As a plus-size woman, I know what it’s like to feel ignored by the fashion industry. I know what it’s like to have to compromise glamour and style for size. I’m used to being told that fashion isn’t for me and that I just need to find clothes to ‘flatter my curves’ instead of being daring.
For all of these reasons, I’m eternally grateful I stumbled upon plus-size bloggers and saw that women who are the same size as me can make bold fashion choices and have individual style. Seeing women like Claire from French For Cupcake and Lauren from Pocket Rocket Fashion sharing what they wore with confidence, as well as the lack of support for plus-size women in the fashion world, inspired me to start my own blog four years ago.
I chose the name Fat Frocks for my blog because I am fat and didn’t want to shy away from that word. We’re told that it’s something to be ashamed of, or are labeled as ‘curvy’, but I didn’t feel that way. At the time there weren’t as many UK based plus-size bloggers and all the ‘big’ bloggers were based in the US. There was a real lack of plus-size content. In the past few years though, that's all changed.
Bloggers like Gabi Gregg, Tess Munster and Nadia Aboulhosn collaborate with brands like Boohoo and ASOS and be featured in Style, Teen Vogue, Seventeen Magazine and Glamour. These women being feautured in mainstream style publications has really given confidence to plus-sized women to try blogging for themselves.
The community I surround myself with online is incredibly positive - but that doesn’t extend to day-to-day life. Whilst I rarely experience trolling online or hateful comments about my weight - I’m extremely lucky in that sense - I can't say the same in real life. It's not uncommon for people to make passing remarks about the way I look at the gym, or when I’m out for drinks with friends. There have been a couple of times when guys have made advances on me, I’ve politely declined and then they accuse me of being a ‘stuck up fat bitch’. If being fat is so repulsive to them, why approach me at all?
I used to work for a major high-street fashion retailer and was the only fat person working there. Instead of picking clothes from the shop, I had to get my uniform from Evans, which would always consist of a tunic or a black dress. I felt pressure to look like other employees there and so lost a little weight which meant I could fit into size 16s - the biggest size they stocked. Even then I rarely found any items in that size. In a batch of 100 dresses there would only be one size 16. I used to hide them in the stock room until it was payday and buy them all up. Sorry size 16 girls of Cardiff, it was me who was hogging them all!
It's also pretty difficult to emulate looks you admire or follow the latest trends when you're fat, because things take so much longer to trickle down from the catwalk into plus size ranges. The 60s styles and folky prints that are due to be huge in A/W 14 won’t hit plus size ranges until A/W15. Lots of high street plus size ranges are still pushing peplum tops and graphic tribal prints - which I’m sick of. You have to be inventive and incorporate trends into your look with make up and accessories rather than having the ‘must have’ item that everyone else can get their hands on.
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Then there are the trends people try to steer you away from. I personally love the 60s mod look but advice from magazines and relatives always pushed me away from the unflattering and shapeless dresses and the short hem lines. I wish I had ignored their advice as a teenager and wore what I wanted rather than what was supposedly flattering.
As for what I wear now, one of the best plus-sized retailers in the UK is ASOS and their Curve collection, which does more than the regular leggings, tunics and ‘flattering’ dresses. Evans have come a long way, too.
I think if you want to wear something then you should just do it and forget the rules. I love that ASOS sell bodycon dresses in the Curve range, as well as stripes, bold prints and all the other things that plus-sized women are told not to wear.
It pisses me off that plus size models always have to have a retro look when styled, and get called ‘curvy’, or 'hourglass'. Not all plus sized women look like pin-up girls. What about using plus sized women that are pretty much straight up and down? Or models wearing more androgynous clothing? Publications have come a long way - but let's be realistic, a one page spread every couple of months isn’t groundbreaking.
I would love to see some big changes in the fashion industry; a plus-size model is not the same as a plus-sized woman. The definition of a plus-size model is one who is at least 5'9" but has measurements above the requirements for "straight size" models. She could be a size 8, 10 or 12. They don’t represent plus-sized women at all.
It’s hard to have fashion idols as a plus size woman because nobody on TV, in magazines or in the public eye really looks like me. That’s where bloggers come in. I can relate to them, they are the same shape as me and I can emulate their looks and draw inspiration from them.
The plus size blogger network is huge - and many of them, like Maria from Frills 'n Spills, Sarah Essbeevee and Rosie from A Rose Like This are close friends. I hope our blogs and others help to spur on change in the fashion industry.
I got one e-mail from a woman who hadn’t worn a dress since she was in her teens because she was embarrassed about her size. She used clothing to hide away rather than to stand out, and hadn’t enjoyed dressing up for a very long time. Seeing me wearing dresses in a size 18 encouraged her to ditch her baggy clothes, and buy a fitted dress for her a party. She felt fabulous and hasn’t looked back since, adding more dresses to her wardrobe and growing in confidence. All the hours I have put into my blog was worth it for that alone.
Follow Gemma on Twitter @Gemma_DS
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.