Flashback to what seems like a different century, plus size women had to be content sporting clothes that could easily pass of as someone’s sack. There was no term to define a bigger woman apart from “fat” and asking for a bigger size meant meeting with stares that said, “You’re fat, so why would you want to be fashionable?”
While television and fashion magazines continue to impose upon us the image of the supermodel; in reality, there is a huge percentage of women who are overweight or at least more full-figured than the average model. And now, they’re fashionable too.
photo by habesha
Historically, BBW women have been emulated and admired, appearing as models for sculptures and in various painting and photographs. In fact right up to the 1960s big wasn’t a big deal and then suddenly (probably due to the appearance of rake thin, teen model Twiggy) plus size fashion was relegated to the unglamorous part of the fashion world. However, the revelations of the truth behind the magical thin-ness of various famous skinny girls shocked the world and soon being curvy didn’t seem so bad anymore.
A study conducted in the United States has found that nearly $32 million worth of plus size clothing was purchased in the year 2005. These figures were expected to double the following year, and keep growing at a steady rate of at least 10% every year. With a market as big as this, designers and retailers couldn’t help but give in and the fight for fashion wasn’t in vain after all. Who says a full-figured woman has to be out-of-touch with fashion? Women do come in all shapes and sizes and clothes need to be designed for all of them, not just a few.
The world and its fashion have finally woken up to shapes other than “stick”; which means fashion-conscious big beautiful women no longer need to be left out. Being curvaceous no longer means squeezing into jeans designed for Miss Twiggy and being too scared to breathe for the rest of the evening. More and more designers are launching fashion wear designed specially for a bigger woman. So if you like being in style, but were worrying about finding your size…stop!
The battle for fashionable plus size clothing has received further recognition due to the prominence of full-figured celebrity figures such as Oprah and Queen Latifah who, with their confidence have made big beautiful women more acceptable worldwide. Even Anna Nicole Smith’s crossover from the thin to the plus size within a decade was a victory for BBW women who insist big is normal.
While online retailers are the best place for a big beautiful woman to find fashionable clothing, several local departmental stores are also stocking a whole range of plus size clothing now. World renowned designers are also creating fashion for the bigger woman. Where the options were between a sack and pillow cover at one point, they are now choc-a-bloc with the latest styles.
So don’t lose heart if you’re a big woman, remember you’re beautiful too and the steady evolution of BBW fashion proves we’re not the only ones who think so! The late Freddie Mercury couldn’t agree more when he sang “Fat bottomed girls you make the rockin’ world go round.”
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