Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with plussize

Plus Sized Bride Seeking Wedding Gown in Chicago

princesspathos — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:29:26 -0800

Hello Chicago! Do you know of any area bridal salons who are plus-size bride friendly? I'm getting married next June, which is great and exciting and happy. However, I'm a size 24, so dresses aren't as easy to find.

That's where you come in. I am seeking recommendations for bridal shops in the Chicago area who are plus-size friendly and/or have excellent seamstresses.

I would prefer something in the city or the North Shore, but I'm willing to travel anywhere that's willing to see me. I've already called for an appointment at Dame Couture in Evanston. Thanks!

Inexpensive work clothes in the DC area?

Mrs. Pterodactyl — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:22:25 -0800

Where can I find inexpensive work clothes in the DC area? I am planning to start a job as a receptionist/administrative assistant in the near future and I've recently lost weight so none of my clothes fit, although I am still plus-size. We are pretty short on money right now so I really really don't want to spend too much; I would very much appreciate any suggestions for decent, inexpensive stores for plus-size women to buy work clothes. The hardest part for me is generally finding things in my size, especially things that will last and are appropriate for my age (twenty-five). Thank you for any suggestions you might have!

Style tips for the circumferentially challenged

Ziggy500 — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 09:57:11 -0800

Plus-size ladies, please help me be fabulous. [UK] I'm a young, pear-shaped, quite overweight woman (in the process of sloooowwwly losing weight fwiw). I carry all my weight around my stomach and hips, my top half is almost disproportionately small. I always wear the same thing: Tops or long-line tunics, and jeans/trousers. I've never worn dresses or skirts all that much. I feel like they make my midsection look even bigger.

The problem: The top/trouser combo is both boring and, worse, occasionally frumpy (because larger tops that fit my hips are sometimes too big for my upper body).

So basically, what other styles can I try that will work with my body shape and WON'T be frumpy? What UK shops can I go to apart from the high street staples? I love accessories, so any tips regarding those would be much welcomed as well.

Plus-size clothes in and around Boston?

Sublimity — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 17:21:05 -0800

Plus-size womens' clothing in and around Boston? Extra points for good consignment stores serving this demographic. Finding good fat-girl clothes is always a challenge. I just moved to the area from the other side of the country and am trying to find good resources for finding clothes.

I've noticed national womens' clothing chains in the area (Avenue, etc) but I'd love to find other options too. I'm in the 26-28 range, so department stores like Bloomingdales which appear to top out at 24 aren't helpful.

Local or regional plus-size clothing store suggestions are much appreciated. I'd also love to find a local equivalent to Seattle's Two Big Blondes, a consignment store for sizes 14 and up, which offered a mix of casual, professional, and dressy clothes, as well as shoes and accessories.

Thanks in advance for the help!

Plus size bride in a panic!

evilcupcakes — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:06:14 -0800

Please help me find a red dress for my wedding day! I am looking for any online stores that sell ethnic or peasant-style clothes in plus sizes and I am running out of time. I am DESPERATE at this point. I had originally selected a lovely red embroidered ensemble at eshakti.com for my Norse themed wedding this August. By the time I was ready to order it, it was gone. Crap. So, after a great deal of shopping, I found another outfit on the same site that I actually liked better. Problem solved, right? NO. I had to wait until I got paid today to buy it, and now THIS outfit is gone! I am devastated at this point. The wedding is in 5 weeks and I am running out of options.

I am looking for a red dress or blouse and skirt, full length in a peasant-y or ethnic style. This was the blouse I had in mind, but they are out of my size now. Anyone know of any similar stores?

What women's clothing stores can I start shopping at now that I've shrunk to an 18/20?

booksherpa — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 08:18:37 -0800

What women's clothing stores can I start shopping at now that I've shrunk to an 18/20? After 6+ months of Weight Watchers and Curves, I've lost 56 pounds, and gone from a 26/28 to an 18/20. I walked into a J. Jill the other day, and actually fit in their XL!! I haven't really shopped anywhere but Lane Bryant and Avenue for over 20 years, and have no clue what stores might carry stuff I like, and somewhat larger sizes. My closest girlfriends are short, skinny, and have different tastes. Things to keep in mind:

I'm 40, about 6' tall (so, tall pants in some cases), and still need plus sizes. I'm curvy all around - larger bust, larger hips.

