When I saw that CNN was covering Fat Fashion week I got nervous. When I saw that the title of the article was Plus-sized women: It’s our turn for fine fashion I got excited. It turns out that I was right on both counts. Like so many articles in the mainstream media about fat positivity, this one is a little from column A, a little from column crap.
Let’s start with the Column A:
The title is pretty awesome. Also:
“Wedding dress sample sizes are all size 10,” says [Mara] Urshel, explaining that plus-sized brides previously could not try on gowns but could only look at them being modeled. But a bride is a bride is a bride, no matter what. She shouldn’t have to be destroyed because some other woman has to try on dresses so she can decide how she wants to look on her big day.”
That quote is from the owner of the wedding dress salon that is now featured on TLC’s “Say Yes to the Dress”. They stock plus size dresses so that big brides can try them on. Awesome.
“They say we don’t spend money on clothes? That’s bananas. We’re a very loyal customer. But we don’t buy the magazines because we don’t see ourselves in them. We don’t go to their shows because we aren’t invited — and by the way, neither are you.”
So says Gwen DeVoe, the executive producer of Full-Figured Fashion week. Rock on Gwen,
Robin Givhan, has one of my favorite quotes. She is a Pulitzer Prize-winning fashion writer for Newsweek and The Daily Beast who said:
“High-end designers should be making size 14s. That’s lunacy if they’re not. But as the population as a whole has gotten bigger, the idealized model has gotten smaller. It’s a way of denoting its rarefied status and exclusivity, in a sad way it reinforces the status of thinness.”
Well said Robin, I couldn’t agree more. I personally don’t think it’s accidental or coincidental, I think that in a world where photoshop creates a standard that no woman can meet, people are trying to keep others down to make themselves feel better and I think that this is just another sad example of that.
Then there’s a little from column crap.
The article’s author adds:
“The United States is continuing to fill up with those larger-than-size-14s. Remember those numbers out of the CDC that say that two out of three Americans are overweight or obese and in need of a good workout?”
And Robin falls out of my favor as quickly as she fell in with this little gem of a quote:
“How big is too big? The average person knows the difference between voluptuous and obese.”
These made me angrier than any of the troll comments that I get or any of the negative articles I read and I was trying to figure out why. I think it’s because I feel like I was set up. The title, the pictures, and the first part of the article all said CNN was going to cover a fat-positive event in a fat-positive way. But it seems like anytime we get coverage in the mainstream media that isn’t lies about dieting or lies about how much we cost society, or horrible advice about how to not bother thin people, or terror alerts about how just being my friend will make them fat, they feel like they have to say something to acquiesce to the people who want to forward an OMGDEATHFATISCOMINGFORUSALLEVERYBODYPANIC agenda. These bits are so far into the article that it felt a little bit like getting a massage and having the therapist punch me in the stomach 45 minutes into it. It kind of negates all of the good the massage had done so far.
Seriously – “in need of a good workout”? First of all, it’s epically dumb and insulting to assume that nobody over a size 14 works out. Beyond which to go from a size 14 to a size 12 that “good workout” would likely need to burn 70,000 calories etc. etc. It’s nothing more than catering to the lowest common denominator, it’s ludicrous, and Amy Wilson should be embarrassed that she wrote it.
And do not get me started on the “how big is too big. The average person knows the difference between voluptuous and obese” debate. So if I’m voluptuous I deserve clothes that fit and look good on me but if I’m obese that I need to shop at Mumu Town because it’s the fashion industry’s job to punish me for my fatness? The answer is that it’s a stupid question. Further I’ll bet asking 10 people the difference between voluptuous and obese would get you 10 different answers.
My guess is that CNN is making sure to drop a couple of fat hating statements in an effort to avoid having to defend themselves from the dreaded “promoting obesity” charge. This is the bullshit idea that by suggesting that fat people deserve nice clothes that fit our bodies, they are somehow encouraging thin people to want to be obese, because obviously it’s all fuzzy bunnies and rainbows on this side of the BMI chart. I would think that if the “average person” could figure out anything it’s that this is sheer idiocy. And they still got accused of promoting obesity in the comments, so they contributed to a dangerous culture of body hate for nothing.
Regardless, as far as I’m concerned, know that you do deserve nice clothes that fit your beautiful body and that if you have trouble finding such clothes the issue is with the clothing manufacturers and not with your body, which is amazing just as it is.
Here’s the full article if you are interested. As always, beware the comments.
