Not Fat, Just Retro

Angelina of Dustpan Alley searches through her vintage patterns, and finds something interesting—no matter what The Devil Wears Prada would have us believe, a size four isn't necessarily the "ideal" body size. In fact, it was once (and may again be) quite a bit larger.

"Here's something to note: a size eighteen in the nineteen thirties was considered average and medium and today that's a size fourteen. A plus size. But no woman back then would have been ashamed to be a size eighteen. When magazines published patterns they always made it a size eighteen. So if a body measuring 36-30-39 is a size fourteen today, why on earth would any woman consider herself over weight at that size?"

And while we're on the subject, Lisa Fashionista offers a report on her quest to find plus-size vintage clothing. If you have any other tips, feel free to let us know!

Damn that Coco Chanel

We often talk about chubby women being desirable in the past, but I tend to think of the nudes in Ruben paintings, not the 20th century. I sometimes forget that in the first half of the 1900's, women built like Olive Oyl were teased for looking like boys. Angelina collects vintage sewing patterns and has noticed a striking difference in the sizing changes over the past decades. It's no secret that vanity sizing has come into play, with size 0 being the size 6 or 8 of yesteryear, but she also makes a fantastic point:

So if a body measuring 36-30-39 is a size fourteen today, why on earth would any woman consider herself overweight at that size? ... If Jean Harlow were alive today she would not have fit in a size two dress. Today we would call her a plus sized gal. But back then women were desperate to have her figure. But not quite as desperate as men were.

You're not a bad person because you're a size 18, you were just born 100 years too late. We're totally retro.

Viva España!

Major retailers in Spain have decided to ban skinny mannequins in their stores. Eat some tapas, mannequins!

"[T]wo major changes, announced in January, are in the works: Stores run by four big names will start replacing window-display mannequins so that none is smaller than size 38 (size 6 in the U.S.). And designers will standardize women’s apparel so a given size will fit the same way no matter who sells it…. To get a better idea of the shapes of Spanish women’s bodies, the government is employing some heavy technology. Using laser-fitted booths that can take 130 measurements of a body in 30 seconds, the Health Ministry is fanning out across the country to assess the sizes of Spanish women."

Seriously, this sounds really cool. Especially the part about standardizing sizes—I think all of us, fat, thin, or in-between, can relate to that frustration.

Thanks to your friendly neighborhood anonymous commenter for the tip!

Model Thinking

Catching up with Too Fat for Fashion, I came across this post meditating on the thin ideal, especially in the modeling world:

"People genuinely believe what they're saying; people believe clothes look better on the thin, the slim, the tall. I sometimes believe it, even though I 'know' differently. How have we learned to see this way, and how do we learn to see differently? One cover girl or one plus-size model isn't enough, because they will automatically look 'wrong' set amongst other bodies of a thinner type. "

The whole blog post is great, and at the moment, I have nothing to add. I just wanted to make sure you didn't miss it.

Champagne Tastes

The Budget Fashionista is reporting new designer plus-size clothing lines by Michael Kors and Calvin Klein. I haven't found any pictures, but one commenter reports:

"I saw the first pieces from the Calvin Klein line, and I'm disappointed. Nothing new or inventive, although the pieces looked like they were nicely cut. The colors were boring, nothing like the sharply tailored pieces of Calvin's 'regular' line. I'm hoping that the Michael Kors line will be better."

I am interested to find out what sizes the "plus-size" line covers, and to see what the clothing looks like. Oh Michael Kors, first Project Runway and now this to make me love you. I forgive you for tanning yourself until you look like an Oompa Loompa.

Irony

So, the New York Times article I linked to in yesterday's post said "Three years ago, Jennifer Hudson’s best-known fashion statement was a pantsuit that Simon Cowell, the resident acerbic of “American Idol,” compared to a roll of aluminum foil." Of course, as Ian pointed out, it was ironic when she showed up on the red carpet wearing a jacket made of aluminum foil.

But hey, at least she wasn't dressed like an AIDS ribbon. And she looked awesome in her sing-off with Beyonce--that red dress was smokin'.

Also, raise your hand if you think Norbit was the reason Eddie Murphy lost his Oscar last night. I completely believe that.

