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The fashion world is not ready for Ashley Falcon. In the new Marie Claire column “Big Girl in a Skinny World,” Falcon doles out fashion advice for those of us who are far beyond sample sizes.

Making her debut with a full-length picture looking all kinds of fierce, Falcon’s column immediately earned points with me for daring to call out designers for equating larger sizes to shapeless, non flattering cuts and for embracing “ass-hugging” as necessary quality for the perfect jeans.

As much as I love, love, love Falcon’s column (I’m already rethinking my stance on my now-canceled subscription) there were a couple of lines in the article that immediately jumped out at me.

Now, maybe I’m a little too accustomed to the fashion blogs I read which cater to a variety of sizes without apology (Clutch, The Fashion Bomb, Fatshionista/LJ holla!) But I couldn’t decide if Falcon was keeping it real about her experiences or starting to pander a bit to a smaller audience who expects a more self-depreciating big girl:

Of course, it surprised no one that I decided to pursue a career as a fashion stylist-though at 5’2″ and 220 pounds, I’d need an elaborate pulley system and a can of Crisco to shimmy into the clothes I dress models in.

Big girls love accessories-they always fit, no size tags required.

Let’s face it, it’s a maddening task for girls even half my size, but I go through at least a few pairs of jeans every year, routinely wearing holes in the area where my thighs rub together.

Again, I’m not sure where to fall on these. After all, that last bit about wearing holes in jeans is something that happens to me as well, all the time. And the jeans she recommends are cute. But some of the big girl platitudes don’t jive with my experiences . For one, accessories don’t always fit which is why I have to trek to Torrid for bangles, and live in slouch styles since most other boots never make it up my calves. Purses too – large arms means I always need to check the strap. In addition, glamming up a basic outfit with luxury accessories is a bit beyond my reach – but I’ll chalk that up to the priorities of the fashionable. It’s clear that Falcon has made piece with her body (after all, she dresses beautifully) but her column seems more practical than celebratory when it comes to the transformative power of fashion.

But that’s a minor quibble – I’m excited to see a size eighteen woman like myself seen as an expert on fashion and selecting clothes and outfits that would actually work for women my size. I’m excited that she’s bringing more than size diversity to the fashion glossies.

And most of all, I’m excited to see next month’s recommendations on cocktail chic.

(Image Credit: Marie Claire)

Big Girl In A Skinny World [Marie Claire]
Official Site [Clutch Magazine]
Official Site [The Fashion Bomb]
Official Site [Fatshionista]
Live Journal Community [Fatshionista]

Send an email to Latoya, the author of this post, at latoya@racialicious.com.

If the clothes are meant to reflect how a garment will look when you enter into a shop and peruse the rack, then they are heading down the right road and up till now fashion models have really been thought of as coat hangers, albeit attractive ones made of lace and satin and augmented with ribbons, but still only coat hangers.

bridal corsets

All animals have a hard-wired instinctive decision making process that allows us to respond accordingly to anything within seconds . It’s a survival tactic. Humans are the only species that will judge, assess and respond inappropriately. We talk ourselves in an out of situations regularly.

What doe this have to do fashion you ask? When designers send ultra- thin models down the catwalk or use these models in magazines, catalogs, in-store promo shots , they send a very loud message. labels understand that even-though these models in no way represent the typical woman, probably the bulk of their customer base, they’ll always be in a position to sell to you.. I have often seen ladies wear such body inappropriate fashion that it embarrasses my own womanhood. Of course some of this boils down to poor taste, absence of style, misperception even, but not entirely.

plus size corsets

Plus size corsets and  fashion in general is seeing a move towards mainstream as attitudes shift . Have you ever watched a man shopping? He will enter a clothing store, scan the shelves in no more than 30 seconds on most occasions, and make a decision whether he wants to buy there.

corset

When he decides to try clothes on, he will know instantly what he is comfortable wearing, what fits his perception of himself, how he’d want to show himself to the world and whether the garment he is wearing fits all those criteria. A girl , will often go into a clothing store even if she doesn’t necessarily like the feel of the place. She’ll take stock of every shelf and rack, and check every item on every rack , just in case maybe there will be something there that she MIGHT like .

A woman will try it on, bounce it around, ask her man if her bum appears big, her girlfriends if she looks hot, store assistants what they think and so-on. Of course this isn’t always the case . Some women are very decisive about lingerie styles they like and don’t ask anyone else for an opinion. The crux of the matter is that men are clinical when deciding how they dress and women are a emotional creatures and emotionally needy when it comes to appearance . Women rely on our clothes and make-up and undergarments to help us feel a particular way.

We look to the experts to tell us what it is we should be feeling. When these ‘style makers’ bombard us with pictures of rake-thin , size zero women; we get confused messages about how we need to look that leave us confused without us ever noticing.

plus size corset

I’m not saying we should start expecting the fashion industry to use fat models. That would serve to every one’s detriment. I’m just proposing that a size 12 or 14 girl can be just as beautiful, sexy and desirable as what we’re told a size 0 girl is. Imagine how perception might shift if women got used to walking into boutiques where images of the garments were presented on healthy looking, plus-size models. Imagine if you went Plus size corsets shopping with or for your man and walked in to a shop that used pictures of the beautiful Crystal Renan or Kim Kardashian wearing gorgeous . These models aren’t large. They’re healthy, proportionate women. Picture if that’s what you were used to seeing when you went into that store . Imagine if across the road there was another apparel store selling similar items but displayed on size 0 models. In which store would you feel more likely to succumb to those negative voices in your head that make you feel judged? Which store would you feel more comfortable going to? In which store would you feel like a more proud, beautiful, empowered woman?



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Top 5 tips for Men buying plus size lingerie

Category: General View profile Tags: plus size lingerie corsets bridal corsets plus size corsets | Posted by Javier66 2 days ago

The top 5 tips to buying plus size corsets and plus size lingerie

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