Dances With Fat 
My wedding dress was made but there’s a wedding store in Madison, WI that has plus sized dresses. I was smaller but still around a size 20 or so and can remember going and trying on a dress and feeling SO beautiful. My brother’s wife had issues finding a dress and was just devastated. I told my brother to take her to the place I had been to and she was able to find a very lovely dress. They treat you like a princess there too. I don’t know if the shop is still there or if they carry the larger sizes. I hope because it’s SO important for a bride to be to feel beautiful. One should not have to put her life on hold so she can lose enough weight to fit into society’s standards. Weight doesn’t come off overnight, if at all and it disgusts me that society yet expects this. Women should lose weight before getting married. Women should lose weight before getting pregnant. John Lennon says it best, “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.” As it is, I’ve held off on family pictures because of my weight. We’ve never had any done and I regret that now.
Wanted to comment more now that I’ve read the article. It’s not the article writer itself that was making some of the comments, but comments from those contributing to the article. I actually found this part more offensive:
“Women don’t want their self-esteem bashed when they walk into a department store,” said Emme, the first plus-sized supermodel, head of emmenation.com and now an actress in New York. “I don’t think we’re talking about anorexics or those morbidly obese. We’re talking about what’s real.”
Uh what? Morbidly obese women aren’t real? I’m not real? ARGH!
As for the other comment, yeah, it definitely comes across bad but I wonder if it’s because of what she’s saying further down:
“But how much of their brand identification is based on their idealized customer? It’s not just high-end designers who have idealized customers either. That’s what brands are. It’s why customers are drawn to them in the first place.”
Then what’s the answer for the disrespected and designed-disaffected on all price points on the fashion budget?
Says Givhan: Get new designers who “get” that market.
Right now, she says, the plus-sized market is asking for designers to increase its regular-sized proportions when maybe those designers just don’t get what makes a plus-sized dress or skirt or blouse great.”
I may be giving her too much of a benefit of a doubt but it could be what she’s saying is that the difference between being a little more curvy and being obese is the fit of clothes. And we can’t deny that there’s a difference. We can’t. Some women are not just a little more voluptuous. Some, like me, have areas that definitely stick out more. 😀 And so that has to be taken into consideration. Isn’t that one of the complaints we have with the models for plus sized clothes? How the clothes look on them and how they look on us is all wrong because they don’t have what many of us have. Some of us look pregnant when wearing a certain style shirt even though we aren’t. Some of us have larger arms. Some of us have heavier thighs. Some of us also have larger shoulders! This is my big issue with plus sized women’s coats. I have to get a coat from the men’s section because the stupid plus sized women’s coats are not wide enough to fit my wide shoulders. I put the coat on the one arm and can’t even get it on and up on the other side because the shoulders are too wide. But there’s more room in the men’s coats because men are typically wider in that area (I guess that means I have manly shoulders? lol).
The biggest issue with clothes (and, having children and a husband who has the opposite issue I do, I have more experience with this now) is that they are basically cookie cutter clothes. And humans were not made from a cookie cutter. I have two daughters and already experience great amount of frustration with buying clothes for them. One has short legs but wider hips which makes buy jeans difficult. My baby is almost a year and can wear sizes from 0-3 months all the way to 6-9 months. My husband is even a challenge because he’s skinny and short which is unusual here. He can find clothes easier in South Korea. Here, I HAVE to buy his pants from Old Navy because it’s the ONLY store around here that carries pants small enough to fit him. He’s actually around a 28 inch for a waist (either that or they are using vanity sizes for men too). And most of the time he still has to wear a belt. I found him a pair from a garage sale and he refuses to wear them because he’s convinced they’re women’s jeans even though they are sized like the men’s are but they’re really tight and skinny (and dang it, what happened to that style anyway?) and so he’s absolutely convinced that they are women’s jeans and refuses to wear them out in public.
I have a nephew who is even SKINNIER and taller (I don’t even want to know what his waist size is) and wears a size 3 in WOMEN’S. Yeah, he has to wear women’s jeans and pants because the men sizes do not go down small enough in the waist.
It all almost makes you laugh because it seems like a lot of people are missed when it comes to clothes. And it’s crazy because I’m sure there’s a lot of money being lost because of it.