"Leading up to the Oscars, some speculated that the recent release of Murphy's lowbrow, cross-dressing comedy 'Norbit' would injure his Oscar prospects. The 'Norbit' producers hesitated over releasing it in the middle of Murphy's Oscar campaign, but director Brian Robbins said it was Murphy who insisted on releasing it on schedule."

I thought he deserved the Oscar, but part of me was happy he didn't win it. Up yours, Norbit.

Mo Pie And Anne's Totally Honest Product Review Part II

Part one of our product review is right here.

Part Two: Anne's Outfit

Asymmetric Tunic

Anne:
So I received the asymmetric tunic in black, and immediately liked it on first glance. It's a nice heavy fabric, as most of Igigi's fabrics are, so it felt substantial and expensive, and it drapes really well, skimming the body but not clinging. There is a bit of ruching along one side, which makes the blouse very curvy and fitted - my tits looked magnificent, and my waist tiny, which is something I am always one hundred percent for. But what about the asymmetry? you ask. Where oh where does that come in? Good question! I reply. It appears in two places, and one place is far, far better than the other. The neckline is an unusual kind of slash, an off-kilter v-neck that is not deep at all, but sexy for being unique and unexpected. The hem, that's where we find the further adventures into asymmetry, and what ultimately confuses me about this top. The blouse is certainly tunic length – on one side. The other side, that's a little under hip length. And that means that you've got a bit of belly hanging out the bottom, if you've got a bit of belly, since the hemline cuts right along that area, and it is not flattering. That leaves you with a kind of -- flap, thing of fabric on the other side that looks like a flag, or a handkerchief, or something else not particularly attractive. It is a weird, gimmicky-feeling choice in styling to make, it constantly distracts me, and it drops the top from an A+ down to a B+-ish.

Mo:
I am totally into those asymmetric necklines—my favorite H&M sweater has an asymmetric neckline—but the asymmetric hem is a problem and I'll tell you why. It falls into the same fat-girl-design trap as bathing suit skirts. It's like a little Flap of Distraction. "No, I'm not fat! If you find yourself looking over here and you think you see some fat, just look at the waving little Flap of Distraction and be lulled!" I hide my fat swimsuit thighs (and my laziness about bikini waxing) with boy-cut swim shorts, because I feel like that sad little swim skirt is just trying way too hard. Ditto the Flap of Distraction. It looks fabulous on the model in the photo though, I have to say. Sleek and interesting, not flappy. So now I don't know what to think.

Brigitte Dress

Anne:
The second item of clothing was the Brigitte dress in ocean blue, which is way more teal than the photograph shows. I did not wear it on our date, because one does not wear a top and a dress at the same time. But I did wear it on Halloween, when I went as a devil in a blue(teal) dress. It's made in that standard Igigi heavy-feeling fabric, and lined well, so that it smoothed out the bumps and was Slimming. It felt a little short, to me - coming right above my knee, which is a difficult feat, considering that I have stumpy little legs. The length made it feel a little babydollish in not a great way, since the waist was high, dropping down from a weird cinched bosom that was not particularly flattering, especially with the ties hanging down. I certainly I wasn't crazy about the sweetheartish-neckline that felt kind of 80s to me. This is marketed on the site as a cocktail dress, but I am not sure Igigi's designers have the same definition of "sophisticated" as I do.

Mo:
Now I personally thought you looked fabulous in the dress. I loved the great fit. And by "great fit" I mean "your bosom." The gathers are, I think, so flattering. And the color was great, very rich, rather than a cheap, whoreish sort of teal. But if you didn't like them—see, that's the thing. How you feel in it contributes so much to whether you can pull it off. I feel that your bosom—I mean you—pulled it off, though.

Anne:
My bosom pulls things off all the time. My bosom is kind of a whore. Overall, though - Igigi's stuff is really well-made, really expensive-feeling and well-tailored, and there's a lot of attention to detail -- I think if you like a piece, and how it fits you, it is definitely worth the price, which is sometimes steep. But it goes back to aesthetics, I guess. My aesthetic and Igigi's aesthetic do not quite line up, in their casual clothes. Their ball gowns, though? They are pretty much flat out fabulous and rich-looking. I wish I had more balls to attend.

Mo:
That's what she said.

Mo Pie And Anne's Totally Honest Product Review

As you may be aware, the savvy marketing team at Igigi sent out some items of clothing to various bloggers for them to try and send back. Anyway, they sent some things to me and to Anne, and now here we are to review them!

