A few weeks ago I was bemoaning the lack of good plus-size trench coats when superfantastic reader Maria popped up with a few suggestions from London Fog.
The last time I thought about London Fog was two years ago when they hired curvaceous Christina Hendricks –a package deal including Christina Hendricks’ breasts and Christina Hendricks’ hips– and then through the magic of really really painfully bad Photoshop, removed about 50% of everything below her rib cage.
Seriously, check out this “Making Of” b-roll to see just what a hatchet job they did on America’s favorite redhead.
Turns out they have a decent selection of plus-size trench coats too, surprisingly, because if they hate curves so much as to remove them from Christina freaking Hendricks then surely they wouldn’t want their beautiful brand sullied by the filthy, fatty money of people whose pelvises are wide enough to birth something bigger than a gummy bear.
Oh wait.
*sigh*
I’d forgotten that kerfuffle –I can only handle one trench-related dust up at a time and my memory is stuck at Burberry and Bogart’s kids suing each other over whether Burberry can use an image of Bogie in one of their trenches from Casablanca in a timeline– so when Maria linked to the Maura trench, a single-breasted trench coat made up to a 3X, my interest was piqued.
I liked the single breast, the feminine tailoring and the length, so after much deliberation I ordered the sand, which looked like a creamy vanilla on my screen but in reality is khaki, a light khaki to be sure, but very definitely khaki.
It’s generously cut –I probably could have ordered a size down and still had room for a sweater– and pleasingly well-made. The drape of the “faux silk” fabric is nice enough, though calling something with neither the feel or drape of silk “faux silk” is like calling a donkey a “faux unicorn.”
It will have to make a trip to the tailor’s to get the armholes taken in a bit –seriously, what is with the armhole thing? My upper arms are like Sunday hams and 90% of armholes are still cut so voluminously that I could smuggle an actual ham in there with room to spare– but over all I’m pleased with my new acquisition.
Plumcake rating: B+
Elizabeth Hawes referred to it as “notatall silk” in Fashion is Spinach, in 1938. The woman had fashion snark coming out of her ears.
Comment by Lindsay — September 7, 2012 @ 3:18 pm
I think the arm thing is that plus sizes are still kind of alien to a lot of designers. So they have no idea what circumference a fat arm would be, other than “biiiiig”, but they do know that if the arms are too small women won’t buy it. So they make it as big as possible, so that as many plus sized women as possible will be able to wear it. The fact that most of us will have to take it to a tailors is neither here nor there. The important thing for them is that it got bought.
I actually find that the cheaper brands are better at arms. I got a nice trench for less than €20, and the arms fit perfectly. My smaller friend, who came with me and who Knows About Such Things, said that the proportions in the bigger sizes were the same as the ones in the smaller sizes.
Comment by Liz — September 7, 2012 @ 8:07 pm
It’s so crazy that they cut off the curves that she’s famous for. I didn’t even recognize her at first.
Anywho, you have inspired me. I will be wearing my navy satin trench like a dress this fall.
Comment by Bethany — September 8, 2012 @ 1:46 am
Wow, that’s a really beautiful looking trench, I’ve been looking out to get one for this winter but really couldn’t find anything in my size. I’ll have to give london fog a look, thanks for the tip :)
Comment by Remmie — September 8, 2012 @ 6:50 am
I had not forgotten the London Fog Photoshop disaster. Here’s the letter I sent them at the time:
___________________
Dear London Fog,
I hope you will forward this message to the marketing department.
I have been shopping for a new raincoat, and of course I had been considering a London Fog, since your brand is synonymous with quality and prestige.
Then I saw your recent advertisement featuring an appallingly bad, body-hating Photoshop of Christina Hendricks, in which her lovely shape was artificially whittled away to a shadow of itself.
A word of advice: when you hire a famously curvaceous spokesperson to promote your merchandise, don’t alter her shape beyond recognition in your ads. In doing so, you not only proclaim your (perhaps unconscious) misogyny and prejudice against heavier female customers, but you also send an unintended and counter-productive message that discourages buyers of all kinds.
You see, you have unwittingly informed your potential customers that London Fog trenchcoats cannot be flattering unless the wearer’s body is Photoshopped away.
I will look elsewhere for my next raincoat purchase.
sincerely,
[Elsa FullName]
___________________
and the response from London Fog, which I reproduce her in full:
___________________
We appreciate your valuable input and will be forwarding your
information to our corporate offices.
___________________
I will remember this ugly Photoshop for a long, long time; I’ll remember how little London Fog cared about it even longer.
Comment by Elsa — September 11, 2012 @ 11:08 pm