The disastrous thing about Ulla Popken’s Plus Size line is that it totally obscures the natural female form in yards and yards of fabric.
Regardez:
This isn’t just an issue for plus-sized women, although this page of the Popken catalog provides an excellent primer for the particular problem of using clothes to hide, rather than to highlight, the human form.
Do you notice how most of the outfits feature long, fairly shapeless tops over long, shapless skirts? Your eye registers large blocks of color and even after staring at the photo, you can’t remember for the life of you what the model’s face looks like. Yikes! In the photo above, the duster falls at the most unflattering possible length. Even a tall model wearing high heels can’t overcome the person-obliterating function of this terrible outfit.
This is what I call the I Hate My Body! outfit:
“Musn’t show any shape or skin!”
So, a few tips:
If you wear a long column skirt, keep the top fitted and shorter, no longer than the hips. Consider a belt, darts, or some other feature that will maintain the line of the waist. Wear accessories that draw the eye away from the big block of color (skirt) and up toward your FACE: chunky necklaces, full hair, big earrings, bright lipstick.
If you wear a long, fairly shapeless tunic up top, pair it with a tulip skirt or slightly-flared pin-striped trousers or something on your lower half that has shape. Wear heels to balance the length of the top, and consider a long necklace that hits you at the rib cage to break up the big block of color of the tunic. If you have a big chest or are a larger gal, the necklace should have some heft to it — anything dainty will look out of proportion and defeat the purpose.
She’s got the right idea, although no necklace can save her from the horrid effects of that big ole shapeless jumper. And could you come up with an uglier color combination if you TRIED? If she pulled her hair up off her neck, hemmed the jumper to just below her knee, belted it and wore some cute tights with high-heeled Mary Janes, we’d be talking about a workable outfit.
Oh, wait. She’d have to burn that turtleneck first.
Dear ones, these tips aren’t intended to be cheezy “How To Look THINNER” suggestions, but are my attempt to help your beautiful FACE not get lost in a profusion of fabric and oversized, shapeless garments. I personally think that most of the Ulla Popken garments should be taken out and shot, but given that we all probably have some items like these in our closets, let’s try work with them.
Your comment about “uglier color combination” reminds me of what the Van Trapp kids said about Maria’s clothes her first day — Sound of Music was on TV last night — and indeed, her skirt was the same color of gray hempen cloth.
The lesson? Perhaps the ideal accessory is a guitar.
ahem! i don’t have ANY clothes that look like these, thank you! 🙂
KRS, ya BETTER not! I’ll have to come and GETCHYA if you dare.
As a plus size woman I’ve always tried to hide my shape, the large chest, the stomach that never went away after two pregnancies and the thunder thighs. What I saw pictures of myself in clothes that I thought I could hide in, I looked larger. Then I saw pictures of myself that showed my shape, and I looked better. So now that fall is almost here, it’s time to go through the closet again.
Hear, hear! I would so rather have clothes that are tailored than clothes that hide my figure!
Ever notice how most retailers photograph only marginally plus-size women in plus-size clothes? That exaggerates the “swamped with cloth” effect. If they only realized that the thinner models don’t do anything to help them sell the clothes! What they NEED to do is use real plus-size women, modeling clothes that actually fit and flatter real plus-size women. But that would make too much sense…and there are too few designers out there who give a **** about designing clothes for anyone who is bigger than about a size 6.
It just doesn’t seem too much to ask for: clothes that fit, flatter, and don’t require a woman to rob a bank in order to afford them!
I would also LOVE to see real plus-sized models that do NOT cover their hips with their hands. Honestly. The waist-to-hip ratio (i.e., that we HAVE hips) is one of the sexier things that sets us off from looking like men! Hmph. Makes me cranky.