I totally hear you on this. My husband is big, but not quite big-and-tall big. I can’t find clothes for him anywhere. My first daughter is 10, and I just threw away the boys toddler-size t-shirts she’d been wearing to bed for 7 years. She’s tall and thin, but she’s got booty so pants are all too tight in the butt or too loose in the legs. My little baby girl has a short torso and long limbs. 7 months old, I can still get a 3 month onesie on her, but the 9 month sleepers arms and legs are too short! For babies, I can see the point of one-size because they’re going to outgrow everything right away anyway, but see what I would pay for a bra that supported everything and didn’t dig into my shoulders! For shirts that fit both my narrow shoulders and my ample bosom! “Oh, you need a minimizer.” No! Why should I squash myself to fit in clothes that don’t really fit?
okay, rant over. And good for you for giving her the benefit of the doubt. If everyone assumed the good nature of those who spoke to them, would anyone even bother trying to be nasty anymore?
I love that we are slooooowly getting to be noticed by the fashion industry. What I really want, however, is the great quality clothing that is offered to their preferred, thin demographic. It is completely hit or miss when I shop at Lane Bryant or Avenue. Some things are nice but many items are a slight notch above Walmart (disposable) standards. I’ve thought long and hard about how the fashion industry expects us to buy flimsy clothes, and I think it speaks to the fact that they assume we are constantly striving to change our “repulsive” bodies. The think to themselves, why would we want well made, long lasting clothes if next week we will be on a diet striving to change our size to fit their molds? They are missing the mark, big time.
Instead of talking about what’s real, Emme should have talked about what’s common. A rare size would understandably be harder to find. But when HALF THE POPULATION is considered to be fat, and appropriate clothing is still hard to find, that is plain ridiculous. Is the fashion industry rich enough (compared to the rest of the economy) that they can ignore such a large demographic?
And how do you spend money on clothes when the clothes aren’t there? I tell you all that the “fat women don’t spend money” argument has been around for at least half a century.
By the way, consider this remark: “Remember those numbers out of the CDC that say that two out of three Americans are overweight or obese and in need of a good workout?”. This may be true, but they’re not the same 2/3 of the population. And why aren’t (some) gyms blamed for promoting obesity if they shame their fat clientele? Why isn’t the clothing industry blamed for promoting slothfulness if they don’t sell sturdy shoes for large feet, or good supportive, vaguely affordable bras? “Duh” is too intellectual a word for this nonsense.
Loving these questions and do I hear an AMEN! And oh we will not discuss bras. I hate bras. I only wear them when I leave the house. I hate them. I hate nursing bras even more. When you’re a 44 H/I/J, finding a nursing bra that fits and isn’t impossible to stuff yourself back into once you’re done feeding a baby is a miracle I have yet to achieve. I didn’t even bother buying a nursing bra this time around, just used the bras I had on hand. I paid enough for the dang things!
ROFLMBO at this “it’s all fuzzy bunnies and rainbows on this side of the BMI chart.” You crack me up Regan : ) Rock on sista!
The fashion industry doesn’t design for real people period, but an “ideal” person. *gag*
A good friend of mine (early 20’s girl, pretty, about size 14-16) left a fashion design program (at a large, well-known university) after the instructor failed her……for designing a wedding dress for a “grossly obese woman” instead of the “average” woman…….the dress was a size 16.
When my friend argued that the assignment allowed her to design in any size she wanted, the teacher’s pronounced loudly that “No-one wants to see a woman of THAT SIZE on a runway!”
I also think I have to mention that the instructor that failed her outweighed my friend by about 60 pounds….some people are so messed up.
It is absolutely reprehensible that this is considered “coverage” of fashion week, when in basically one breath the writer goes from giving actual information to fat-shaming the shit out of plus sized people. Huh? How did that happen?
Also, I am disappointed to say I got sucked into the comments. One woman caught my attention, especially. She basically commented that it has nothing to do with the cost or exclusivity of the clothing, as no woman at size 20 can look good in anything. However, at a size 6 you look good in a potato sack. My first thought was: you can’t wear a fucking potato sack to a job interview. Or to a wedding, or to a business meeting, or a formal dinner, or event. it is all well and good to say that fat people shouldn’t complain as they “did it to themselves”(well no, it’s not well or good at all) but what are they supposed to do in the mean time(supposing they are being “good fatties” and trying to lose weight)? As someone here astutely pointed out – you cannot get thin overnight. This is not just a matter of fashionable/high fashion clothing, it is clothing in general. The options just are not there. It is practicality we are talking about here, as well as looking and feeling good. Everyone deserves to be clothed, regardless of appearance. You can’t put your life on hold to lose weight(if you WANT to lose weight at all) you need to be presentable for certain situations that everyone encounters regardless of their size.
