Go get ‘em! But I warn you, I’m tweeting it first –one more perk of following @MissPlumcake–as soon as I hit publish on this thing, they’re going to go like hotcakes.
Mmm. Hotcakes.

This in itself is not an issue. I would much rather be tall than short and while I would not go so far as to say short people got no reason to live (you get miniskirts and tall boyfriends after all) were I offered the chance to be shetland-sized, I would decline it in a heartbeat.

Now, many tall people tend to have long legs. I don’t. My legs go all the way up and all the way down (to nearly universal approbation, thankyouverymuch) but it’s my torso that covers vast tracts of land.

So this whole low-rise thing we’ve been seeing for the past decade? Nightmare and a half.

I essentially just gave up on wearing either until I could find something that could cover my bottom half without making me grand marshal of the 2011 Crevice Parade or subjecting myself and everyone around me to an unwanted dromedary-type situation.

Anyway, I was bopping around on HSN.com the other day and as a lark ordered the Roam foldover bootcut pant.

My thinking was these were inexpensive, relatively well-reviewed and I was only going to wear them to Ireland anyway and frankly I’m not all that concerned about being liked in Ireland because come on, I’m a Southern girl who loves dark beer, pale men and comes with her very own magnificent set of great big American…teeth. I’m accepted more places than American Express.

Anyway, I figured these wouldn’t wrinkle and would keep me warmer than leggings, plus I could wear them with flats:

You guys, WHERE have these BEEN my entire life?

They should rename these the “Locks Your %#$ DOWN” pants.

The quality and construction of the pants are good, it’s a nice solid ponté knit, but what I LOVE about them is the foldover section.

Instead of folding it over (which I kinda don’t get, apparently it’s a yoga thing…does your root chakra need an extra layer for warmth?) I wear it with the foldover section up, and although I wouldn’t say it is a control panel (these aren’t exactly womens control pants), it does give a nice feeling of being held in, plus it makes the lines of my tops look nice and smooth AND I don’t have to worry about accidentally exposing myself to people who have not been made appropriately ready for my jelly.

They are a teensy bit short if your legs are on the longish-side of normal. The advertised inseam is 31″ but I think my pair might be closer to 30″ and if you’re wearing super lumpy industrial-grade underpants there’s a slight VPL issue.

I went by the garment measurements and sized down because I knew they’re quite stretch but I might order true to size if I went with any color but black.

A note: the seams of these pants curve in towards the leg as a theoretical slimming element. I kind of like it because it’s unusual, but it’s worth knowing these are not straight seamed pants.

Today we are pricing down, to Fashion Bug, which  sells Misses and Plus size casual-wear and lingerie. At the top of the home page, you can opt to shop according to size, including 16-34, 16-32 short (they couldn’t call it petite? Whatever.), and 16-32 long. (Warning: Short and Long selections are limited.) (Misses sizes start at 6). Their sale page is here.

Today they are having the Thanksgiving Day sale, online only, on all their Fall clothing here.

YES

Francesca had a hard time with the “Yesses” and “Maybes” because her personal idea of “casual” is “suede jacket with boot-cut jeans.” So let us get it out of the way: If you are looking for your basic turtlenecks (on sale today for $6 apiece), polo shirts, jeans, panties, and the like, this is a good place to go. It is a good value for the price.

And now for the slightly more Francesca-esque items. Click for outfit suggestions and/or purchase info:

NO

MAYBE

On one of the hands, they smack too closely of the 1970′s, and though it was the decade of Francesca’s birth, she feels that, sartorially, they are best left behind.

On the other of the hands, Francesca can see that the tall, bold Big Girl can rock this style.

On the third of the hands, their empire waists and long skirts are a nightmare for Apple-shaped petite girls like the Francescaness.

Maxi dresses: Yes or No? What say you?

If yes, what is your shape and height, and where would you wear this style?

Saks Fifth Avenue – Designer sale. Designer plus-size sale here. Free shipping on orders over $200 with code SAKSFS

Igigi – Up to 75% off everything. Ends tomorrow.

