Clothing Article: Ripping the Label Off: Plus IS the New Standard Clothing Size for Women

Posted under Plus Size Fashion, Plus Size Fashion Article, Plus Size Information, Plus Size Women Articles by Plus Size Shopper

When you ask a plus-sized woman about clothes shopping, she is likely to cringe slightly and look away. Yes, there are stores that cater to women in this category, but often the selection is, well, let’s be kind and say frumpy. Often it is hard to find any style beyond something big, wide and baggy. Some clothing designers seem intent on hiding the woman, covering her up as much as possible. Women don’t like to be covered up. Most women instinctively know it is a form of silencing, of minimizing them as a person. Women want to look good, fresh, stylish and attractive. They don’t want their clothing to make a statement for them that suggests they are ashamed of whom they are as a person. Women are looking for clothing designed to fit them properly; clothing that is tailored and fitted, that shows off their curves in a feminine, yet elegant way. According to the AOA’s 2006 survey, more than 62 percent of women are plus-sized in America.

Some stores have recognized this trend and the fact that women often do not want to shop in a store specializing in plus-sizes. The response of trendy stores has been to push the criteria for individual sizing down in order to carry plus-sized clothing in the same area as smaller, more acceptable clothing sizes. This artificial change in sizes allows marginally plus-sized women to shop in stores where they can feel less stigmatized. Since they are the majority, this trickery is really a false message designed to attract additional sales while still marginalizing the plus-sized woman.

New designers are emerging on the market who are designing specifically for the average woman— the plus-sized woman. They are recognizing the marketing error of elevating clothing designed and marketed to the minority population of slender women. This group of designers is actively seeking out attractive plus-sized female models to showcase their growing collections of trendy, designer clothes. Finding these clothes is still a challenge. Designers who specialize in creating updated, fashion-forward clothing that looks good on the plus-size women are not being promoted in most mall stores. Until the market recognizes that plus is the new standard and stops pigeonholing plus-size women in the back corners of stores, it seems likely that plus-size women will continue to dislike this type of labeling. It seems equally likely that most plus-size women will continue to struggle to find clothing that is designed to make them look fabulous until marketing strategies change.

About the author: This article is written by Henrik Larsson, who is running facebook emoticon tool Emoinstaller. Emoinstaller allows you to add extra emoticons for facebook when chatting with your friends. The program adds over 900 new facebook emoticons and lets you easily browse and add them with a click of the mouse.