However, at a size 6 you look good in a potato sack.
This makes me want to offer the person who said this a potato sack to wear for a day.
Eh. It depends on how the potato sack is cut.
Wouldn’t the “potato sack” line of “reasoning” imply that plus-sized women need nicely made clothing MORE than small women?
That too!
But oh, don’t you know, obese women are just supposed to stay in their houses all the time, exercise in the nude, eat nothing, until they are slim enough to be acceptable enough to walk out of the house? I am being oh so very sarcastic here when I say that. And of course, if you’re obese, you are definitely not supposed to get a job or date or get married or have sex or have babies or nurse them. *rolling eyes massively here*
The average person knows the difference between voluptuous and obese.
You know, they look the same on me.
That said, I’ve rarely classified myself as “average,” so maybe it’s just my inherent awesome that makes it difficult for me to see the difference. 😉
Voluptuous, from Myriam Webster online:
1
a : full of delight or pleasure to the senses : conducive to or arising from sensuous or sensual gratification : luxurious
b : suggesting sensual pleasure by fullness and beauty of form
Voluptuous At Every Size, anyone?
Maybe it’s cynical of me, but the people who run stories like this want to butter both sides of their bread.
One side: Clothes for fat people! Ridiculous markup! You don’t have a choice other than these 3 stores! Spend lots of money so you fit into this arbitrary box of “fashion”!
Two side: Moral panic! Fat is horrible and you are unhealthy! You need to spend lots of money on getting thinner!
The diet-industrial complex have nothing to gain from making people feel good about their bodies. (And “feeling good” would include being able wear clothes that fit and look nice.) Out of one side of their mouth they can tell us how awful we are, and they take our clothes shopping money with the other side.
Sorry if this is incoherent; I need more coffee 🙂
No, that makes complete sense. It’s not right that they pandered to the body-shamers here to cover their asses. This story was supposed to be about Full-Figured Fashion Week and they couldn’t just leave it at that.
They’re doing the “fat up to a certain point is OK, then after that you shouldn’t even exist. Well sorry, I do exist and I do deserve decent clothes that doesn’t make me look like I came from Omar the Tent Maker. Also, Emme, who used to be a plus size model and calls herself an advocate for bigger women, should know better than to shame women who wear a 3X and up, as well as anorexics, who are suffering from a mental disorder.
I wish journalists would just report on the topic instead of inserting the tired anti-fat memes. Been there done that, read the book, now stop. Clothes have nothing to do with health.
Okay I could write for years about fat and fashion but I had to post my latest anurysm-inducing experience with the clothing industry…
I recently decided to start going to the gym more, for my health and to support my friend (she insists that we ‘suffer together’ ;-P).
So anyway, you know what else (heh besides you know, *everything*) isn’t made in big enough sizes? WORK OUT CLOTHES.
So let me get this straight: I am a worthless lazy slob who should put down the cheeseburger and get my obese ass to the gym so I look less repulsive to others…but I must run on said treadmill naked?
W.T.F? [Omg, bonus: just gave myself a laughing fit imagining running on a treadmill naked at my local gym, in slow motion to ‘Chariots of Fire’ ROFLMAO!!!]
Now with all the fat=evil/thin=beautiful propaganda that the media does to make money for the diet business, you’d think the people who manufacture sportswear would want a piece of the action: “Hey fattie trying to lose those extra pounds? Good for you, how about you wear our clothes while you do it?” But no, apparently shaming and excluding the overweight is more important than profit…how sick is that?
So we should exercise to lose weight, but we can’t fit into the exercise clothes until we lose weight…ow. Did anyone else’s logic center just friggin blow out?
Here’s an absolutely *insane* (i.e. reasonable and profitable) idea: make workout clothes in all sizes so anyone who wants to exercise in style and comfort can, thus opening a veritable floodgate of business for sports stores and gyms as people of all sizes seize the opportunity to improve their health with physical activity.
Oh wait, that would make too much sense and be too much fun.
*Sigh* Never mind then. 😛
Pauline,
I could not agree with you more. I struggle so much to find good dance and workout clothes in my size! Often the only thing I can find is also built for a woman who is 6’2. I firmly believe that you should never have to alter your damn yoga pants. Or they are build out of super thick fabric to withstand temperatures of 40 below. I live in TEXAS for f&%@s sake. It would kill you to make a petite, plus-sized non-thermal yoga pant? Jeez. If you are looking or something Danskin has a decent line of plus-sized workout wear.
~Ragen