1. Dress for the size you are
Not what you want to be, or once were! Work with what you have! Own IT!
(Amen to that!!!)
2. Dress from the inside out
A well-fitting bra and shapewear will camouflage all lumps and bumps!
(People do not be afraid of the undergarments...no one wants to walk behind you watching stuff jiggling...)
3. Clothes should skim your body
not cling to it like sausage casing! Think high-waist, wide trousers, and A-line or flared skirts
(Can I get a Hallelujah!!!)
4. Don't cover your curves!
Big clothes on big bodies only make you look bigger.
(Wellll...)
5. Skirts should end
Just before or under the kneecap. Your legs will look longer
(Don't be afraid of a little leg action!)
6. Shorter, fitted jackets
will also flatter your legs and waist.
(C'mon testify somebody!)
7. Avoid elasticized waistbands.
They might be comfortable, but they add bulk to your midsection.
(To this I respectfully disagree...and that's why I sew!)
8. Keep necklines open.
A deep v- or scoop neck lengthens your neck.
(And shows 'em what you got! There are women out there paying good money for what God gave us naturally! *LOL*)
9. A dress with a belt
will cinch you in, focusing attention on your smaller waist.
(Okay I didn't use to believe this one but a picture is worth a thousand words!)
10. Wide feet need to be counterbalanced
with wide heels. A thinner heel only draws attention to your wider foot
(Again I respectfully disagree...definitely make sure that you are using a wider size...don't squeeze into the mediums...but you can wear a thin heel and a pointy toe...they go a long way towards making you feel sexy and womanly...I'm just saying!)
I think this is a really great list and I can guarantee that if you embrace some of the suggestions on this list, my plus size sisters, you will be amazed at how great you look!!!! BTW, this list is on Page 136 of the October 2008 issue of O Magazine!
And finally, please no comments about Oprah and the Alaska Woman...not only are we both sistahs but we are sistahs that support Obama and I believe she can do whatever she wants on her show, that's why its called "The O-P-R-A-H Show!!!!"
very interesting, but I think most of those apply to everyone - it doesn't matter how skinny you are, you should wear proper undergarments and clothes that aren't too tight. And you do look good in that blue belted dressed, its a very polished look
ReplyDeleteAmen to loving an elastic waist! I don't think it adds that much bulk, and it certainly adds a lot of comfort! I don't tuck in my tops anyway...
ReplyDeleteYes, those were great pointers! And people still need to dress in a way that is comfortable for them. Years ago we had a lady come and do make overs at our church. A friend had a strawberry birthmark on her upper face over one ear and higher on her forehead. So she wore her hair with bangs to cover it up some. The stylest kept saying you have such beautiful eyes (and she did) you need to not cover them up! The hair do she did was really pretty, but, my friend still needed to feel good about herself to be able to wear it the way the stylest thought she should. Her entire life she had been self consious of this birth mark. It's important for us to find our inner beauty so that we can find our outer beauty. She was still searching for the inner beauty.
ReplyDeleteNeedless to say, she didn't keep the hairdo!
I enjoy your blog. Keep up the good work.
Sorry, I should learn to proof read! I meant that the birthmark was over one "eye", not ear.
ReplyDeleteAmen on the proper undergarments! Women need to learn that SPANX or any other similar brand is your very best friend. Lumps and bumps are not a good look and take away from your outfit. And please spend as much as you can afford on a good bra. When I was in NYC, I was turned on to Century 21 and boy did I stock up!
ReplyDeleteThank you for publishing the list. I'm afraid I have fallen into the habit of wearing shapeless, larger clothes thinking I was hiding me.
ReplyDeleteI also want to add my amen to the undergarments. For years, I sewed and helped with pagents, and proper undergarments was always something I had to re-emphasize over and over.
That is a great list for everyone! Too tight and improper undergarments are unflattering on anyone but sometimes it is good to be reminded to "own" our bodies rather than fretting about what we aren't.
ReplyDeleteThank you for a fabulous list! It applies to everyone. I think I'll go buy this issue and post the list prominently. g
ReplyDeleteI agree with 6,7 and 8 the ones you don't agree with. I am on upper edge of regular sizing, a DD cup bust and full hips. The v neck doesn't have to be low enough to show cleavage, but it is slimming.