I teach, so stuff appropriate for school - we're not crazy formal, though, and I teach younger kids (much sitting on floor), so nicer drawstring pants would be fabulous (they're usable through more pants sizes)

The word "bohemian" is a great description of me. I love bright colors and patterns, v-neck tops, flowy tops, dark-wash jeans, layering pieces - I tend to dress younger than I am (and look younger too, according to neutral parties). I think Indian clothing is gorgeous. I don't generally do dresses/skirts (summer+thighs=chafing). There is no color I won't wear.

I don't want to spend a lot, especially on pants, because I'm still losing weight. Places with good clearance/sale racks are much appreciated. On the other hand, I've been known to treat myself to a really cute top that works with jeans and work pants.

I prefer shopping in a store to online - I'm an odd shape to fit these days. Online could work for tops, though. I live in New Jersey, for local shop consideration.

Sorry for all the details, but I really have no idea where to go! Pointers to other threads also appreciated; my searches turned up very little. I've seen this thread and this one, but neither quite gets at what I need. Thanks!

Help a plus-sized gal be sexy in a photoshoot!

derogatorysphinx — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 19:24:28 -0800

My boyfriend is very much into photography. I would love to be the subject of one of his photo shoots. What advice can you give a plus sized gal about pose, lighting, clothes, etc? (Slightly NSFW link inside) So I'm about a size 16. This isn't really a large problem (pardon the pun) for either my boyfriend or I, but I really want to do a sultry, probably black and white, photo shoot so we can enjoy the pictures together. I'd prefer not to look like a house, so flattering poses and such are necessary.

I'm kind of at a loss for what to wear, how to light the scene, etc. Both of us know quite a few things about photography, but neither of us has much experience shooting people. Any advice from those who have modeled, been the photographer, or just throwing your two cents in would be greatly appreciated!

We have access to a Nikon D40X, D70, old 35 and 120mm film cameras, and a Canon 880IS. He has little lighting equipment other than a hot shoe flash cable.

If it helps, I own this:
http://www.torrid.com/torrid/store/product.jsp?FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302035995&PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524442194790&bmUID=1235013645592

in black from Torrid, and several pairs of cute/sexy underwear involving lace and bows and other fancy bits.

Any advice is welcome! Thanks so much, MeFi.

I have a big butt and I cannot lie.

santojulieta — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 21:09:49 -0800

What does a size 18 American girl wear to Milan, fashion capital of Italy? In March, I'll be staying with my cousin in Milan for a week. She's rooming with three other Italian girls, all of whom attend university for fashion at Politecnico Di Milano Facolta Del Design. Eep! What can I add to my pathetic wardrobe between now and late March to make me look non-touristy? I'm a size 18, and that usually limits me to Old Navy, Gap, and Target occasionally. What do you suggest so those girls don't lump me into the country-bumpkin-from-America box?

Also, secondary and cheating-ish question: Will I be able to find any clothing in Italy anywhere in Milan?

Help a fat girl wear belts!

timetoevolve — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 11:52:55 -0800

Plus-size ladies, how do you wear your belts? I am a big girl who has never worn belts, but I am interested in trying out the look. For an example, I think this is a super-cute look, but I'm not sure if/how it would work on me.

Considerations:

-I am on the tall side (5'9"), very long-waisted, and comparatively short-legged. The ideal belt placement I'd like to attain would make my sausage legs look longer without making me look like Grandpa Simpson.
-I am of pretty equal proportion on top and bottom, and quite busty (DD creeping toward E).
-I am, at least in Lane Bryant-sized clothing, anywhere from a 24 to a 28.
-I read and like fatshionista, but sometimes the advice is a little too young/gothy for my style aesthetic. (I do buy some accessories from Torrid, however.)

Savvy accessorizers, please help me navigate the jungle of belts!

Boot stretching?

JoanArkham — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 12:55:10 -0800

Has anyone ever had tall boots stretched to fit? Apparently even "wide-calf" boots are too narrow for my freakishly large calves. I found a pair that I like that are maybe 1/2 to 1 inch too small at the top. I have heard of people getting a shoemaker (cobbler?) to stretch boots to fit, but I don't know of anyone who has actually tried it or what the results are. Anyone? These were not cheap boots so I really don't want to ruin them for nothing.

Extra, super, mega bonus points if you can recommend someone in the DC/NoVA area.

(Or maybe I should just try to stretch them myself through wearing them?)

Big girls want cute clothes too.

santojulieta — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 21:26:17 -0800

Help me find some new British plus size clothes. I'm heading over to England and Scotland for a bit next week, and I'd like to pick up some new clothes.