In order to conduct our review, we put on our Igigi outfits and went out to dinner at Lime, a delightful little small-plate venue in San Francisco. (I had a fantastic Mojito. I feel that's important to record.) I wore the Camilla top under a black blazer from Target with the Palazzo pants. Anne wore an asymmetric tunic top and probably some pants or something. Here is part one of our two-part series.

Part One: Mo Pie's Outfit

Palazzo Pants

Mo:
The first item I'd like to discuss is my black pants. They have two layers of fabric--I don't know what you'd call that--are they lined? I know nothing about fashion. They are elastic waist "palazzo" pants. I thought they would be comfortable, and they were. However, the heaviness of the fabric and the elastic of the waist made me feel--and there is no politic way to say this--as if I were wearing "fat pants." When I was at my heaviest, I had a couple of pairs of billowy black pants with elastic waists. The elastic waist made them feel like "I give up" pants, and they reminded me of being too fat to wear "real" pants. I will admit this is totally on me. I am sure there are thin women out there who wear elastic waist pants. Or--wait--are there?

Anne:
I can't imagine elastic waist pants being anything someone would put on, frankly, and billowy pants still less something a fat girl should be putting on. I'll admit I found the two-layered pants a little weird - they looked a little bit like the kind of thing you stuff a Mother of the Bride into, with a sequined tunic on top. They only came down to your ankles - which is the fault of your long and gorgeous legs, really, and not the pants, but still mitigated the effect the designer was going for - a long, flowy, romantic and dramatic silhouette, I think. Even though I am kind of making fun of the pants, because flowy and romantic and dramatic is kind of ridiculous, they did achieve their goal - your legs looked totally poetic. The fabric also looked quite rich and expensive. But again, the styling felt a little old, a little fat-girl, as you said, and I have to wonder why Igigi doesn't make pants in lengths - it's the reason I'll never buy a pair from them. That, and all their things are wide-legged. I am wide-legged enough.

Mo:
And yet I think the wide leg thing is great on some people. Especially if you're bigger on top and narrower in the bottom--what's that shape called? The opposite of a pear. An apple? A lollipop? A Tyrannosaurus Rex? I really was in favor of the idea of big wide-legged pants--I love flare jeans, for example--but the elastic was the killer for me. And obviously the length; for those of you who don't know, I am 5'10" and they were just that little bit too short.

Camilla Top (blue)

Mo:
The screened-on lace shirt... my first reaction was that having that fake lace on there was like wearing one of those T-shirts with a tuxedo painted on it, or a big swimsuit cover-up muumuu with a picture of a bikini-clad body. (Those are so sad.) However, I really did like the shirt. I got a lot of compliments on it (until I pointed out the fake lace and then they said "wow, that's fake?" and looked closer and kind of laughed at it). I like the shade of blue, the square neckline, and the sheer sleeves. And now that I know (thanks to Product Anarchy) that the fake lace is a Christian Lacroix homage (Lacroix, sweetie, Lacroix), I am back on board with it. It is perfect under a blazer during the day (not too low cut) and then I can take the blazer off at night (sheer sleeves made it saucy). Still, if they had one for $20 more with real lace, I would totally buy that one. The fake lace makes me feel ambivalent and funny inside.

Anne:
The fake lace still kills me. Ha! Sorry, I was just remembering. I am not sure I can entirely get behind the dogs-playing-poker-on-velvet aspect of it, but I have to admit, it really did look smashing under the blazer you paired it with. The neckline was flattering, and the color did great things for your eyes. The length was right, and it was just fitted enough. I was not crazy about the shirt sans blazer, however -- the neckline cut for which I do not have a name was a little, again, old-fashioned, and the sheer sleeves left me cold. I think I saw too many sheer sleeves at the old-school Lane Bryant, which always screamed to me "My arms are too fat to show! My gauze astounds and bewilders you!" I would have liked this top a lot more with a square neckline and solid sleeves.

Mo:
I think the blazer over it is the right call. My favorite outfits involve blazers and tops paired with jeans--that's probably the college professor in me. But that being said, I liked the neckline and enjoyed the sleeves. Perhaps I am just too astounded and bewildered by the gauze to be objective.

[Stay tuned for Part Two: Anne's Outfit]