Liz Claiborne Woman – Tremendous discounts, ends tonight!! Additionally, you’ll automatically get $25 off purchases of $100 or more, or $50 off purchases of $150 or more, or $125 off purchases of $300 or more.

Avenue – Shop The Ten Dollar Event!

Monif C - Up to 80% off everything at the site.

Nordstrom – Sales for women and men. Plus sizes are here.

Svoboda – “Preview” sale ending tomorrow: take 35% off anything you want with code PREVIEW09.

Land’s End- Semi-annual sale. Plus sizes here. Tall sizes here.

Lane Bryant – Up to 60% off everything on the site, and semi-annual lingerie sale.

Silhouettes – Lots of end-of-season The sale items, and take 20% off your order of $50 or more with code S8W908.

Old Navy – Clearance sale! Plus sizes here.

JC Penney- After-Christmas clearance. Plus sizes here. Tall sizes here.

Talbots – End-of-season sale. Plus sizes here. Petite-plus sizes here.

Kiyonna - After-Christmas savings deal: Through December 31, use code GIFT20 ($20 off purchases of $100 or more), GIFT50 ($50 off purchases of $200 or more) or GIFT100 ($100 off purchases of $350 or more).

Coldwater Creek - 50% off the whole website. Use code SAVEBIG at checkout. Plus sizes here.

Bloomingdales - Sale on selected items ends December 31. Plus sizes are here.

Always for Me – Swimwear sale. Use code freeship100 and get free shipping on orders over $100 in continental US.

Roaman’s- After-Christmas sale.

One Stop Plus – site-wide sale.

Chico’s – Winter Sale on select items. Use code 6380 to receive $10 off your purchase of $50 or more. (Also, at their affiliated Soma Intimates store, there is a lingerie sale going on, AND you get a free panty with any purchase at the Soma store with code 7126.)

J.Jill- up to 70% off. Ends January 5. Plus sizes here. Tall sizes here.

Woman Within-Clearance sale.

Evans (British sizes) – Up to 70% off

Torrid- Holiday through January 4th. Also through the 4th: an additional 50% off clearance items.

(“Approval” meets Francesca’s approval! Especially at 40% off!)

Certain t-shirts at Avenue are selling now for under $10, while supplies last. Each one comes in so many wonderful colors! Stock up for next summer.

Today only, get discounted ground shipping on any order over $100 at Zaftique, by entering code FRSUMMER08 at checkout.

The bi-annual “red tag” clearance sale is going on at Coldwater Creek. Save up to 80% on over 1,000 items. (Here are the 45 items still available in Size 3X. Francesca likes this sweet gingham front-tie shirt, and this silk wrap-shirt. She is also thinking about getting this eyelet shirt-and-shorts set, for lounging around on a Sunday at home, or to cover up a bit at the beach when the sun is too strong for her.)

At Swimsuits for All, Find Great Deals on The Hottest Styles on Sale Now at get 20% off any Plus Size New Arrival by entering code NEW20. Or get 50% off any Women’s Christina Style
by entering code CHRISTINA50.

Always for Me is having a swimwear sale, with many items 25-50% off. (The style to the left is available here, at 25% off.) Please note: no returns on sale items.

Labor Day sale at Lane Bryant for six days!

Through September 1, get 15% off your full-price purchase at J.Jill by entering code HBC241 at checkout. Women’s sizes are here. Tall sizes are here. Francesca notices that many beautiful items in the Women’s section are on sale — and therefore not eligible for the discount code, but at excellent prices on their own. This dress here is available up to size 4x and is great for work.

Through September 5th, use code FALL2008 to get 10% off your purchase at WomenSuits.com.

Win a $100 “shopping spree” at the HolyClothing Webstore: Send an email to contest@holyclothing.com with a photo of yourself in a HolyClothing garment, telling them “a bit about yourself, where you enjoy wearing it, compliments you’ve received, etc.” Entries will be judged for the “best photo and text combination,” and winners will get more clothes and have their photo featured in an upcoming Holy Clothing newsletter.