Here are the irritating catches:

1. I'm a bit on the big side. I wear a US size 18 pants and usually an XL t-shirt and I'm 5'10".

2. I'm hoping to pick up clothes that I couldn't easily find in the states. H & M is too easy to find in Chicago, and I can't really wear any of their clothes anyway.

3. I don't have to totally restock my wardrobe, but I wouldn't mind finding a quality winter coat, some great boots, and some other basics, like jeans, a skirt, and a few tops.

Where can I shop?

zen and the art of hiding my fat butt

Kellydamnit — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 20:35:51 -0800

What should I wear to meditation? So, here's my dilemma. I have very few articles of clothing suited to meditate in. (in a formal group setting. I wear PJs at home). I'm almost always in skirts or dresses (hard to kill the inner goth), and own like three pairs of pants. I tend to feel grotesquely uncomfortable in pants as it is, mostly because I'm overweight and I feel like they draw a lot of attention to my worst areas. But, I want to be unable to sit or do the prostrations without, you know, flashing people.

So would it be oddball to wear, say, fitted yoga pants and make a knee-length skirt of similar material over it? I figure that way I won't spend my hour sitting there thinking about how uncomfortable I am and how fat my thighs are. But I don't want to look like I just got off the bus from crazytown, either.

It isn't about wanting to look cute or whatever. Most of the people in the group are a good chunk older than me, and it's not all perfect yoga bodies. I just want to be able to sit down in a half lotus without my own body issues messing with me.

Any other suggestions for what a chubby hourglass shaped gal can wear to meditate?

Where, oh where, is the plus-size travel underwear?

whitelight — Sat, 17 May 2008 12:44:33 -0800

Where can I find travel bras made for large ladies with large bosoms? I'm a 44DD and all of the travel underwear sites like ExOfficio seem to only have bras for more slender/less stacked folks. My current bra is a poly/cotton blend (sports bra style, no underwire) that sucks up sweat like a sponge and takes forever to dry if I try the "wash it in the sink" trick while traveling. I'm looking for something similar that dries quickly after an impromptu washing and is more moisture wicking than moisture retaining. Surely there's something out there?

Help me find hose/tights for the larger - but not largest - woman

tristeza — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 14:43:00 -0800

Please help me find hose/tights that fit the larger - but not largest - woman. So, apparently the hoisery industry has a very different idea of NUMBERS and PHYSICS than I do.....

I am not a small girl, I'm 5'8" and about 180 lbs. Not a freak of nature, but surely not bony, I'm pretty well proportioned if a bit large.

This morning I opened a package of hose size Queen 3. Yes, Queen 3. The back of the pack indicates that they should fit women up to 265 lbs and 5'11". They do not.

I literally - and I mean that literally - could not get them on past mid-thigh. I gave up after I ripped them with sheer force of pulling them upwards. What the fuck? These were some JC Penney cheapo brand.

Do you guys know any brands that *actually* fit the larger woman without causing nerve damage? I find that I either find hose like this that are made for Bratz, or when I buy them at, say, Lane Bryant, they're made for 6'7" Amazons so they pool up around my puny ankles.

Please help!!

Where are the Plus size shops in Rio?

renyoj — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 19:48:41 -0800

I am taking a trip to Rio de Janeiro next week. Are there any good shopping options for plus sizes (20-22)? Price isn't so much a concern as quality. I'd love to find some unusual items I can't get in the states.

Fatlady Tailors Dummy

ninazer0 — Fri, 01 Jun 2007 16:36:46 -0800

I need to make myself a full-size tailors dummy - suggestions for material and construction please? I make a lot of my own clothes because I'm a big woman and rather oddly shaped. However, I'm a bit tired of having to put projects on hold until I can take them to my mother so that she can help me measure and pin things on. (Have you ever tried to make an even hem when you've got a huge butt?? It's not as easy as you think!)

A tailors dummy would solve the problem BUT I can't find one in my size (about a 24) NOR can I afford the $150-and-very-much-upwards price tag that comes with even the most basic affair.

Ideally, I'd like to mock up a manniquin with my measurements in something that can be pinned to without bursting, is firm enough to hang things off and which is soft enough to be wrestled in and out of fitted items.

I was thinking of using some sort of high-density foam on a stand, but was trying to think of an alternative to whittling the foam into the right dimensions.

Any brilliant suggestions, Hive Mind?

No Kimono

ninazer0 — Wed, 04 Apr 2007 05:04:45 -0800

Is there anywhere online that one can purchase an authentic kimono for a tall, fat woman? Ideally, I would be looking for a tomesode (or equivalent) for a size 22-24 who is 5'10".

