that doesn’t overshadow their shirts or blouses. Skirts with a non-flared A-line cut create a charming silhouette. Pencil skirts also look favorable on Pears. Straight leg pants or bootcut jeans help to balance your ensemble. Fabrics with a matte finish will contour nicely to your curves without drawing too much attention away from your upper half.
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My wife is a gorgeous and super sexy 5′4″ size 22. When we first met, her wardrobe was basically khaki pants and baggy shirts. Now she dresses in a way that shows confidence AND accentuates her positives. I don’t think practical fashion tips should be dismissed as bigoted.
January 17th, 2010 at 12:13 am
Being a plus size woman I know what you are talking about.Great article.Keep up the good work.