Big & Beautiful
Say it loud and say it proud girls...
I've always been big, since I was 17 I've been anywhere from a size 16 to 20. Well that's not very big, you might think, but you go into a "normal" high street shop and yes they might sell 18 and 20 but the chances of finding one can be quite remote. For clothing essentials that don't break the bank the best option is actually a supermarket. The quality in relation to the price is fantastic and the clothes last for ages... but that's a different matter entirely.
We all know that body shaming is a big thing at the moment, I'm not sure what set it off but I've certainly been seeing a lot of uproar about different things. Yet another thing that makes me sad about humanity. Why are we shaming anyone for anything? Apart from shaming cats and dogs for weird things... because that's cute... and they don't care, you can tell by their expressions!
Anyway, what really made me want to write this post was a programme I watched on BBC iPlayer called My Big Beautiful Wedding Dress [you can still see it for another 10 days]. Curves and Couture in Essex are a specialist bridal shop that cater for size 20 to 36 and they are the focus of the show. Not only do they have the beautiful princess dresses that most women dream of, but they give you tips on dressing on the day and point out common mistakes [muffin top is a nightmare]. Now that doesn't sound like it's exciting at all does it? But you'd be wrong, this is every big woman's idea of perfect shopping experience.
What am I moaning about? After all I've already admitted I can buy clothes in high street shops. Posh dresses [ballgown/bridesmaids dresses as an example] are never simple things though, big sizes are not the same size as when you're buying normal plus size. When I have to buy something specific I will generally shop online, it's easy to check sizes and there aren't snarky looks from sales assistants as you hand back items that don't fit. Sometimes though you have to go out to shops.
When it came to being a maid of honour for my best friend it was the happiest moment ever, but there was some trepidation as I'm already familiar with shopping for fancy dresses. We went to a bridal shop to look at dresses for myself and the other maid of honour, I knew I was going to have trouble with some styles but I was shocked when at a size 16 so did the other MoH.
We were trying on the same dresses in our respective sizes and soon realised we had to go up a size, but in some cases I was giving my dress to the smaller MoH and even that wasn't fitting. In a vain attempt to just find a style we were trying on dresses we didn't really have much interest in but were told that one dress wasn't stocked in over a size 14 because they didn't think anyone over that size would look good in it... I'm paraphrasing, but it's not really that far off.
You can buy plus size dresses online but they are usually China imports so if they don't fit you have to hope they're too big so you can have them altered. Most of the dresses I saw in the bridal shop, I also saw on eBay, and were significantly marked up when buying them "off a peg".
We hit the high street shops and found some nice dresses that fit but didn't look fantastic. In the end we found some beautiful dresses in BHS [which I think went up to size 24] that fit and were flattering, and it was staffed by a wonderful woman who was actually helpful. Out of all the shops we went to BHS was by far the most down to Earth.
The two women who run Curves and Couture are offering such a fantastic service to women who are not only dealing with one of the most stressful things they'll ever have in their lives, arranging a wedding, but are having the added trauma of finding a wedding dress that makes them feel as special as they should do on this day.
Even having my minor problems when out shopping I find it annoying, but at the end of the day [and not just about this], I don't care. There's a reason why people who hate or disapprove of everything aren't part of my life... and that simple reason is I feel like life is too short to have those people around.
So big girls, I'm saying this to you, in fact I'm saying this to any women who feel body image pressure...
I am big and I am beautiful!
I've always been big, since I was 17 I've been anywhere from a size 16 to 20. Well that's not very big, you might think, but you go into a "normal" high street shop and yes they might sell 18 and 20 but the chances of finding one can be quite remote. For clothing essentials that don't break the bank the best option is actually a supermarket. The quality in relation to the price is fantastic and the clothes last for ages... but that's a different matter entirely.
We all know that body shaming is a big thing at the moment, I'm not sure what set it off but I've certainly been seeing a lot of uproar about different things. Yet another thing that makes me sad about humanity. Why are we shaming anyone for anything? Apart from shaming cats and dogs for weird things... because that's cute... and they don't care, you can tell by their expressions!
Anyway, what really made me want to write this post was a programme I watched on BBC iPlayer called My Big Beautiful Wedding Dress [you can still see it for another 10 days]. Curves and Couture in Essex are a specialist bridal shop that cater for size 20 to 36 and they are the focus of the show. Not only do they have the beautiful princess dresses that most women dream of, but they give you tips on dressing on the day and point out common mistakes [muffin top is a nightmare]. Now that doesn't sound like it's exciting at all does it? But you'd be wrong, this is every big woman's idea of perfect shopping experience.
What am I moaning about? After all I've already admitted I can buy clothes in high street shops. Posh dresses [ballgown/bridesmaids dresses as an example] are never simple things though, big sizes are not the same size as when you're buying normal plus size. When I have to buy something specific I will generally shop online, it's easy to check sizes and there aren't snarky looks from sales assistants as you hand back items that don't fit. Sometimes though you have to go out to shops.
When it came to being a maid of honour for my best friend it was the happiest moment ever, but there was some trepidation as I'm already familiar with shopping for fancy dresses. We went to a bridal shop to look at dresses for myself and the other maid of honour, I knew I was going to have trouble with some styles but I was shocked when at a size 16 so did the other MoH.
We were trying on the same dresses in our respective sizes and soon realised we had to go up a size, but in some cases I was giving my dress to the smaller MoH and even that wasn't fitting. In a vain attempt to just find a style we were trying on dresses we didn't really have much interest in but were told that one dress wasn't stocked in over a size 14 because they didn't think anyone over that size would look good in it... I'm paraphrasing, but it's not really that far off.
You can buy plus size dresses online but they are usually China imports so if they don't fit you have to hope they're too big so you can have them altered. Most of the dresses I saw in the bridal shop, I also saw on eBay, and were significantly marked up when buying them "off a peg".
We hit the high street shops and found some nice dresses that fit but didn't look fantastic. In the end we found some beautiful dresses in BHS [which I think went up to size 24] that fit and were flattering, and it was staffed by a wonderful woman who was actually helpful. Out of all the shops we went to BHS was by far the most down to Earth.
The two women who run Curves and Couture are offering such a fantastic service to women who are not only dealing with one of the most stressful things they'll ever have in their lives, arranging a wedding, but are having the added trauma of finding a wedding dress that makes them feel as special as they should do on this day.
Even having my minor problems when out shopping I find it annoying, but at the end of the day [and not just about this], I don't care. There's a reason why people who hate or disapprove of everything aren't part of my life... and that simple reason is I feel like life is too short to have those people around.
So big girls, I'm saying this to you, in fact I'm saying this to any women who feel body image pressure...
Feel proud of your body, whatever life has dealt you, embrace it. You are beautiful no matter what anyone else says.I've never been thin, I can only tell you my side of this sizeable story, but I wouldn't change anything.
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