Surely there must be big women in Japan (or, possibly, Hawaii) that need formal kimono. Any idea's?

I've tried looking through ebay but I need the real deal and not some Hong Kong knock-off bathrobe.) The vintage sites are luscious but they're all made for short and tiny traditional Japanese women.

Plus-Size shirt for under med student lab coat

not that girl — Tue, 11 Jul 2006 09:48:28 -0800

I'm looking for the perfect shirt for a plus-size woman doing med school rotations Asking for a friend, who is too busy studying for pharmacology to shop for herself. Alas, I am terrible at buying clothes for myself, let alone being drafted to be someone's personal shopper, so I thought I'd ask what you all know.

Here's the deal: She starts rotations this fall, and needs to find the perfect shirt to wear. Here are the guidelines she sent me:

it needs to have no collar, bc i have a collar on my lab coat, which i must wear at all times. it must be light so i don't get too hot. it must be easily washable and not too wrinkly after the dryer. it must not look like just a t-shirt. it must be short, or regular t-shirt length, not tunic-length... so it doesn't stick out from under my short coat.

My additions:

It needs to come in sizes up to 3X or 4X.

And, since her plan is basically to find the right thing and buy a bunch to wear with neutral trousers, I suppose it should ideally come in several colors.

OK, all you plus-sized clothes-horse medical professionals, find me this shirt!

When you can take the bobbin from my hand, it will be time for you to sew.

Vervain — Mon, 13 Mar 2006 14:48:26 -0800

I want to improve my sewing kung-fu. But where to start? I've owned my mother's old Husqvarna Viking for years, and while I have a basic enough grasp of how it functions, I have yet to really do anything significant with it--mending, minor alterations, simple projects like curtains and pillow shams, and one improvised Mona Lisa costume that turned out middling-to-awful. This was all well and good, but...

Flash forward to two weeks ago, where I found myself digging through a not-small-mall's plus-sized offerings, which were uniformly crap. (I was looking for a dress to wear to an upcoming wedding.) It might've been a lack of sleep or an overdose of Project Runway, but after the nth rack of tacky polyester garbage, something snapped. I'm now bound and determined to learn to sew, and the incomplete set of Time-Life sewing books I somehow inherited along with Mom's machine just aren't going to cut it. (Sorry.)

Much as I would like to go from zero to couture in a week, I know I have to start somewhere. My question(s) for you: what books do you recommend for beginning/intermediate/advanced sewing skills, especially those relating to pattern alteration or design? What, if anything, do you feel you need to learn in a classroom setting? Were there any projects that you found especially helpful for the acquisition and honing of skills? And what additions (e.g. specialty feet, duct tape double) to the basic sewing setup did you find most helpful?

Boots for BBW

jacquilynne — Wed, 16 Nov 2005 11:00:35 -0800

Where can I buy knee high black leather boots that meet my criteria? I have fat calves, so they can't be the standard 10-12 inches around. Somewhere in the 16-18 range is probably appropriate. I prefer low to mid range heels. Nothing other 2 and a half inches or I won't be able to walk in them. I live in Toronto, so they must be able to be shipped to Canada.

I know several places where I can get boots custom made in the $6-800 range, but that's out of my price range, so I'd like to find someplace that's making things in my size already. Preferably under USD200, but that's not likely, so let's say anything under USD400 with shipping to Canada included is in contention.

Any fashionable plus size shops for women in New York?

floanna — Thu, 17 Mar 2005 09:49:18 -0800

I'm coming to New York in August and want to take advantage of the dollar to top up my wardrobe, however my googleing for shops for the larger lady have not been fruitful. Can any ladies in NY give me any pointers? To give you some idea of the kind of thing I'm after, the only place I can shop at in the UK is at Evans and they are a bit hit and miss in the fashionable stakes. I'm only 31 and don't want anything fuddy duddy but something with a modern twist. Hope someone can help!

Plus-Sized Swimsuits

O9scar — Thu, 03 Feb 2005 16:56:37 -0800

I'm asking this on my wife's behalf. As a plus-size woman, she's having trouble finding a proper swimsuit - one geared towards swimming as opposed to sunbathing. [more inside] The rest of the details:

Ideally, it should have a high neck. More importantly, here's what it needs to not have: a skirt or a soft-cup bra. Her size is 18W and she's already tried Junonia and Land's End with no success. Is there any place else with a better selection?