ReplyDeleteI have been wearing shorter jackets and it really does lenghthen the body. I have to agree about the elastic waist, especially if you have a small waist. It adds a lot of fabric in an area I don't want any more bulk! There is nothing as slimming as a good bra. It lifts the girls and narrows the torso when they don't spill sideways! I think that a belt, especially if you are wearing an open jacket is especially slimming.
Since my waist is fast matching my hips as I age, there is no excess in an elastic waist band and for me they work especially well in lots of outfits. I do like some fitted trousers but they are the exception. What is it they say that rules are made to be broken? I agree with you on the elastic waist. Now if a woman has a tiny waist and large hips the rule would make sense. She would be wearing wrinkles and bulk at her waist. I would hate to know on all my casual pants and capris I had to have a rigid waistband and buy and sew in all those zippers. mssewcrazy
ReplyDeleteAmem! I think this could applies to all women no matter what their size. I'm especially fond of your comment on number eight (Keep necklines open. A deep v- or scoop neck lengthens your neck.) I've often been amused at the amount of money that some woman pay big for what I've been blessed with naturally *LOL*
ReplyDeleteI really like the belted look on you. I does indeed show off your curves.
I love this list. I totally agree with most of it.
ReplyDeleteI especially agree with shorter jackets as more flattering. I have a rectangle shape—no discernible waist—and cropped jackets help give me some definition.
ReplyDeleteExcellent list! And AMEN on the undergarments...even the best dress can be destroyed with a bad bra and hail damage.
ReplyDeleteI should buy stock in spanx considering how many pairs I own!
OK, I'm not plus size (yet) but I try to follow these rules as well. Now, if I can just get the shoe thing going on. My feet always hurt.
ReplyDeleteYou do look great in that belted look! Totally flattering. I like the list, thanks for sharing it.
ReplyDeleteI find a U neck more flattering than a V neck, but other than that, this list suits all sizes. I recall following a young plus sized girl in white pants and a thong into a high school graduation, and all I could think was, "Someone should buy this girl a girdle!" It was really sad.
ReplyDeleteAnd Oprah can say what she wants, and we are all free to disagree if we wish. And I have to at least give credit to Alaska Woman for having led an interesting life, even if you don't agree with all of her choices or opinions, and I'm pretty sure Oprah would say the same; Oprah seems like a very reasonable lady to me! (And obviously brilliant, too.)
I agree with the others - we all can take a cue from the list!
ReplyDeleteOh,...I'll be checking back often to see if you do the hair cut? HeeHee. Love your shoes!
ReplyDeleteI wish I'd written your blog entry. I agree with every single word of it, so AMEN sister!
ReplyDeleteI agree with everything listed,but..leave my elastic waist pant,please.When they fit properly,there is no excess bulk around the waist,at all.
ReplyDeleteAs a tall, plus size women it has taken many years for me to give up baggy clothes. But is has also been a struggle to get clothes to fit. I need elastic in my waist pants and skirts. I use a regular waistband and add elastic instead of interfacing.
ReplyDeleteCarolyn, you are my role model especially since my new job involves dressing up for work. I'm just going to follow your lead. Yeah, I can't wait to wear suits and pretty dresses to work again.
Thanks for sharing such a great list and noticed that I follow a few of them.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with most of the items in Oprah's list. Many are very important for the plus woman. Personally, I must wear my skirts longer than she suggests, due to heavy calves. I am also tall enough to support an almost ankle length skirt well. It fits with the proportions.
ReplyDeleteAs for the Alaska woman, what a frightening person IMHO. Of course we may all have differing opinions, but Obama and Biden are my picks.
GREAT post! This is true for ALL sizes!
ReplyDeleteI have always steered clear of excessively oversized clothes ever since I learned from a close schoolfriend that her mother was amazed to realise that I was in fact severely underweight, as I always wore huge baggy tshirts and she thought that I was really fat.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, I didn't want my thinness to be too noticeable (when I started actually eating food regularly [I wasn't anorexic as such, but had a very poor appetite due to depression] I filled out and have always been curvy even when I used to be slim) and I still have my favourite dress from the age of 15 (when I was a size UK10, the dress is I think UK12) which made me look much curvier, and amazingly still fits me rather nicely now that I'm a pattern size 22!
Anyway, yes, I mostly agree with you, particularly about skinny heels, though I have a personal dislike for pointy shoes, possibly because I love my teeny tiny feet and pointy shoes make it look like I'm trying to make them look longer, somehow. Also I find them really uncomfy. When I was less ill I had some lovely round toed slim heeled shoes, but I can't generally wear heels any more :(