Fitted plus-size printed t-shirts for women

August 14, 2016 7:36 AM

I need more t-shirts, and I like fitted/babydoll ones. I like clever/artsy/goth prints, not just polka dots or stripes. Threadless has been my mainstay, but they only go up to 2x in women's, which shows my stomach. I need something a little bigger and that can accommodate my large bust. I want to order online. I think Torrid might have some, but I hear iffy things about their quality. I'd rather find one place where I can order a few than go to a bunch of sites.
posted by mermaidcafe to Shopping (16 answers total)

Torrid would have some. There quality is usually pretty good in my experience, better than the ones I bought at Lane Bryant for example that stretch or shrink after one wear, & cheaper too. I'm fussy about things like that and I have never returned a anything to them because of that, I mean it's not LL Bean or designer level but then it's not the same prices either. The Tshirts are lovely & soft material & not usually super thin & see thru except their white tshirts for some reason. They've all held up through multiple washes though I air dry so not sure how they survive a dryer. The style can be a little twee bbut I'm a 48 yo woman shopping in a shop for teenagers/early twenties and can find plenty that suits my survivor of the 80's still a punk at heart style.
posted by wwax at 8:03 AM on August 14, 2016 [2 favorites]

I'm going to go ahead and second the quality of Torrid. My oldest piece of clothing (7 or 8 years old) is from Torrid. Their quality is pretty good.
posted by tippy at 8:23 AM on August 14, 2016 [1 favorite]

I like some of Modcloth's offerings (I'm wearing this cool steampunk-spacefaring one right now), but they can be kind of expensive for what you get.
posted by rivenwanderer at 8:52 AM on August 14, 2016

TeeFury has women's 100% shirt that go up to 3XL. This cheshire cat design is cute. I just ordered my first shirt from them so I don't know the quality yet, but fingers crossed. They have this page with people wearing various sizes that might be helpful.

Modcloth has some really cute stuff, but they are so variable because they stock so many manufacturers. I've tried out XL t-shirts that were far too large and 2XLs that were toooooo tiny. I try to read the reviews if available and stick to 100% cotton with them.
posted by Squeak Attack at 10:48 AM on August 14, 2016

You might be able to find some good stuff on Redbubble.com. Their fitted babydoll tees don't go very large, but some of their other items like the chiffon tops and tshirt dresses do.
posted by MsMolly at 11:31 AM on August 14, 2016

Headline only goes up to 2X but they are of a nice length. Long but not quite a tunic, and so soft!
posted by Drosera at 12:43 PM on August 14, 2016

Yeah, Torrid. Their sizes are a little wacky so you might want to try them on if you can, but it's the only place I've ever gotten a nerdy shirt that I thought fit well. (And they seem to be better than most places about not copying artists' work without licensing it.) So far their quality seems to be the same as or slightly better than Lane Bryant's (and the t-shirts are definitely more interesting.)
posted by wintersweet at 12:43 PM on August 14, 2016 [1 favorite]

I am a 22/24 with a large bust and the largest women's size Teefury carries was too tight on me and too short, despite the measurements on their site. Additionally in my opinion their quality has gone down quite a bit in recent years.
posted by possibilityleft at 1:01 PM on August 14, 2016

You might be able to find some good stuff on Redbubble.com. Their fitted babydoll tees don't go very large, but some of their other items like the chiffon tops and tshirt dresses do.

Just a heads up...
They have terrible reviews online. I couldn't get a hold of them so I googled them and decided not to place an order. YMMV.
posted by futz at 5:18 PM on August 14, 2016

Response by poster: Thanks all for the tips!

I was just browsing at Torrid, and WOW do they have a lot of shirts with really, really stupid sayings. I might order the Frida Kahlo one, but I will NOT be wearing HEY GIRL HEY or IS IT FRIDAY YET? Do they usually have more variety in their offerings?

I liked a lot of the Modcloth designs. The drawbacks there were that a lot of them were either sleeveless or white. I tend not to wear white shirts since I'm perpetually braless (and also very pale).

There must be a place where a curvy, busty girl can get cute black babydoll shirts that don't say dumb things.
posted by mermaidcafe at 7:02 PM on August 14, 2016

Just a heads up...
They have terrible reviews online.

Huh. Weird. The two orders I've placed with them have been great. And I was able to get a t-shirt that referenced Magnum P.I., which I don't think I would have been able to get anywhere else.
posted by MsMolly at 7:59 PM on August 14, 2016

Rebel Circus has a selection of pinup/gothy/punky/tattoo style brands and shirts. Here's the plus size T Shirt section. Heads up, many are dumb sayings. But there is some cute stuff with a gothy vibe. I haven't ordered from them before though.
posted by Crystalinne at 8:01 PM on August 14, 2016

Etsy might also be a good place to go. Seanan McGuire endorses UnicornEmpire a lot and I've seen a lot of folks talking about the nice quality of her shirts, although I haven't purchased any myself (but I have seen plenty of pictures of bigger women wearing them).
posted by possibilityleft at 4:51 AM on August 15, 2016

I'm gotten some nerdy WOOT shirts I really like. I buy them in the men's 3X. This would not be fitted (I like them loose), but you could buy one and see how much it costs to hire a tailor to fit it to your specifications. The shirts are inexpensive and of decent quality, so this might be a worthwhile option.
posted by FencingGal at 7:50 AM on August 15, 2016

I am a 22/24 and I go with Torrid and the largest women's cut size at TeeFury. The TeeFury shirts are very fitted on me. At Torrid, a 3 fits loosely and a 2 fits snugly. Hope this information helps!
posted by oblique red at 12:28 PM on August 16, 2016

I'm a 42DD and overweight, I detest regular men's cut T-shirts.

I have a Torrid 2x scoop neck that I love and wear constantly, pretty much every Saturday since May and it's still comfy and in good shape.

I just this minute got a new shirt from TeePublic which is fitting well, although not as much of a scoop neck as the Torrid. I got the Missy Scoop Neck Tee in 2X.

Both shirts are a nice length as well.
posted by saffry at 2:27 PM on August 30, 2016