Lots of new items at the Overstock section of Land’s End.

Happy shopping!

xoxo

Our friend Genevieve has turned our attention to LongLegs.ca, a boutique store in Canada for the Tall Girl, which has an online catalogue!  And they have extra-special security and extra-special personal attention; Genevieve writes:

A friend of mine ordered something from the site. They don’t take credit cards over the Internet. You place your order, and then they call you, talk to you about what you bought, help you make sure you bought the right sizes (it’s a small boutique, and they just started selling online…the people who you talk to also do the ordering for the actual store), and then take your credit card info over the phone. She said they were very helpful, particularly with sizing.

Happy shopping!

xoxo

Evans has a fairly decent selection in the plus-size “Petite” and “Tall” categories, which Francesca appreciates, being only 5’1″!

Note for American readers: The shipping charge to the USA is only about $20 (presumably per shipment, not per item, but check this.) So if you order a few items, the shipping is worth it. Also remember that sizing works differently in Europe, so use the size chart!

Carol points out that for $40 extra, the company also offers this service:

We will send you a muslin form of the dress style (sleeveless top through the hips) you would like to order. You can pin the form to your exact fit, send it back to us, and then it will be used by the seamstress to make your dress. We’ll keep this on file for any additional orders.

Happy designing!

xoxo

In recommending plus-size fashions, Francesca’s rule of thumb is that an item of clothing is fair game if it is available in a Size 16 and/or higher. Size 14 is often available in “regular” stores, albeit not as often as size 12, while Size 16 is usually the smallest size available in the plus-size stores. Francesca knows that one could write an entire blog on the travails of the girls who wear size 14, which is often considered too big for the regular stores and too small for the plus-size stores. But she has to make a mental border for herself somewhere. So, for this blog, size 16 is usually it. That is why she sometimes recommends clothing by J. Crew, who are not exactly known for catering to fat girls, because they do have an entire Size 16 section on their site (as well as fashions for the Tall girls, to whom Francesca sometimes wishes to nod and wink), though their failure to offer sizes 18 and up makes Francesca feel a bit squeamish about referring to them too often.

Then we come to the selections for the posts on “Big Girls in Art.” Several readers said that they do not believe that the woman (apparently Salome) in this painting is actually big:

Oh, oh, oh, now we have come straight into the hornet’s nest! For, though this woman  probably does wear a Size 16 or 18 on the bottom (she is a beautiful and voluptuous Pear, and very aesthetically pleasing, and probably has a hard time finding skirts and pants which fit her hips but are not too wide at the waist) Francesca fears, some readers may have looked at this image and thought “if that girl is big, what am I?” They may also have thought “Why is Francesca buying into the Big Bad Media idea that a woman with any fat on her is Big?”

Francesca will answer the second question first. In an ideal world, the Big Bad Media would not categorize people by their size at all. But the whole point of this blog is that our world is not ideal, and women’s whose hips or tummies or breasts are more than an arbitrary size are considered “Big” either in terms of where they can find clothes, or whether they are considered “too big” or “too fat” by others, or both.

The point of Big Girls in Art is to show that indeed that mysterious fault line (and Francesca chooses that term on purpose) is indeed arbitrary. There was a time when the woman with very generous hips was considered the ideal, and was celebrated in what was then The Media. There was a time when having a large butt was so attractive that women wore bustles to make theirs reach out to Indiana. In other words, Francesca wants to demonstrate that the problem is not us, it is this strange, arbitrary idea that thinner is better – an idea started, Francesca thinks, partly because thin women serve as better hangers on which to model the fashions on runways, and partly because having the time and money to maintain a perfectly flat belly indicates wealth in our age. The problem is not us or our genes or our class, it is the time.  Not so long ago, the woman whose genes made her predisposed to the waif-like frame was the one with the problem.

And in answer to the first question . . . if the woman in this painting is big, do you know what you are?

Beautiful.