I have a similar issue w/Petite clothing. Making it shorter is not the same as making it in Petite proportions
Now THAT is the truth, Mrs. M. As someone who needs both plus-size AND petite, I’ve been there! I wish they’d be clear about what is and isn’t “petited” about the cut. I’m one of those who needs shorter inseams and sleeves, but not a smaller rise. It would be good to know, for example, approximately how many “Ds” one must have up top in order to fill the supposedly 1XL Petite shirt or jacket, when one is ordering online. I sent back a shirt last year that put me in mind of Bennie in “A Circle of Friends” when she said, “Jesus, Mary & Joseph–I look like the prow of a ship!” (Or rather, *I* don’t look like one, but the shirt required such a build.) I wish they’d provide sleeve “inseam” as they do for pants, and the rise for pants, and that they’d give at least a general “darts for generous bust” or “fitted bust for a medium build,” or SOME indication of the overall shape that would fit the clothes.
Seriously, it’s enough to make me go hunt for a dressmaker sometimes.
Before I make a different point, I just have to say that I have given up on Ulla Popken. At first I was excited when I heard of the catalog, but after getting a few of them, it really made me glad I have other options.
anyway…on to a different subject.
I know there are some other sew-ers on here and they might have some other recommendations…..but I’m going to repeat something that has been said here many times before.
Tailors are good! 🙂
If there is an outfit that you really like but doesn’t fit quite right, find a good tailor. You will end up with a wonderful outfit that will last for a while and looks good on you. It will be money well spent.
Psalmist, I actually do look like the prow of a ship, and that’s a whole different set of tailoring issues…
These look like clothes I’d have been very excited to find when I was a Muslim.
I agree wholeheartedly about baggy, shapeless and colorless clothing. But as a fairly tall woman (5’8″,) I am so happy to see all the long jackets this fall. They are much more flattering to than those little jackets – at least if they are well tailored.
Exactly, Mrs. M. We might be considered the same There’s no telling until you either swim in the garment up top or strain it to the breaking point whether the designer/manufacturer considered 1X (or 2X, 3X, etc.) “plus-breasted” or not. The way the teen-inesy thin models swim in the garment’s picture, there’s no way to tell.
At least companies like Catherine’s and Lane Bryant do try to use actual plus-size models. Unfortunately, the former in particular has some VERY chintzily made garments. I’ve stopped wasting my money there. And I find both companies are consistently too big through the bust for B or C women. I agree that tailoring can fix things. It’s just so frustrating to spend so much money on clothes, only to have to go spend even more money to get them altered so they fit.
Oops…make that “We might be considered the same SIZE.”
I’m a short person who is between plus and regular sizing. I sew, therefore I dress. Before I had the time and space to sew, having to wear Ready-to-Wear clothes like those shown in the post made me definitely hate my body!
Have you noticed that even when plus sized models are used their faces are usually thin, not round like a plus woman’s face?
Oops, I forgot to say that these days maybe a good dressmaker is in order! There are now patternmakers that can help with good fit and style for plus sized women: (I tried but couldn’t figure out the xhtml code)
Connie Crawford at Butterick Patterns
Khaliah Ali at Simplicity Patterns
Sandra Betzina at Vogue Patterns
Kathleen, owner/designer of PetitePlusPatterns.com
Hope This Helps!
This is so interesting……I love Catherine’s. I think Lane Bryant is the one that has gone down in quality…and it’s such a shame too.
I’ll repeat my suggestion about tailors. They are worth the money and you get clothes that look good on you and are cost effective.
If you’re looking for any of the patterns mentioned by Mary Beth, here are the places you can go:
For Vogue/Butterick/McCall’s patterns:
http://www.mccall.com
For Simplicity patterns:
http://www.simplicity.com
Petite Plus:
http://www.petitepluspatterns.com
There’s also Burda Patterns:
http://www.burdamode.com
(Burda is a German company and uses a slightly different system, but they are a really good at having up-to-date fashions)
It’s a bright day if you’re a sew-er. And even if you aren’t, there are many dressmakers and tailors out there who can help.
the clothes the women is wearing in the first picture isnt a form showing picture but at the same time the women looks over weight and should show off her chunks of fat, therefore the outfit she is wearing IS flattering on her and it looks good. [WHAT? Pardon, dear? Not very clear, but that’s okay.Thanks for sharing. – PB]
Psalmist, I totally agree with your commit. Real plus-sized models being a rarity I truly doubt designers will indulge our needs even though we arethe majority shoppers.